The Early Years
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.” |
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.