American beer drinkers lament demise of iconic brand after 177 years as many cite 'mistake'

A beer once synonymous with American households is officially reaching the end of the line, with the final batch of Schlitz set to roll out on May 23 after 177 years of brewing — and reactions online have ranged from sadness and derision to deep disappointment. 

Founded in 1849, Schlitz became one of America's dominant beer brands during the 20th century, earning the slogan "the beer that made Milwaukee famous."

Its popularity surged after the Great Chicago Fire crippled breweries in Chicago in 1871, according to the Encyclopedia of Milwaukee. Following World War II and into the 1950s, Schlitz was one of the world's most popular beers.

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Many people cite a formula change, deemed "the Schlitz mistake," as the beginning of the end for the beloved beer. The change was a cost-cutting measure aimed at speeding up production, AmericanCraftBeer.com reported.

"Like many brands, Schlitz became a joke when the company cheapened the ingredients to save money, thinking nobody would notice," wrote a user on X. "Sad, really. Real Schlitz definitely had its own taste."

"Original formula was decent. Then it became swill," wrote another.

"It wasn't the real stuff for years," another chimed in.

Facing stiff competition from rival beer giants such as Budweiser, Miller and Pabst, sales of Schlitz steadily declined beginning in the 1970s. The company changed hands over the years, and Pabst acquired Schlitz in 1999. 

The original site of the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Co. is now a historic mixed-use space called Schlitz Park.

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"When you're out of Schlitz, you're out of beer" was its famous tagline.

Some people on social media took to reminiscing about the iconic brand and its memorable marketing.

"My wife's grandma's favorite," wrote an X user. "We'd visit her in her assisted living apartment. She always had ice-cold bottles of Schlitz on hand in her little refrigerator."

"This makes me sad. I have a lot of great memories drinking [Schlitz]," wrote another.

"Schlitz was our fraternity beer. We drank a ton of it. When we had a mixer with a women's sorority, we brought in Schlitz malt liquor. Those were the days," wrote someone else.

Zac Nadile, Pabst's head of brand strategy, told Milwaukee Magazine the reason for retiring the beer came down to increased costs "to store and ship certain products."

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Schlitz's decline "is emblematic of the current market for beer and broader alcohol," David Henkes, senior principal and head of strategic partnerships at food-brand consultancy firm Technomic, based in Chicago, told Fox News Digital.

"Consumers are drinking less, both at home and away from home, and the younger consumer in particular is drinking much less than people at the same age, 20 or even 10 years ago," he said.

Volumes of beer sales have dropped to a 37-year low, FOX Business reported.

The growth of specialty beverages, such as cocktails and nonalcoholic "mocktails," has also contributed to pressure across the beer industry, Henkes said.

"It's a crowded market for a beer brand to stand out."

Schlitz isn't going out without fanfare, however.

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Pabst granted Wisconsin Brewing Company (WBC) permission to brew the final batch using the 1948 recipe.

"We decided that, Schlitz being what Schlitz was, it deserved a proper sendoff, one with dignity and respect," WBC brewmaster Kirby Nelson told WQOW.com.

Pre-sales for the last Schlitz begin on the WBC's website on May 23.

"In this environment, brand strength matters, but it's also about the quality of the product," Henkes said. "While Schlitz definitely has a 'nostalgia' factor to it, it's had quality perceptions for decades, going back to the 1970s with cost-cutting, quality issues and bad marketing."

He added, "While some heritage brands have rebounded, Schlitz never fully recovered its reputation for quality. Consumers today are shopping on both price and quality, and Schlitz never regained enough relevance to truly return to the conversation."