Ahh, Pabst Blue Ribbon, the perfect beer for your romantic, Edwardian-era booty call. Or, you know, to drink now on the cheap.
Over 170 years ago, the first run of PBR was but a wee 300 barrels. The company began to hand-tie blue ribbons to each bottle as a marketing-savvy representation of how many awards it had won, the culmination being a now-nebulous prize at the 1893 Chicago World’s Columbian Exposition. PBR kept those ribbons in place until World War I rationing caused a silk shortage.
Fast forward to 1920. Alcohol was outlawed, and thus, the cuddle call illustrated in the ad here wouldn’t have been possible. Pabst quit making booze and made butter instead. Thank the lager gods, it was back to beer as usual in 1933 with the repeal of Prohibition.
Bonus: If you look up vintage PBR ads online, you’ll find a 1979 commercial starring Patrick Swayze’s bouncy hair and a “Mad Max” roller derby advert.
Patty Templeton
DGO Staff Writer