Once again, Schlitz is being brewed and bottled in Milwaukee - at the MillerCoors brewery.

That's the word from Pabst Brewing Co., which owns the Schlitz brand and contracts with MillerCoors LLC to brew it.

Pabst in 2007 test marketed the old formula for Schlitz, which Jos. Schlitz Brewing Co. changed in the 1970s - a factor that contributed to that company's demise in 1982. Pabst dubbed it "Classic 1960s formula," and made it available in bottles in Minneapolis and Tampa, Fla. That marked the first time Schlitz was sold in bottles in several years.

The bottled Schlitz has a fuller flavor than the Schlitz sold in cans, and the formula change - along with a nostalgia-driven marketing campaign - drew attention. In 2008, Pabst rolled out bottled Schlitz in more local markets, including Chicago and Milwaukee.

Pabst still contracts to brew canned Schlitz at other facilities. But the bottled version is replacing canned Schlitz as it's introduced in local markets, said Pabst spokesman Mark Treichel.

Most of those are in the Midwest, within relatively close proximity of the Milwaukee brewery. The "classic" Schlitz markets include Columbus, Ohio, and Detroit. In Wisconsin, it can be found in Madison, La Crosse, Eau Claire and Wausau, Treichel said.

The "classic" Schlitz had been brewed and bottled at the MillerCoors facility in Eden, N.C. Production this month shifted to Milwaukee, where special equipment to provide the beer's hops was installed last fall, Treichel said.

The production shift has not resulted in any new jobs at the Milwaukee brewery, said MillerCoors spokesman Julian Green.

Bottled Schlitz sales in the second half of 2008 helped Pabst mark its best sales trend since 1999, according to trade publication Beer Marketer's Insights. Also helping was the continued revival of Pabst Blue Ribbon.

Schlitz sales totaled an estimated 115,000 barrels in 2007, with a slight increase in 2008 because of the launch of bottled Schlitz in Chicago and Milwaukee, said Eric Shephard, executive editor of Beer Market's Insights.

That's a pittance compared to the brand's peak sales of over 15 million barrels annually in the mid-1970s. Those sales, however, began tumbling after the formula change and other changes affected the taste of Schlitz and led many of its customers to switch to other beers.

Based in suburban Chicago, Pabst is now a marketing company that owns dozens of old-line beer brands, which are brewed under contract by MillerCoors and others. The company's brands include Heileman's Old Style, Old Milwaukee and Stroh's.