Dartington's offer to the beer drinker is a series of four classic tankards that have been in production for 30 years. They are the perfect way for the beer connoisseur to enjoy his ale in the comfort of his own fireside - reassuringly heavy in the hand and made of the clearest glass. They are also an ideal gift, often given with an engraved dedication or message. Tankards of this form are no longer to be seen in most English pubs, but they have played an important part in the history of British beer. Tankards made of pewter incorporated glass bottoms in the 18th century. They were known as "King's shilling tankards" because the glass was for checking that no coin had been slipped into the beer. Putting a shilling in the tankard and claiming he had accepted payment as a recruit was one way of supplying the army and navy with manpower!
