Pabst Blue Ribbon
An American lager known for its blue ribbon history.
Pabst Blue Ribbon—often called PBR—is an American lager made by the Pabst Brewing Company. The brewery was founded in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1844, though its headquarters are now in San Antonio, Texas. The beer started out as Best Select, then became Pabst Select, before getting its current name from the blue ribbons tied around each bottle between 1882 and 1916.
Frederick Pabst arrived in the U.S. from Germany in 1848 as a twelve-year-old with his parents, Gottlieb and Frederika. After working on Lake Michigan ships, he married Maria Best in 1862, daughter of Philip Best, whose father Jacob had started the Best Brewing Company. Frederick became a brewer at his father-in-law’s brewery the next year. When Philip Best retired to Germany in 1867, Pabst and Emil Schandein—his sister-in-law’s husband and the brewery’s vice-president—expanded the company into one of the nation’s largest. The Great Chicago Fire of 1871, which destroyed nineteen Chicago breweries, helped push Milwaukee ahead as America’s leading beer city. After Schandein died in 1889, Pabst became president, and Schandein’s widow, Lisette, took over as vice-president. In 1890, Pabst changed the company letterhead from “Best” to “Pabst,” officially launching the Pabst Brewing Company.
The company has long claimed the beer won “America’s Best” at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, leading to the name change. But whether that award actually happened is unclear. Some reports from the time say the fair refused to give such prizes, with only bronze medals handed out for “some independent and essential excellence in the article displayed,” not to rank competitors. Still, the beer had won many other awards at other fairs—so many that Captain Pabst had already started tying silk ribbons around every bottle in 1882. Back then, bottles were more often embossed than labeled, and adding ribbons was expensive. But the move paid off: patrons began asking bartenders for “the blue-ribbon beer.”
Sales hit 18 million barrels in 1977, and in 1980 Pabst was still the third-best-selling beer in the U.S. But between 1980 and 1981, the company went through four different CEOs, and by 1982 it had dropped to fifth place. In 1996, Pabst moved its headquarters out of Milwaukee and stopped brewing at its main complex there. By 2001, sales had fallen below that year’s mark.
Quick Facts
- Abv
- 4.7%
- Manufacturer
- Pabst Brewing Company
- Origin
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Gottlieb and Frederika Pabst and their twelve-year-old son Frederick arrived in the United States in 1848 and settled in Chicago where Frederick eventually found work on the ships of Lake Michigan. In 1862, Frederick married Maria Best, daughter of Philip Best, whose father Jacob Best founded the Best Brewing Company, and in 1863 Frederick became a brewer at his father-in-law's brewery. When Philip Best retired to Germany in 1867, Pabst and Emil Schandein worked to transform the company into one of the nation's largest brewers, capitalizing on, among other things, the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 that destroyed nineteen Chicago breweries and helped position Milwaukee as the leading beer-producing city in the United States. In 1889, Schandein died, leaving Pabst as president and Schandein's widow, Lisette Schandein, as vice-president. In 1890, Pabst changed the 'Best' letterhead to 'Pabst' and the Pabst Brewing Company officially began.
The company has historically claimed that its flagship beer was renamed Pabst Blue Ribbon following its win as 'America's Best' at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893. Whether the brand actually won an award in 1893 is unclear. Some contemporaneous accounts indicate that many vendors were frustrated by the fair's refusal to award such prizes. One account says that the only prizes awarded by the executive committee were bronze medals, in recognition of 'some independent and essential excellence in the article displayed', rather than 'merely to indicate the relative merits of competing exhibits'. However, the beer had won many other awards at many other fairs – so many, in fact, that Captain Pabst had already started tying silk ribbons around every bottle since 1882. Patrons started asking their bartenders for 'the blue-ribbon beer.'
Sales of Pabst peaked at 18 million US barrels in 1977. In 1980 it was still third in sales in the U.S. Between 1980 and 1981 the company had four different CEOs, and by 1982 it slipped to fifth. In 1996, Pabst headquarters left Milwaukee, and the company ended beer production at its main complex there. By 2001, the brand's sales were below that year's level. In 2010, food industry executive C. Dean Metropoulos bought the company for a reported $250 million. In November 2014, Eugene Kashper and TSG Consumer Partners acquired Pabst Brewing Company. In 2015, Pabst won the 'best large brewing company of the year' award at the Great American Beer Festival. On October 8, 2020, the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation announced that Pabst was moving its headquarters from Los Angeles to San Antonio, Texas.
Reader's Guide
Pabst Blue Ribbon's significance lies in its long history as an American lager that survived a dramatic decline and revival. Originally brewed in Milwaukee, the brand became a national powerhouse by the late 19th century, using blue ribbons as a marketing gimmick that customers themselves popularized by asking for 'the blue-ribbon beer.' After peaking in sales in 1977, the brand fell to fifth place by 1982 amid management turmoil and the closure of its Milwaukee brewery in 1996. Its revival in the early 2000s came from an unexpected demographic: urban hipsters, who embraced the beer as an authentic, countercultural choice. The company has carefully managed this image, sponsoring indie music, local businesses, and post-collegiate sports teams rather than overtly courting the hipster label. Pabst has also expanded internationally, with production in Australia, Canada, Ukraine, Russia, Dominican Republic, Brazil, and China. The brand's cultural footprint is substantial, appearing in films like Blue Velvet and Gran Torino, television shows like Breaking Bad and South Park, and even professional wrestling sponsorship. Despite no longer brewing in Milwaukee, the city's name remains prominent in its branding. The beer's legacy is one of resilience and reinvention, from a 19th-century ribbon-tied bottle to a 21st-century icon of alternative culture.
Did You Know?
- The name comes from blue ribbons tied around the bottle's neck between 1882 and 1916.
- The beer experienced a sales revival in the early 2000s due to popularity among urban hipsters.
- In 2015, Pabst won 'best large brewing company of the year' at the Great American Beer Festival.
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