Pabst Brewing is ending Schlitz production after 175 years, with Wisconsin Brewing's Kirby Nelson set to make a final 80-barrel batch on May 23 in Verona.
Nelson said the farewell brew will follow Schlitz's 1948 specifications—when the brand led the U.S. beer industry—and called it a sendoff with "dignity and respect."
Pre-orders for the last Schlitz open May 23, with beer available June 27 at a public celebration; Nelson will also pour it at Old World Wisconsin's July 4 event in Eagle.
Founded in Milwaukee in 1849, Schlitz once became America's largest brewer before cost-cutting, a 1981 strike and brewery shutdown, and later sales to Stroh and then Pabst eroded the brand.
Could this final tribute brew spark a genuine revival for Schlitz, pulling it from its corporate hiatus?
Is Schlitz's demise a warning that beloved legacy brands cannot survive in today's consolidated beer market?
Has Schlitz become more valuable in its symbolic death than it was during its final years of production?