Schell's Deer Brand Beer Cone Top Can

Schell's Deer Brand Cone Top Can

This 12-ounce cone top container was manufactured for the August Schell Brewing Company of New Ulm, Minnesota, during the early 1950s. Built in a classic cone top format, this specific packaging version features the mandatory low-point alcohol statement along the lower front rim, reading "CONTAINS NOT MORE THAN 3.2% OF ALCOHOL BY WEIGHT". The front label features the brewery's traditional stag illustration encircled within ornate scrollwork above bold, gothic-influenced brand lettering.

Deer Brand served as the signature flagship recipe of August Schell. Developed prior to national Prohibition, the brand took its name and trademark from founder August Schell's love for wildlife and the private deer park he established on the brewery's forested grounds in New Ulm. Positioned as a beloved local and regional lager across Minnesota and surrounding Midwestern communities, Deer Brand became synonymous with the brewery's heritage and remained in continuous production across multiple container evolutions.

The August Schell Brewing Company was founded in 1860 by German immigrant August Schell along the Cottonwood River in New Ulm. Rooted in Old World brewing craft, the operation expanded rapidly to become a cornerstone of the regional economy. When national Prohibition took effect, the company survived by diversifying into carbonated soft drinks, near beer, and malt syrups. Following Repeal, Schell resumed commercial brewing operations and successfully navigated the post-war wave of industry consolidation, maintaining continuous family ownership to become the second-oldest family-owned brewery in the United States.

Among breweriana enthusiasts, mid-century cone top cans from independent Midwestern breweries represent a highly desirable collecting category. Schell's Deer Brand cans are admired for their distinctively regional design and the historical prestige of the New Ulm institution. Collectors actively pursue the different regulatory variations produced during this era, particularly those carrying distinct alcohol content statements tailored to meet specific state distribution laws.