Safari Brand Beer 12 Oz Tab Top Can

Safari Brand Beer: Spotted Leopard Can

This 12-ounce straight steel tab top can represents the spotted leopard design from August Schell Brewing Company's Safari Brand series. Produced in the late 1970s, the can stands out for its full-bleed, wrap-around photographic artwork rather than traditional painted breweriana motifs. The composition features a spotted leopard positioned among dense, tall savanna grasses, grounded along the bottom by bold black typography reading "SAFARI BRAND." The straight steel construction and pull tab closure reflect the standard canning standards of the late 1970s era.

Safari Brand was introduced during the peak of the 1970s beer can collecting boom. As regional breweries sought creative ways to sustain production volumes and stand out against national corporate competition, August Schell designed Safari Brand as a multi-design thematic series centered on African wildlife and indigenous culture. Rather than focusing on conventional tavern advertising campaigns, the line was positioned directly toward enthusiastic hobbyists looking to complete comprehensive pictorial sets, turning consumer beverage packaging into collectable art.

The August Schell Brewing Company was established in 1860 in New Ulm, Minnesota, by German immigrant August Schell and partner Jacob Bernhardt. Rooted in the rich brewing heritage of southern Minnesota, it is the second-oldest continuously operating family-owned brewery in the United States. Schell weathered the challenges of Prohibition by turning its facility to the production of near beer, ciders, and soft drinks. In the post-war decades, as massive national consolidation shuttered dozens of regional breweries, Schell sustained operations by producing specialty contract brews, seasonal offerings, and themed packaging series, ensuring the historic brewery's survival into the modern craft era.

Within the breweriana community, Safari Brand cans hold enduring interest as classic examples of thematic set collecting from the late 20th century. The photographic presentation and wildlife subject matter reflect a distinct moment when regional packaging design actively catered to the collector market.