Bergheim Beer Flat Top Can

Reading's Bergheim Flat Top Can

Produced in Reading, Pennsylvania, by the facility operating under names such as the Old Reading Brewery, Reading Brewing Company, and Bergheim Brewing Company, the Bergheim Beer flat top can is a staple of mid-century regional breweriana from Berks County.

Design and Regional Heritage

The graphic design pays tribute to southeastern Pennsylvania's Germanic brewing heritage and Pennsylvania Dutch culture. The lithograph presents a scenic pastoral illustration depicting a red barn, a horse-drawn wagon, evergreen trees, and a mountain stream, paired with the prominent marketing slogan emphasizing pure mountain spring water. Its German-style blackletter typography and landscape imagery make it a popular display piece for regional can collections.

Production Variations

Collectors recognize variations across different production runs. Mandatory text on the side panels attributes the brew to different corporate entities, including The Old Reading Brewery, Inc., Reading Brewing Company, and the Bergheim Brewing Company trade name. In addition, examples exist featuring Pennsylvania state tax stamps printed or embossed across the top lid.

The Souvenir "Air Cans"

The Bergheim label holds a notable place in brewing lore connected to the shutdown of the Reading facility. During the plant's final operational days, the brewery ran out of brewed beer while unused cans remained in the packaging line. Rather than scrapping the remaining inventory, plant workers operated the canning machinery to seal empty Bergheim cans filled only with compressed air. These sealed "air cans" were distributed and sold to employees and local collector communities as farewell souvenirs, cementing the brand's association with the conclusion of brewing at the historic Ninth and Laurel streets plant.