PBR Is Fighting For Its Existence

Pabst Brewing, maker of shitty canned beer from hipster dreams, is fighting for its own survival.

First, some history. Pabst Blue Ribbon and some of Pabst's other legacy beers are not brewed by an intrepid troupe of bearded lumberjacks in the outskirts of Portland. PBR and the rest are in fact brewed, packaged, and shipped by MillerCoors, the second largest brewer in the United States. Pabst and MillerCoors struck a deal in 2001 that outlined the arrangement, giving MillerCoors (at that time just Miller) access to the young, cool kid demographic. The deal expires in 2020, with a window to negotiate an extension. With that renegotiation deadline approaching, tension between Pabst and MillerCoors is way up.

Earlier this year Pabst filed a lawsuit against MillerCoors claiming MillerCoors was trying to rupture the partnership through nefarious means, including breach of contract, breach of anti-competition laws, fraud, and misrepresentation, CNBC reported. MillerCoors countered saying that it has the right to decide on its own if it can support brewing Pabst beer. The trial for that suit started Monday in Milwaukee and is scheduled through November 30.