Serving the First Amendment and the Public's Right to Know
MUNCH: FOOD
& BEVERAGE
S P E C I A L T I E S
The brewery that keeps on brewing
August Schell's for 164 years
The August Schell Brewing Company is a brewing company in New Ulm, Minnesota, founded by German immigrant August Schell in 1860. It is the second oldest family-owned brewery in America and became the oldest and largest brewery in Minnesota when the company bought the Grain Belt rights in 2002.
The brewery is owned and operated by the August Schell Brewing Company, a Minnesota corporation that was incorporated in 1902.
August Schell (February 15, 1828, in Durbach, Grand Duchy of Baden – September 20, 1891, in New Ulm, Minnesota) emigrated to the United States in 1848. He worked in Cincinnati as a machinist before relocating to New Ulm with other members of the Turner Society.
Upon moving to New Ulm, building on his experience as a machinist, he established a mill. In 1860, Schell partnered with Jacob Bernhardt to found a brewery to serve the growing German immigrant population in the area. August and Jacob selected a site two miles from the heart of New Ulm along the Cottonwood River.
While much of the city of New Ulm was damaged or burned during the Dakota War of 1862, the brewery escaped intact. In 1866, Schell bought out his partner Jacob Bernahrdt to take sole ownership of the brewery, starting an unbroken chain of family ownership that continues to this day. During this time, the brewery grew in size and production.
August Schell died in 1891 leaving the brewery to his wife Theresa Schell. Their son Otto took over managing the brewery. Otto had studied brewing back in the Schells' home country of Germany. As the 19th century became the 20th, Otto continued to modernize the brewery by adding refrigeration to the brewery.
The year 1911 was tragic for the Schell family as first Otto and then Theresa died. At that time, George Marti, the husband of August's daughter Emma, took over managing and operating the brewery.
1919 brought about the passage of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and implementation of Prohibition. The August Schell Brewing Company struggled along with many other American breweries. The brewery transitioned to producing "near-beer" (a low alcohol beer still permitted during Prohibition), soft drinks, and candy. Prohibition ended in 1933 with passage of the 21st Amendment. George Marti had successfully steered the brewery through Prohibition, but died shortly thereafter in 1934.
George's son Alfred ("Al") Marti became the President and Manager of the brewery upon the death of his father. Al ran the brewery until 1969 until he retired and passed leadership of the company to his son Warren Marti. During this time, the brewing industry was going through a period of consolidation and upheaval, and Schell's was not immune.
At one point, the brewery only managed to keep its doors open by cutting down a large black walnut tree located on the grounds of the brewery and sold its lumber. During Warren's tenure, the brewery responded to its customers changing preferences by introducing Schell's Export Beer, Schell's Light Beer, and 1919 Root Beer (named after the year prohibition was implemented).
In 1984, Warren's son Ted Marti took over operations of the brewery and became president of the brewery in 1985. Having studied at the Siebels Institute of Brewing, Marti began expanding the line of beers offered by the Schell's Brewery. One of those beers, Schell's Pilsener, earned a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival in 1988. Schell's continued to expand its beer offerings through the 1990s, brewing 38 different beers over that decade.
In 2002, Schell's Brewery expanded its reach by acquiring the recipe and branding for Grain Belt Beer. Upon moving production to its New Ulm Brewery, Schell's introduced additional Grain Belt varieties including Grain Belt Nordeast in 2010, Grain Belt Lock & Dam in 2016 (since retired), Grain Belt BLU in 2018 (after appearing at the Minnesota State Fair for several years), and Grain Belt Southwest Cerveza in 2019.
The next generation of the Marti family is increasing its involvement in the management and operation of the brewery. Ted's oldest son Jace Marti became a brewmaster in 2010 and has taken the lead on producing Schell's Noble Star line of sour Berliner Weisse beers. The brewery opened the Starkeller facility on the North side of New Ulm to produce the Noble Star line. It also houses a tap room dedicated to these sour ales.
The brewery has continued to update its offerings by retiring long time brews such as Maifest, Schmaltz's Alt, and Pils among others, while adding an IPA, a Kolsch and Cream Ale.
The Latest in the Bin: Hope Breakfast Bar arrives in Eagan
​Hope Breakfast Bar in Eagan, offering an expansive brunch menu, specialty coffee, and cocktails, opened June 5, 2023, with more than 200 reservations already on the books.
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"It’s been amazing," said Brian Ingram, who co-founded the brand in St. Paul with his wife, Sarah, in 2019.
Their restaurant group, Purpose Restaurants, also operates the Gnome Craft Pub in St. Paul, and the Apostle Supper Clubs in St. Paul and Duluth.
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The Eagan location is the third full-service Hope Breakfast Bar, with the others located in downtown St. Paul and St. Louis Park’s West End neighborhood. The diner opened with several exclusive menu items, such as garden pancakes, ricotta whipped egg toast, and breakfast tostadas. There’s also the addition of bubble tea and new grab-and-go fare.
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Hope Breakfast Bar’s newest location in Eagan is not expected to be the brand’s last in the Twin Cities. With-
drawing plans for a 1980s-themed restaurant in downtown St. Paul, Ingram said Purpose Restaurants would be shifting its resources to focus more intently on the expansion of Hope's brand.
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Hope Breakfast Bar in Eagan is open daily from 7 a.m. until 3 p.m.
HOW TO MAKE
Maple Candied Nuts
From Living Local Spring,
The delicious flavor of pure maple syrup shines in this recipe. Once you try candied nuts made with maple syrup, you’ll never go back to sugar! They’re great on salads, ice cream or other desserts or on their own as a tasty, sweet snack.
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Ingredients
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2 cups of raw nuts — pecan or walnut halves work well
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
1/8 teaspoon salt
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Directions
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1. Combine all ingredients in a medium sauté pan. Cook over medium heat, stirring cons- tantly, until maple syrup is reduced by at least half, about 3-4 minutes.
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2. Lower heat to medium-low and continue cooking, stirring constantly, until the liquid in the maple syrup has evaporated and it has crystallized into maple sugar, about 6-9 minutes. Reduce the heat as necessary to prevent burning the nuts or maple sugar. You’ll notice the syrup start to become grainy and coat the nuts with crystals that look like tiny grains of sugar. Keep cooking and stirring until the pan is dry and the syrup has completely crystallized, covering the nuts.
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3. Immediately remove nuts to a sheet pan and spread in a single layer to cool. Once cooled, store in an airtight container. Nuts will keep at room temperature for up to a week, or in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.
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Find a Minnesota maple syrup producer near you in the Minnesota Grown Directory at minnesotagrown.com/maplesyrup
How to Preserve Strawberries
Nothing can compare to a freshly picked, red, sweet, juicy Minnesota-grown strawberry. Minnesota-grown strawberries can be purchased directly from the farm or at the local farmers markets. Many of the strawberry farms throughout the state offer u-pick and pre-picked strawberries. Use the Minnesota Grown printed or online directory to find a strawberry farm near you.
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U-pick strawberries are typically sold by the pound whereas a quart or a flat of strawberries are sold by the unit. A quart of freshly picked strawberries can surely disappear fast and can be enjoyed fresh on yogurt or ice cream or made into a smoothie or baked in a pie. Others like to serve them with whipped cream on, waffles, pancakes, crepes, strawberry shortcake, or with angel food cake. As one u-picker tells his mom, "These are so good, {that} you don’t even need to dip them in sugar."
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Preserving Strawberries
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With the short three week June-bearing season one might wonder how they can save this goodness. Purchasing strawberries in bulk either u-pick or by the flat is usually a cost-effective way to purchase strawberries. When purchasing in bulk it is good to remember that the shelf life of farm fresh strawberries is approximately three days, which is much shorter than store bought strawberries from other areas of the US. There are a variety of ways to preserve strawberries including freezing and processing into jam. Freezing is a quicker method of preserving when compared to making jam. Frozen strawberries can be enjoyed in yogurt, smoothies, and milk shakes.
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Freezer and Shelf stable Jam
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There are two types of homemade strawberry jam: freezer jam and shelf stable jam. Freezer jam is an easier no-cook method that doesn’t require the hot water bath or sealing for preservation. Freezer jam can be stored in plastic containers; however, this jam is not shelf stable and needs to be stored in the freezer before use. Freezer jam is typically thinner than shelf stable jam.
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Canning shelf stable jam is more complex than freezer jam. It requires glass jars and a water bath sealing method. Once the jars have sealed the jam is shelf stable. This jam is thicker than freezer jam, but typically runnier than store bought jam.
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Recipes
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There are many recipes for jams, including low sugar, no sugar, and pectin free. It is important to follow your recipe as directed, otherwise the jam may not set properly. Homemade strawberry jam can be enjoyed on homemade bread, over ice cream, mixed in yogurt, on Swedish pancakes or crepes, or made into the classic PB&J sandwich. Once you have made homemade strawberry jam, you will not return to store bought jam! So, it is important to purchase enough strawberries to last you all winter long. Provided are 2 strawberry jam recipes.
Strawberry Freezer Jam
Yield: approximately 5 cups
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Ingredients:
4 cups strawberries
4 cups granulated sugar
1 box of sure-jell premium fruit pectin
3/4 cup water
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​Directions:
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Prepare strawberries: Wash and remove stems.
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Crush strawberries, you may use a potato masher.
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Measure 2 cups of crushed strawberries and 4 cups of granulated sugar and put into medium sauce pan and heat over medium-low heat.
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In small saucepan mix water and fruit pectin. Bring to boil. Let boil for 1 minute.
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Mix fruit pectin and strawberry mixture for 3 minutes until sugar has dissolved.
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Fill containers immediately, leaving ½ inch space at the top for expansion during freezing. Cover with lids.
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Let sit at room temperature for 24 hours or until set. Refrigerate up to 3 weeks or freeze up to 1 year. If frozen, thaw in refrigerator before using.
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Strawberry Jam (Shelf Stable)
By: Bri Martinez
Ingredients:
8 cups of strawberries
7 cups sugar
1 package sure-jell pectin
½ tsp butter
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Preparing Jars:
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Boil glass jars for 10-15 minutes prior to use.
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Boil lids for 10 minutes, then leave in pot of hot water while making jam.
Directions:
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Crush strawberries to 5 cups, then put into a large pot. (Can use potato masher or blender)
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Stir pectin into strawberries
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Add 1/2 tsp butter to reduce foaming
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On high heat, bring to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly.
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Add sugar. Return to full rolling boil. Boil exactly 1 minute. Remove from heat.
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Skim off any foam with metal spoon.
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Ladle immediately into prepared jars, filling each within ¼ inch of top. Wipe jar rims and threads. Cover with 2-piece lids -only finger tight,
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Place jars into pot of boiling water. Water must cover jars by at least 1-2 inches.
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Cover and bring to gentle boil. Let boil for 10 minutes.
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Remove jars and place on towels to cool completely.
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After jars cool, check seals by pressing centers of lids with finger. If lid springs back lid is not sealed and MUST be refrigerated.
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Let stand at room temperature for 24 hours.
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Store unopened in a cool, dark place (such as cupboard or pantry) for up to 1 year.
About us
Nowthen Berries is a small 5-acre, family farm in Nowthen, Minnesota. We grow June-bearing and Everbearing strawberries, which will provide you with strawberries from mid-June through the frost. In the month of June, we have u-pick available for our customers. Pre-picked berries are available by the quart or 10-pound flat, it is recommended to call ahead for availability. Berries can be purchased directly at our farm in Nowthen or at Maple Grove Farmers Market.