After such success during the Taste of Cincinnati weekend, the Christian Moerlein Brewing Company will continue to offer weekend tours of their brewery on Moore Street in Over-the-Rhine.
The brewery was open for public tours for the Taste, but not everyone was able to make it in for a look into the new brewing facility and tap room. The free tours will lead patrons through the production brewery and the underground Malt House from the pre-prohibition Kauffman Brewery. Tours conclude with a craft beer tasting and plenty of food from local food trucks.
Tours will include information about the various Moerlein beers sold in the area as well as the process by which they are crafted. Visitors will also enjoy a lesson in Moerlein food pairing that features dining selections from local restaurants.
The Moerlein Brewing Company, opened in 1853 after high demand from German immigrants, has exported beers throughout Cincinnati and to Europe and South America. After the fall of the brewery during the “dark age” of prohibition, the Moerlein name was restored in 1981. Christian Moerlein Select Lager, the first American beer to pass the Reinheitsgebot Bavarian Purity Law, was known for its taste and simplicity, containing only malted barley, hops, water and yeast.
Gregory Hardman, a Cincinnati “beer baron,” purchased Christian Moerlein in 2004. Still committed to crafting quality, great-tasting beers, the Moerlein Brewing Company is reaching out to the Cincinnati community and offering residents and visitors an opportunity to engage themselves with one of Cincinnati’s most well-known traditions.
“We were thrilled with the public’s response to our tours during ‘Taste’ weekend,” said Hardman in a press release. “We are extending our tours through the weekends to give everyone a chance to visit our new brewing facility.” Tours will explore modern craft brewing processes as well as brewing techniques specific to the Cincinnati area.
Christian Moerlein now boasts a variety of beers and lagers including Moerlein OTR Ale, Moerlein Lager House, Moerlein Barbarossa Double Dark, Moerlein Northern Liberties IPA, Moerlein Seven Hefeweizen, and Moerlein Seasonal Selections. Moerlein beers and lagers are available on tap at a number of local pubs and restaurants and in bottles at retail stores.
The brewery will be open every Friday through Sunday for tours. Tours will begin at the following times: Fridays at 5 and 7 p.m.; Saturdays at 1, 3, 5 and 7 p.m.; Sundays at 1, 3 and 5 p.m. The Christian Moerlein Craft Brewery, Tap Room and Tour Center is located in the Kaufman Pre-Prohibition Brewery Complex, 1621 Moore Street. Ample parking is available in adjacent lots. For more information, visit christianmoerlein.com.
