Antique Budd Grape Soda Label from 1920s Newport

Why Would a Soda Company Need to Say "Imitation" Right on the Label? 🍇

Honesty was good marketing in small-town 1920s New Hampshire. Long before flavor-labeling laws required this kind of disclosure nationally, Budd's put it right on the label in plain type — and that small piece of candor is part of what makes this surviving label such an interesting artifact today.

🍇 What It Is

This is an original New Old Stock (NOS) beverage label for Budd Imitation Grape Soda, produced by Budd's Beverages, Inc. of Newport, New Hampshire, dating to the 1920s. It measures 4¼ x 3¾ inches, printed in cream with vivid illustrations of cherries and grapes alongside confident red and black lettering. The label survives unused, never applied to a bottle.

🏭 Budd's Beverages of Newport, New Hampshire

Budd's Beverages, Inc. began in 1916 as a grocery store serving Newport's Polish immigrant community, then expanded into carbonated soda production in 1922 through the Newport Bottling Works. By the 1930s, Budd's beverages — including this grape soda — were well known across Vermont and New Hampshire, part of a regional soda culture built on small, local bottlers rather than national brands. The company closed in 1972 after more than five decades in business.

"Imitation" flavored sodas were entirely standard in this era — grape-flavored soda rarely if ever contained actual grape juice or extract in commercially meaningful quantities, and honest labeling of that fact was a normal, respected practice among regional bottlers building trust with their local customer base.

🖨️ The Printing

The cherry and grape illustrations and the confident red-and-black lettering on cream stock are consistent with the era's small-bottler label style — bright, appetizing, and designed to catch the eye on a store shelf or soda fountain counter.

🖼️ Display Ideas

• 🍇 Pair it with Budd's Creamy Root Beer label for a complete two-flavor Budd's grouping.
• 🖼️ Frame it for a kitchen or soda fountain-themed display.
• 📚 Add it to a New England regional beverage history collection.

🎁 Who Collects These

Soda label collectors and New Hampshire/Vermont regional historians seek out Budd's material for its documented five-decade local history.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

Why does it say "Imitation Grape"?

Honest, standard labeling practice for the era — grape-flavored sodas of this period typically used flavoring rather than real grape juice, and bottlers said so plainly.

How old is this label?

1920s, from the same Budd's Beverages run that operated in Newport, NH from 1916 to 1972.

What size is it?

4¼ x 3¾ inches.