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In the 1940s, around the same time Grain Belt built its famous bottle cap sign overlooking the Mississippi River in Northeast Minneapolis, they introduced a “Beer of Exceptional Quality”–Premium. With its crisp, unique flavor, Premium quickly became the flagship of the Grain Belt brand. And still is to this day.

Although the Grain Belt Premium recipe has changed hands over the years, one thing has remained the same–its legendary unique taste. And now that Premium is in the capable hands of a brewery with an even longer tradition than Grain Belt–the August Schell Brewery–may you rest assured that the flavor and heritage of Premium will live on forever.

So as a local legendary beer, we raise a glass to all the people, places and things that make the Midwest such a rich and unique place to live. Here's to you!

Grain Belt History

Grain Belt Premium became part of the August Schell Brewing Company family in 2002, continuing a tradition and heritage going back well over a century.

The Early Years

In 1893, 33 years after Schell began operations from its brewery in New Ulm, Golden Grain Belt beer was introduced by Minneapolis Brewing Company, which operated from a large, castle-like brewery located along the Mississippi River in Northeast Minneapolis. Minneapolis Brewing Company was formed two years earlier as a merger of four small area breweries -- John Orth, Heinrich, F.D. Norenberg and Germania.

The name Grain Belt referred to the geographical area of the country known as “America’s Grain Belt,” where the finest in Minnesota grains, along with Perfect Brewing Water, made the perfect beer. Grain Belt quickly became one of the best-selling beers in the upper Midwest and the flagship brand of Minneapolis Brewing Company.

Golden Grain Belt, in its earliest days, was sold in taverns, drawn from wooden kegs that were delivered by horse-drawn wagons, and in glass bottles. Early Grain Belt labels illustrated a golden barley field beneath blue skies in the now-familiar diamond logo, and assured customers the beer was “Properly sterilized -- Does not cause biliousness.”

Prohibition Days

On January 16, 1920, with the passage of National Prohibition, Grain Belt beer was withdrawn from the market, as were most other alcoholic beverages (except those sold for medicinal purposes). Minneapolis Brewing Company continued operations as the Golden Grain Juice Company, producing near beer and soft drinks, along with ointments and rubbing alcohol as the Kunz Preparations Company.

Changing Times

With the repeal of Prohibition in 1933, Minneapolis Brewing Company began making beer once again. Grain Belt returned to the taverns on draught in October, 1933 and in December of that year, it became available again in returnable long-neck amber bottles, sporting an art deco black label and a big red diamond logo. Before long, Grain Belt was identified with the popular slogan “The Friendly Beer With the Friendly Flavor.”

The business of brewing and consumer preferences had changed since the pre-Prohibition days, however. More beer was being consumed at home instead of in the taverns, the result of electric refrigerators becoming present in an increasing number of homes, and because beer drinkers had lost the “tavern habit.” Consequently, bottled beer was far outselling draught. New packaging was developed to meet the new demands.

While draught beer and traditional long-neck returnable bottles continued to be available, by the middle 1930s, Grain Belt introduced the one-way “stein” bottle, a shorter, stockier amber glass container that held twelve fluid ounces, just like the traditional bottles but was lighter in weight and took up less space in the refrigerator. In addition, Grain Belt became available in cap-sealed “cone-top” cans beginning in October, 1935, which were lighter still, unbreakable, non-returnable, they prevented light penetration and, unlike other metal containers for beer, they opened just like a bottle.

Around 1938, the Grain Belt logo began to feature a bottle cap behind the red diamond, reflecting the dominance of package beer sales. A couple years later, a giant neon sign depicting the Grain Belt bottle cap logo was erected on the west shore of Nicollet Island, along the Mississippi River on the outskirts of downtown Minneapolis. From blocks away, the sign could be seen flashing G-R-A-I-N B-E-L-T BEER. Although it hasn’t been lit up in years, the sign still greets motorists today.

An All-American Brew

The entrance of the United States into the Second World War brought new challenges to the brewing industry. Canned beer was put on hold due to tin rationing and a federal dictum that required canned beer to be produced only for those serving in the Armed Forces. Malt and hops were periodically rationed, bringing occasional shortages of the product, and brewers were required to set aside fifteen percent of beer production for exclusive military use. Grain Belt, for a brief period during the war, was sold in green bottles, with a label explaining, “This Is Your Regular GRAIN BELT BEER In a TEMPORARY Bottle Due to Bottle Shortage.”

When the war ended and servicemen came marching home, there was a new post-war optimism and Minneapolis Brewing Company, along with the rest of the industry, came back in full force. Tastes were changing, however. As home consumption of beer continued to increase, the preference of the American beer drinker was gearing more toward a lighter, smoother brew. In response, Grain Belt Premium was introduced in 1947 on a test-market basis.

Premium came in clear bottles, instead of amber, to show its pure, golden goodness, and in cap-sealed cans. It was priced a little higher than Golden Grain Belt but consumers found it well worth the price. While the industry fell into somewhat of a slump in the 1950s, Minneapolis Brewing Company continued to grow, thanks in large part to the introduction of Premium, which soon became a permanent fixture of the Grain Belt line.

A New Look

By the mid fifties, cap-sealed cans were discontinued by Grain Belt and most other breweries, with a switch to flat-top steel cans. Shortly thereafter, Grain Belt introduced a line of new packaging with a more modern red and gold label. Also introduced was a new, soon to be famous slogan, “It’s been a long time a-brewing!”

In addition, a new emphasis was placed on billboard and television advertising, with unique, funny and eye-catching campaigns. One of the most popular featured Stanley and Albert, a pair of cartoon sign painters who sang the praises of Grain Belt Premium. Stanley was the bespectacled little guy and Albert was the big lug with the deep voice. Stanley and Albert were created primarily for the new medium of television, although they were portrayed as billboard painters and their figures were seen “painting” Grain Belt billboards all over Minnesota.

Grain Belt remained a top-selling beer in Minnesota through the sixties as regional brewers had a stronger hold on the loyalty of drinkers than the companies in places such as St. Louis and Milwaukee that would later emerge as the industry titans.

The Minneapolis Brewery became known for its tours and its generous free beer samples, and in the Summer of 1963, Grain Belt Park was dedicated in an ten-acre area of land just in front to the brewery’s old wagon shed, off Broadway and Marshall streets. The centerpiece of the park was a decorative fountain that spouted water up to eighteen feet high, surrounded with a variety of trees, flower gardens, tame deer and Black Forest-style hostelry. A depiction of the fountain began to appear on Grain Belt labels and signage, along with the slogan “From Perfect Brewing Water.”

A New Name

In 1967, Minneapolis Brewing Company officially changed its name to Grain Belt Breweries, Incorporated after buying the Storz Brewing Company in Omaha. When the Hauenstein Brewery in New Ulm shut its doors for good in 1969, the Hauenstein labels became part of the Grain Belt product line, along with the Storz brands and beers with names such as White Label and GBX Malt Liquor. By the turn of the decade, Grain Belt was the eighteenth largest brewer in the United States.

Hard Times

At the beginning of the seventies, Grain Belt continued to be the dominant regional brewer in the upper Midwest but the industry was rapidly changing. Nationally-advertised brands were becoming more aggressive in their marketing, especially in places such as Minnesota where loyalty to the hometown brews was strongest. By the middle of the decade Grain Belt Breweries, Inc. was struggling to the point that rumors were going around of a possible sale or even closure of the brewery.

In 1975, Grain Belt stockholders agreed to sell to Minneapolis businessman Irwin Jacobs. By the end of the year, under Jacobs, the brewery was closed, the company went out of business and in 1976, Grain Belt and Grain Belt Premium was being made by the G. Heileman Brewing Company of LaCrosse, Wisconsin.

Heileman operated the rival Schmidt brewery in St. Paul and the marketing of Grain Belt took a back seat to Schmidt and the company’s flagship Old Style brand. The labeling was changed to a bland red and white design and the beer itself was also changed to something rather bland, in the opinion of many Grain Belt loyalists, as sales of the beer dropped and the product was sold mostly as a discount brand.

In the 1980s, Heileman began to have financial problems of its own and by the end of the decade, the Schmidt plant was closed. It seemed like the end of the line for local jobs and heritage but a group of investors saw opportunity. The old Schmidt Brewery, along with the Grain Belt and Grain Belt Premium brands were purchased from Heileman, and beginning in late 1991, Grain Belt was being made in St. Paul by the newly-formed Minnesota Brewing Company.

A Proud Tradition

Under Minnesota Brewing Company, Grain Belt, especially the Premium brand, saw a resurgence. The old recipes were brought back and the labeling was changed to reflect the brand’s heritage and to distance it from the poor reputation it had under Heileman. Bars and restaurants around Minnesota were surprised to see a new demand for Premium as old fans began to sample it again and younger drinkers took to it as a “retro-hip” brew.

In 1993, Minnesota Brewing celebrated the 100th anniversary of Grain Belt with an innovative campaign, and in 1994, Premium was honored with the Gold Medal Award for Best American Lager at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver.

But the resurgence of Grain Belt wasn’t enough to keep Minnesota Brewing Company afloat in the midst of competition from the big national brewers. The company filed bankruptcy, leaving the heritage of Grain Belt in limbo once again.

Then in August, 2002, August Schell Brewing Company of New Ulm came forward to reclaim the Grain Belt heritage and keep the brand produced in Minnesota. Schell began brewing Premium as soon as it was able to, but the transfer was made official at a “moving party” on the grounds of the still-standing Grain Belt Brewery in Minneapolis, on October 25, 2002. With a few hundred people looking on, the original recipe was inserted into a keg that had been signed by party attendees, sealed up and transferred to New Ulm. The keg now resides at the Schell Brewery Museum.

While original Golden Grain Belt has been phased out, Premium has been a major success for Schell, enabling the classic Southern Minnesota brewer to expand considerably. Grain Belt Premium continues to be a Beer of Exceptional Quality, a true Local Legend.

Jeff R. Lonto is author of “Legend of the Brewery—A Brief History of the Minneapolis Brewing Heritage.”

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