Old Milwaukee Genuine Draft 16 Oz Tab Top Can

1969 Old Milwaukee Pint Tab Top

Dating from 1969, this 16-ounce straight steel pint can captures a distinctive moment in packaging design from the Jos. Schlitz Brewing Company. The can features metallic silver bands along the top and bottom rims, framing a body detailed with pale vertical pinstripes. Bold typography emphasizes the container's volume, featuring a large numeral 16 flanked by the one-pint contents notice. Arched above the central design sits a banner heralding "GENUINE DRAFT BEER," positioned over the hallmark crimson block with stylized Old Milwaukee lettering. Directly below, the heraldic eagle-headed "Old M" crest rests over the Jos. Schlitz Brewing Company name, while side rim text preserves the 1969 copyright and Milwaukee brewery origin.

Schlitz first introduced the Old Milwaukee moniker around 1890 as a regional offering, later reviving the label in 1955 as an attractively priced alternative to premium national lagers. By the late 1960s, Schlitz expanded distribution across the United States, promoting the canned beer as "Genuine Draft" to appeal to consumers seeking draught-style character at home. Old Milwaukee earned a devoted following, eventually becoming famous through long-running advertising campaigns celebrating unpretentious quality and the outdoors. Following decades of shifting corporate ownership, the heritage brand was absorbed into the Pabst Brewing Company portfolio.

The Jos. Schlitz Brewing Company was established in Milwaukee in 1849 by August Krug and flourished under Joseph Schlitz, who took command in the 1850s. The brewery gained national renown after sending boatloads of beer to Chicago in the wake of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, popularizing the moniker "The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famous." Schlitz weathered Prohibition through soft drinks and baker's syrups before rebounding aggressively in the post-repeal era, waging a decades-long battle against Anheuser-Busch for brewing supremacy. Problematic manufacturing adjustments and labor disputes in the late 1970s weakened the company, leading to its acquisition by the Stroh Brewery Company in 1982.

Pint-sized tab tops from the late 1960s hold a respected place among breweriana collectors. Because 16-ounce cans were filled in considerably lower volume than standard 12-ounce cans, these taller straight-steel versions command significant interest in regional collections. Cans showcasing metallic silver trim with late-sixties dates document a concise bridge between the heavy steel era and the aluminum pull-tab designs that followed.