Rainier Club Extra Pale Beer Cone Top Can

Rainier Club Extra Pale Cone Top

The Can

This twelve-ounce low-profile cone top container was manufactured for the Rainier Brewing Company of San Francisco, California. Dating from the late 1930s into the 1940s, it utilizes Continental Can Company's classic "Cap-Sealed" construction. The front panel features a prominent dark oval medallion enclosing the iconic script "Rainier" script underlined with a flourish, positioned above block lettering reading "CLUB EXTRA PALE BEER." Beneath the medallion sits bold, enlarged "BEER" lettering anchored by the brewery's San Francisco location, with "NET CONTENTS - 12 FLUID OZS." printed along the upper shoulder. This variation features an export tax exemption statement ("Withdrawn Free of Internal Revenue Tax"), designating cans routed outside domestic tax channels for military or overseas distribution.

The Brand

Rainier Club was developed in the late 1930s following successful regional test-marketing of a pale lager formula in 1937. Officially launched in 1938, Rainier Club Extra Pale Beer became the San Francisco brewery's flagship offering. Positioned alongside advertising slogans such as "In the West it's Rainier," the brand was heavily promoted throughout California and neighboring Western states. The brewery briefly reformulated the recipe into "Extra Dry" in 1947 before returning to the Extra Pale formulation, which continued until the brand was phased out in favor of a revamped Rainier label in 1949.

The Brewery

Rainier’s San Francisco history originated in 1915 when Washington State adopted early statewide prohibition, prompting the original Seattle-based owners to move brewing operations south to a newly established plant at 15th and Bryant Streets. Following the 1933 repeal of Prohibition, the San Francisco Rainier Brewing Company operated as an independent business. Throughout the late 1930s and 1940s, it stood as the second-largest brewing company in California, filling its facility with both Rainier flagships and dozens of contracted private labels. In 1953, brewing magnate Emil Sick purchased the operation, consolidating the brand rights back to Seattle while selling the San Francisco physical plant to the Theo. Hamm Brewing Company.

Collecting Context

Low-profile cone tops from early California brewing history represent a popular specialty within breweriana collecting. This can serves as a classic artifact of Rainier's distinct mid-century California operations and the specialized packaging produced during the era.