Krueger Finest Beer Flat Top Can

The First Commercial Beer Can

The Krueger Finest Beer flat top holds a monumental place in brewing and packaging history as one of the first canned beers ever sold commercially to the public. Produced by the G. Krueger Brewing Company of Newark, New Jersey, in partnership with the American Can Company, it officially debuted in a Richmond, Virginia test market on January 24, 1935, alongside Krueger's Cream Ale.

The partnership began when the American Can Company sought a brewery willing to pilot its newly developed container technology. To mitigate the financial risk for the regional brewer, American Can Company installed the canning line equipment at no initial cost. The container relied on American Can Company's proprietary "Keglined" process, which applied a specialized interior coating to protect the beverage from interacting with the metal.

The Richmond launch was an overwhelming commercial triumph, demonstrating immediate consumer acceptance and sparking a packaging revolution across the brewing industry. Following Krueger's success, major national competitors rushed to introduce their own canned offerings within months.

For breweriana collectors, the can is celebrated for its classic graphics, which prominently feature the G. Krueger branding and the American Can Company "Keglined" trademark. Several variations exist across production runs, showcasing subtle differences in legal tax notices—such as Internal Revenue Tax Paid (IRTP) statements—as well as minor modifications in text placement, border accents, and volume phrasing such as "Same As Bottle".