Blitz Weinhard Select Beer Flat Top Can

Blitz Weinhard Select Beer Flat Top

Produced during the 1950s, the Blitz Weinhard Select Beer flat top can represents a classic mid-century package from the Pacific Northwest. Lithographed across a background of alternating metallic gold and blue horizontal striping, the front display centers on an elongated cream-colored oval. Prominent red Gothic blackletter typography spells out the heritage name, capped above by a circular medallion featuring hop cones framed by golden barley stalks. Positioned neatly beneath the bold blue "BEER" lettering is the circular emblem of the United States Brewers Foundation. A defining detail of this particular issue is the statutory statement indicating "DNCMT 4%" (Does Not Contain More Than 4% alcohol by weight), complying with specific state regulatory limits of the era.

Blitz Weinhard Select was positioned as the brewery's standard flagship lager throughout the post-Prohibition mid-century decades. Heavily promoted across Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, advertising campaigns celebrated the brew's regional authenticity, pristine local brewing water, and high-quality Pacific Northwest hops. As national macro-breweries intensified competition in the 1960s and 1970s, the company adapted its offerings, eventually launching Henry Weinhard’s Private Reserve in 1976—a pioneering release often viewed as a foundational spark of the American craft beer revolution.

The history of the brewery began in 1856 with German immigrant brewer Henry Weinhard. In 1862, Weinhard acquired the City Brewery on West Burnside Street in Portland, expanding the facility into an industrial powerhouse that dominated Pacific Northwest brewing. When Oregon enacted statewide prohibition in 1916, Weinhard’s operation merged with Arnold Blitz’s Portland Brewing Company to pool resources and survive by producing soda, syrups, and near-beer. Following Repeal in 1933, the renamed Blitz-Weinhard Company resumed brewing and remained a stalwart independent institution run by Weinhard’s descendants until its sale to Pabst in 1979. After successive acquisitions by Stroh and Miller, the historic Burnside brewhouse ended production in 1999.

For breweriana enthusiasts, mid-century cans from Blitz-Weinhard hold enduring appeal due to the brewery's storied history and strong regional identity. Cans featuring state-mandated alcohol control statements like the 4% restriction provide valuable insight into the patchwork of post-Repeal liquor regulations, making them popular focus pieces among flat top collectors.