How Do I Price a 1950s Beer Bottle?

Vintage beer bottles can be worth a pretty penny.

As the old saying goes, "One man's trash is another man's treasure." Case in point: the business of selling collectible beer bottles. To the right collector, a vintage beer bottle maybe worth anywhere from a few dollars to upwards of $30, with some bottles fetching three times that much. But knowing the value of your bottle is important before you try to sell it to a collector. Once you have valued the beer bottle from the 1950s, you will be in a better position to sell it to an interested party.

Instructions

1. Check recent auction records, either online or in your area, to see what vintage beer bottles from that particular brewery are currently selling for. Prices for national beer brands will be relatively the same around the country, but regional beer bottles from smaller companies are more likely to have higher value in the geographic areas nearest to the brewery's former location. Therefore, checking both online and local auction records can give you the best picture.

2. Search Breweriana.com, an online shopping site that specializes in collectible and vintage beer bottles and beer cans. If you can find a beer bottle that matches the one you are trying to price, you can see the current retail price for that particular style of bottle. Bear in mind, however, that if your bottle is in better or worse condition than the bottle pictured on the site, the value of your particular bottle will vary.

3. Join a beer can collecting community, such as the Brewery Collectibles Club of America (BCCA). You can connect with members who have years of experience in collecting and dating cans, and subscribe to their bi-monthly magazine to learn more about valuing vintage beer bottles.

References

• Bottle Books: UNDERSTANDING HOW BOTTLES ARE VALUED
• Breweriana: Bottles
• Brewery Collectibles Club of America