IRTP Beer Labels (1933 - 1950)

"I-R-T-P" stands for "Internal Revenue Tax Paid". This mandatory Federal statement was required on all beer containers from 1933 to 1950. Some of the earliest 1933 & 1934 labels were occasionally missing the statement, but were they soon corrected. Some post-1950 labels still had the "IRTP" statement because breweries were using up old label inventories before getting their new label shipments from their printers.

The "IRTP" statement can be found in many varying forms that include : "Internal Revenue Tax Paid" or "Tax Paid at the Rate Prescribed by the Internal Revenue Law" or "Withdrawn Free from Tax for Exportation". These staments are all proof that a label was produced from 1933 to 1950, and this time period is one of the most collected by beer label enthusiasts. Labels from this time period were abundant & many were saved in mint condition, so they tend to be easy for collectors to find. Only the very graphic or scarcer IRTP labels have higher values.