The last of the iconic 6.5-ounce Coke bottles has reached the end of the line in the US.
The bottles,cast for the Minneapolis Coke bottling works in 1948 was the last glass returnable bottle filled and capped in the US."This is the last one,"LeRoy Telstad,vice president and general manager,said,holding the bottle high before handing it off to auctioneer Jon Kohner.
Five minutes and$2,000 later,Michael Faber,president of Viking Coca-Cola of S Cloud,became the proud owner of what is doubtless the most expensive bottle of pop ever sold in Winona."I plan to retire on this one day,"he said of his purchase.
Others who want their own sip of soft-drink will have an opportunity beginning next week to purchase one of the remaining 5,879 bottles filled during the final run.Telstad said the last 6.5-ounce bottles will be sold for$20 each,with all proceeds going to resurface Winona's bike and walking paths.
The Winona Coca-Cola Bottling Comapany has been filling the bottle since it opened in 1932.The first Coke was sold in 1886 at a drugstore soda fountain in Atlanta.
The bottled Coke first sold in Vicksburg and then across the US.It wouldn't be sold in'Coke bottles'for 21 years.The iconic bottle was the product of a 1915 design competition won by Root Glass Company in Indiana.
