My friend ( a paying customer) would like a 50th birthday cake, round, with a wine bottle on it that says "Vintage 1963" and 2 wine glasses on the sides with Happy birthday on the cake. I have no idea what to do with this to not make it look like a grocery store cake.  She wants buttercream, white, not fondant., for 30+ guests.

I've scoured the internet and found nothing attractive that would inspire me towards any design adaptation either. 

All I can come up with right now is:

#1- suggest 2 tiers,which I'm sure she won't have a problem with.

#2- Perhaps do a cut out fondant or chocolate wine bottle and prop it up against the 2nd tier, wine glasses somewhere, and then maybe some cascading flowers?  The party is in the lounge at the Ritz. 

Needs to be special and classy. Ugh. 

#3- drawing them on with buttercream- just like a grocery store cake.

#4- Suggest a different design. :)

There are some nice designs on google images just search for cake with wine bottle.

My go to thought was a 3D wine bottle on it's side with glasses beside it, grapes and vines and a lovely edible printed label... but that would have to be fondant...

If you did two tiers with BC could you make your wine bottle and glasses in flat pieces of modeling choc, that way they wouldnt need propping up, then hand paint them to look 3D? you could trail grapes and vines too to tie it all together; I'd suggest the glasses on top tilted in a toast perhaps, the wine bottle off centre left and Grapes off cenre right on the board against the bottom tier to balance.

you need to check the galleries on here on CC, there are some fabulous wine bottle cakes on here.

AYep, been through all of the galleries and google images plus others. Nothing looks attractive or special to me. Oh well.

http://www.makeyourownmolds.com/how-to-sugar-glass-mold

perhaps you could make the bottle/glasses using sugar glass

If I use the sugar glass bottle, would it make a different as to what type of icing I use?  Would fondant work better or would BC?  How would the sugar bottle sit up on the cake?