Metz Malt Liquor Flat Top Can

Metz Malt Liquor Flat Top Can

Dating from the mid-1950s, this twelve-ounce flat top can represents the post-Prohibition era of Omaha brewing. Manufactured as a non-IRTP container, it was produced locally in Nebraska by the Continental Can Company. The can exhibits a distinctive mid-century layout, setting bold, shadowed block lettering against an elaborate calligraphic script, grounded at the base by a tight field of horizontal pinstripes.

During the 1950s, regional American brewers began introducing malt liquors to diversify their product lines beyond standard pale lagers. Formulated with a higher alcohol content and positioned as a robust specialty beverage, malt liquor allowed local establishments to compete with burgeoning national brands. Metz marketed its malt liquor across the Great Plains to capture this segment, offering it alongside core staples like Metz Jubilee Beer. Following the Omaha plant's closure, rights to the Metz brand portfolio were acquired by the Walter Brewing Company of Pueblo, Colorado, which maintained the brand into the following decade.

The Metz brewing tradition in Omaha originated in 1864 when German immigrant brothers Frederick and Philip Metz purchased a local brewing facility. Their business expanded into one of Nebraska’s leading breweries until state-level prohibition forced its closure in 1917. After national repeal, the Fontenelle Brewing Company was established at the former Willow Springs brewery site on Hickory Street. Seeking to leverage local brand loyalty, the company purchased the historic Metz name in the late 1930s and officially adopted the Metz Brewing Company moniker. The operation remained a vital part of Omaha’s industrial landscape until intense competition from national brewing conglomerates prompted its closure in 1961.

Within the collector community, mid-century malt liquor cans represent a popular and focused collecting specialty. Because breweries generally produced malt liquors in substantially smaller quantities than their flagship lagers, containers from independent Midwestern operations serve as key centerpieces for enthusiasts cataloging Nebraska brewing history and vintage flat top graphic design.