Old Crown Premium Quality Ale Flat Top Can

Old Crown Premium Quality Ale

Produced by the Centlivre Brewing Corporation of Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Old Crown Premium Quality Ale Flat Top Can represents a key piece of northern Indiana's brewing heritage. Founded along the St. Joseph River by Charles L. Centlivre, the brewery grew into a regional powerhouse, with Old Crown serving as its premier label.

Centlivre was among the pioneering breweries in northern Indiana to adopt metal canning through an early partnership with the American Can Company. This container was issued as part of the company's core lineup, prominently featuring the Old Crown emblem alongside the notable "Lazy-Aged" marketing slogan that defined Centlivre's mid-century promotional campaigns.

Known variations of this can exist among collectors, displaying differences in manufacturer markings, side-panel text layouts, and regulatory revisions such as the shift away from Internal Revenue Tax Paid (IRTP) labeling. Centlivre also distributed cans across several distinct background color schemes to distinguish its various ale and lager offerings during this production era.

Because Centlivre eventually reorganized around the Old Crown corporate name before concluding operations at its historic Fort Wayne plant, cans bearing the original Centlivre Brewing Corporation name remain central display pieces for Midwestern breweriana collectors.