Good wine needs no bush

Proverbial Meaning: Products that are made well, or are of a high quality do not need to be advertised - they sell themselves through virtue of their substance.

Literal Origins: In olden times, before everyone could read, shops and stores had signs hanging outside with pictures of their wares. Shops that sold wine had a picture of a bush outside. However, the saying went, if the wine was very good everyone would soon hear about it and come flocking, regardless of the sign outside.

Common Usage: This proverb is unheard of in modern times, though people do say things like "quality sells itself", to mean the same thing.