By now you've probably realized that the only barrier between you and rooftop luxury jacuzzi partying is your choice of beer -- but before bikinis, how did the ad wizards of yore dictate consumer habits? Behold the mind-altering power of old school beer ads, with Nostalgiaville's Ad Art Gallery.

Using the magic of Web .01, AAG's catalogued over 2700 beer magazine ads, many from the golden age of magazine art (1890s-1950s), when lovingly detailed sketches were accompanied by lovingly unsubstantiated promises. Turn-o-the-century spots tend towards the medicinal, from Anheuser-Busch recommending Malt-Nutrine to "nursing mothers" and "feeble children", to Pabst proclaiming their elixir vital for those who "need physical strength to fight the battles of life". Later decades saw Carling punk recycling with a no-deposit "throw-away bottle" ad (featuring an unburdened housewife), while Ballantine hailed their heritage as the official beer of the Dirrrty Scottish South with the tagline "It ha' the PUR-R-RITY" (and there's certainly no arguing with that).

AAG stays vigilant through the post sketch-art era as well, so you can witness Champale ("the malt liquor you serve like champagne") progress from a subtle way to impress your boss at lunch, to just making a man shout "Hey Diane! I've got a drink that'll make your mouth think it's Saturday night!" You know, when they were in that jacuzzi?