Excell Lager Beer Flat Top Can

Chicago's Excell Lager Beer Flat Top

The Excell Lager Beer flat top can represents a classic example of mid-century Midwestern packaging produced for the Atlantic Brewing Company of Chicago, Illinois. Designed for a standard 12-ounce volume, the face of the can features an eye-catching geometric composition defined by opposing sets of horizontal parallel pinstripes that taper toward the center to create an hourglass motif. Spanning the narrow midsection of this graphic field, the brand name "EXCELL" is emblazoned in bold, outlined block lettering with a distinctive inline styling.

The Excell label served as an accessible, value-conscious lager aimed at neighborhood taverns and retail consumers throughout Chicago and neighboring Midwestern markets. Marketed as a straightforward, dependable American lager for everyday consumption, Atlantic Brewing often utilized alternate corporate designations, such as the Excell Brewing Company trade name, to distribute the line to regional outlets alongside its broader roster of beverages.

Atlantic Brewing Company operated from a historic industrial facility situated at Fullerton and Bosworth Avenues on Chicago's North Side. The property held deep roots in local brewing, having previously accommodated operations like the Paul Pohl Brewing Company, Tabor Brewing, and North American Brewing prior to Prohibition. Following the repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment, the plant reopened in 1933 as Atlantic Brewing Company. Atlantic grew into a prominent regional producer, widely recognized for its Tavern Pale label as well as various specialty brands. Over the following decades, the company navigated intensifying competition by expanding its contract-canning agreements and acquiring regional brand formulas before the rise of massive national shipping breweries prompted the plant's eventual closure in 1965.

For enthusiasts of breweriana, flat top cans from Chicago's bustling post-Repeal brewing corridor hold enduring appeal. The Excell flat top remains a prized artifact for collectors focusing on Illinois packaging and mid-century industrial graphic design, standing as a tangible reminder of the independent metropolitan breweries that once flourished across the Midwest.