Old Style beer is serving up nostalgia this year. The beer maker, owned by Pabst Brewing Company, is tapping its roots with its first new beer in 15 years, a seasonal take on Old Style, and also reviving fan-favorite packaging from the 1970s.
Courtesy of Old Style.
While the new beer, Old Style Oktoberfest, is a tribute to the company’s German roots, the releases also celebrate the long-standing Midwestern heritage of the brand. Oktoberfest will be produced in the original La Crosse, Wisconsin, brewery and will only be available in Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Minnesota and Ohio.
“I think it’s a great opportunity to demonstrate that we have been brewing these various styles of beer for numerous years and bringing it back,” John Wilhelm, the brand general manager for the Pabst Local Legends Brands, told FORBES. “And meeting a growing consumer demand for new and different styles. It allows us to tell our story of history and heritage.”
The limited edition beers will hit shelves in August and are timed with the company’s sponsorship of Oktoberfest U.S.A., an annual festival held in La Crosse in late September and early October. Old Style helped launch the event, according to Wilhelm, and was among the first kegs used when the festival began in 1961.
Courtesy of Old Style.
Old Style Oktoberfest is a Märzen style beer that pays homage to the German heritage of Gottlieb Heileman, the original owner of the company that created Old Style. Oktoberfest will also be produced in the original Heileman brewery, where Old Style hasn’t brewed since 1999. Old Style is normally made in Milwaukee and Trenton, Ohio.
People living outside the Heartland might not get to sample the new flavor, but they can get a taste of the company’s nostalgia with the revival of Old School’s 1970s packaging. The bottles and cans will feature the over 40-year-old design starting next month.
Courtesy of Old Style.
Wilhelm said in the last three to four years, fans have been posting pictures of their Old Style memorabilia on social media and also using the platforms to suggest the company resurrect the look.
“This helps tell our story and connect with consumers,” Wilhelm said. “It brings that nostalgia from the old days into people’s lives today.”
