Schaefer America's Oldest Lager Beer 12 Oz Tab Top Can

Schaefer Stroh Lehigh Valley Can

The Schaefer "America's Oldest Lager Beer" 12 oz can produced under The Stroh Brewery Company represents a pivotal transition in late-twentieth-century American brewing history. Originally established in New York in 1842 by brothers Frederick and Maximilian Schaefer, the brand rose to national prominence on the strength of its heritage as the nation's earliest lager brewer. In the early 1970s, Schaefer built a high-capacity production facility in the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania (near Allentown) to supply regional markets.

In 1981, Detroit-based Stroh Brewery Company acquired the F. & M. Schaefer Brewing Company, integrating the modern Lehigh Valley brewery into its national production network. During this period, Stroh continued packaging Schaefer using the heritage label graphics and the iconic "America's Oldest Lager Beer" banner, while updating the mandatory manufacturer text to reflect Stroh ownership and the Lehigh Valley plant location.

For collectors of brewery history, cans from this era serve as physical documentation of Stroh's rapid expansion. Known variations exist across production runs, reflecting minor updates to mandatory brewery city lists, legal disclaimers, and canning facility markings. The Lehigh Valley brewery where this can originated eventually became one of the most prolific contract and production breweries in the United States, later operating under subsequent ownership by major beverage conglomerates.