Jesse Bloggs

Two of our close friends, Geoff and Becca Scott, are opening a new brewery, Track 7, this New Year’s Eve. I previously worked with Geoff and Becca to create the “Pretty Tasty” illustration for their Ceccarelli Pears, sold at Sacramento-area farmer’s markets:

Geoff and Becca asked me, along with two of my other artist friends, Skinner and Phil Altstatt, to create art for their beer labels. I was assigned drawing duties for the Big Four Ale, which “[ … ]contains the four essential ‘C’ hops – Cascade, Centennial, Chinook and Columbus [ … ].” The Big Four Ale takes its name from the founding members of the Central Pacific Railroad: Charles Crocker, Mark Hopkins, Collis P. Huntington, and Leland Stanford, known collectively as “The Big Four.” Interestingly enough, The Big Four were so powerful that following the publication of a political cartoon critical of Huntington, a law was passed that banned political cartoons in California! According to the California Historical Society, “It prohibited the publishing of any drawing which reflected adversely upon the ‘honor, integrity, manhood, virtue, or reputation’ of any individual. This anti-cartoon bill became law in 1899 and remained on the books for fifteen years, a chilling legacy from the era of the Big Four.”

I suppose my illustration, seen below, would’ve passed muster. I’ve also posted each of the Big Four by themselves so that they can be seen in more detail.

Come out to Track 7 Brewing Company Saturday, December 31^st, for their grand Sacramento opening!