The Cincinnati Zoo's Fiona the hippo is turning three years old today — Jan. 24 — and the Queen City is ready to celebrate.
Fiona defied odds when she was born six weeks premature in 2017. At the time of her birth, she weighed a meager 29 pounds — about a fifth of what most hippos weigh when they're born.
Since her birth, she has gained national attention, had her (sweet, kind and plump) face plastered all over T-shirts, beer cans, Skyline Chili cups, Facebook news feeds and, well, literally everywhere and anywhere else. And — in many ways — she's brought our community together. In the past three years she’s accomplished a lot, including being voted Best Cincinnatian by readers in CityBeat's 2018 and 2019 Best of Cincinnati issue.
“Fiona won the hearts of Cincinnatians when she fought to survive after being born six weeks early and terribly underweight,” said Cincinnati Zoo director Thane Maynard in a release. “Three years later, people all over the world are still crazy about this normal, healthy hippo.”
On Friday, Jan. 24 and Listermann is celebrating with a release a new NE IPA Fiona beer in cans called Team Fiona 3rd Birthday. The beer features citra and centennial hops and has a 5.8 percent ABV.
On the same day, they’ll also release Orange Mocha Frappuccinos!!!, a milkshake IPA, in cans.
The release starts at 10 a.m. Listermann is located at 1621 Dana Ave., Norwood.
