Rheinlander Export Beer Cone Top Can

Rhinelander Export Cone Top Can

This 12-ounce high-profile cone top container dates to the early 1950s and was manufactured for the Rhinelander Brewing Company of Rhinelander, Wisconsin. Issued in the post-World War II period without an Internal Revenue Tax Paid statement, the can reflects the final era of cone top production before flat tops became the industry standard. The label artwork draws heavily on the imagery of Wisconsin's Northwoods, featuring a rich teal-and-black color scheme. A teal sash cuts diagonally across the center face bearing the "Rhinelander" name in Gothic lettering, flanked by ornate serif type reading "EXPORT" above and "BEER" below. Along the bottom edge runs an evocative silhouette of a dense pine forest underlined by the company's trademark slogan, "REFRESHING AS THE NORTH WOODS."

Rhinelander Export served as the flagship product for the brewery, marketed to both resident working communities and the burgeoning tourism sector that visited Oneida County for summer retreats, fishing, and deer hunting. Rhinelander adopted its "Refreshing as the North Woods" slogan in the late 1930s to link the product directly with outdoor recreation. In 1940, the company famously paired this branding with the introduction of its seven-ounce "Shorty" bottle, which quickly became an enduring regional phenomenon. After the original facility shuttered in the late 1960s, the brand and recipe rights were acquired by the Joseph Huber Brewing Company of Monroe, Wisconsin, keeping the label in production for decades.

The Rhinelander Brewing Company originated in 1882 under German immigrants Otto Hilgermann and Henry Danner before incorporating in the 1890s. Built to serve northern Wisconsin's logging camps and railroad towns, the brewery successfully weathered fire losses and survived national Prohibition. Following Repeal in 1933, the company modernized its packaging facilities and expanded distribution throughout northern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. However, escalating production expenses and fierce marketing competition from large national shipping breweries eventually eroded its market share, leading the brewery to cease operations in 1967.

Today, cone top cans featuring regional scenic artwork hold strong appeal for collectors of Midwestern breweriana. Because smaller independent breweries moved away from cone tops by the mid-1950s, cans from this final manufacturing era represent an important transition in canning technology. Known variations feature subtle differences in background patterning and typography, cementing this Northwoods design as a memorable snapshot of mid-century Wisconsin brewing heritage.