Stag Beer

Last week, I wrote about one of my grandfather’s favorite beers – Falstaff. But the beer I associate him with even more is Stag, a St. Louis-area favorite.

Grandpa had his particular way of referring to this beloved beverage: “Stag. Stag Beer.” (Those readers who heard Grandpa say this will know exactly what I mean.)

Originally produced by the Western Brewing Company in Belleville, Illinois, Stag was developed in 1907. It was named by a customer in a naming contest for the new brand of beer. Shortly after that, in 1912, Giesedieck Brothers – the company that produced Falstaff – bought Western Brewery and Stag.

Though Stag had to cease production during Prohibition, the company wisely managed its resources during that period and resumed Stag production as soon as Prohibition was lifted. According to the Stag website,

It was announced that Western was the only brewery in Illinois outside of Chicago that could begin manufacturing beer on short notice. Dealers as far south as Alabama notified brewery officials that they would like to buy their beer if and when the 18th Amendment was repealed, and St. Louis hotels began bidding for the first case. . . . The facility would reopen with a capacity of 100,000 barrels per year and the ability to pack 5,000 cases daily.

As the decade continued, Stag charged ahead as the top selling beer in the St. Louis metro area, “well ahead of Falstaff and Budweiser.” Based on this success, the “Stag distribution area began to grow.”

The ‘40s and the ‘50s saw more growth for Stag:

In 1944 construction began on a new smokestack. The 225′ tall structure was completed in early 1945 and featured 5’5″ high white tile letters saying “Stag Beer.” Sales of Stag continued to escalate, with 4,000 barrels being produced daily. The brewery’s biggest year was about 1.5 million barrels, and by the early 1950’s Griesedieck Western was the 11th largest brewing company in the U. S., with Stag beer being sold in 22 states. Sales continued to be strong for the next several years, as popular advertising campaigns featuring the cartoon character Mr. Magoo for Stag continued to draw attention to the brand.

Though Stag has fallen out of popularity as a widely distributed beer and though much of the brewery is now empty, “Stag Beer continues to refresh beer drinkers in central and southern Illinois, and parts of Missouri, in particular the southeast portion of the state. Stag outdoor neons still glow red outside taverns, and the beer remains the popular choice of many beer fans throughout the region.”

To learn more about the history of Stag, click here. For a great photo of a 1950s/1960s couple enjoying Stag beer, click here and then click on “The Ancestry.” And finally, for even more Stag fun, check out the videos I’ve embedded at the top and bottom of this entry. Mr. Magoo, of cartoon fame, is the focus of these 1950s Stag commercials.

You heard it here: Stag. Stag Beer.