August Schell Brewery Tour

August Schell brewery is located in New Ulm, MN about 1.75 hrs SW of the Twin Cities. It's the 2nd oldest family owned brewery in the U.S. For 2$/person you get about an hour long tour + 6 beer tastings + 1 glass of the beer or root beer of your choice.

When you get the the brewery, it's about 1/2 mile walk from your parking place but they also offer a shuttle. I'd recommend either walking there or walking back especially during the fall. It's a tree lined slightly uphill walk and very pretty. (see picture). The tour does not go into the actual brewery but is a very informative historical tour.


Other pictures from our tour:
An old boiler:
Antique bottling machine:
The Schells Old Time Band instruments:
Copper Stein:
Unfortunately my pictures of the beer wagon did not turn out and my batteries died (I had yet to put the good batteries in my camera and was just using standard AA batteries) so I don't have more pictures of the grounds, the resident peacocks and deer either. :(

This is the Schell mansion (built for $5000 back in the 1800's):

And this is the "copper kettle" also installed around the same time as the mansion was built, this though cost $25,000 in the 1800's!



My favorites of the ones we tried were the Caramel Bock and the Octoberfest. Maybe it's not that I don't like beer that much, it's that I don't like ales very much? I've also discovered I really really like Sam Adams Octoberfest beer and if ever in Vegas again, their Sin City Amber.