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Vintage Portal Main >> Articles >> Breweriana
Vintage Beer Labels
There are many forms of vintage breweriana. Some of the vintage items may
come in forms such as decorative decanters, tin signs, and neon lights. One
form of advertising that is quite often seen are the vintage labels on
the beers themselves.
The history of vintage beer labels is quite fascinating. Some of the
original beer labels that were created were very elaborate and patriotic in
detail. The American labels would consist of eagles and American flags. The
writing would consist of elaborate and delicate scroll work. Since there
were not die cuts available at the time, the tedious task of applying the
labels one by one was all done by hand. Before Prohibition in the United
States in the 1920's, bottling companies did not have to list the contents
on the bottle, and would on occasion, even say that it was bottled under a
separate company. These facts are a sure fire way to find out if the
label was created before the National Prohibition of 1920.
During the Prohibition, beer companies were not allowed to use the
words "beer," "lager," "ale," etc. on their labels. In order for the
companies to continue selling their beer legally, many companies changed
their logo to read "brew," "dark," etc. Anything that did not say "beer" but still advertised the product was used. It should also be noted that many breweries were forced to change the names of their companies as stated by law. Such companies changed their labels to represent their new
names that included "Beverage Company," "Bottling Company," and others.
There are many people unaware of the great finds that can be had with
vintage labels. Many beer factories close down, and as a result, there are
hundreds upon thousands of beer labels that are unused. That is the best
time for a vintage beer collector to seek any unused labels. Often times,
closed breweries will sell the labels for a very cheap price. The vintage
labels not only become a valuable asset to the collector, but can be kept in
the hands of someone who truly appreciates its value.
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