Blatz English Type Ale Cone Top Can

Blatz English Type Ale Cone Top

Manufactured in the mid-1930s, this twelve-ounce cone top container highlights the early era of canned beer packaging following Repeal. The can carries a 1936 copyright date along with an Internal Revenue tax statement and features a concave bottom construction. Visually, the label incorporates the distinct "ENGLISH TYPE" designation boldly lettered across an arched banner over the traditional Blatz crest and star emblems, distinguishing it from standard lager packaging of the period.

Following the end of Prohibition, the Valentin Blatz Brewing Company sought to expand its reach by offering styles beyond its classic Germanic lagers. Blatz English Type Ale was marketed to cater to drinkers who favored top-fermented, English-style brews with a different character than standard American pilsners. As consumer tastes shifted overwhelmingly toward uniform adjunct lagers in the decades following World War II, specialty ale brands like this were gradually discontinued in favor of the flagship Blatz lager.

Valentin Blatz founded his brewing operations in Milwaukee in 1850 and consolidated with Johann Braun’s City Brewery in 1852. Blatz quickly expanded to become one of the famed "Big Four" brewing dynasties of Milwaukee, joining Pabst, Schlitz, and Miller. The company established itself as an industry innovator, opening one of the city's earliest brewery-owned bottling plants in the 1870s to facilitate national distribution. During Prohibition, the brewery adapted by manufacturing non-alcoholic malt products, sodas, and confections to keep its facilities active. In the late 1950s, Blatz was sold to neighboring rival Pabst, prompting a lengthy antitrust battle that eventually saw the brand pass to G. Heileman before returning to contract production in modern brewing history.

Among breweriana enthusiasts, 1930s cone tops from Milwaukee’s historic brewing giants remain central to collecting regional beer history. This can stands out within the category because ale offerings from Milwaukee's predominantly German-heritage lager houses are far less frequently encountered than the standard lagers produced during the same period.