Last night I attended the Moerlein IPA tapping event in Over-the-Rhine. The beer? Very tasty. The event? Not at all what I expected.
The Beer: Since I'm no expert, I can't impress you with how the beer was made or what the ingredients were. I can tell you it had that familiar hoppy aroma of an IPA and bitter, but not too bitter, crisp taste. Not as pungent as Stone IPA, but still enough hop to let you know you're drinking an IPA.
The Event: Not what I expected. Hundreds of people attended, but what surprised me was the average age of attendees skewed closer to 60 than 21. I was expecting a much younger crowd, however, I hope the wife and I are still kicking in 25 years and attending beer events too.
Besides drinking with the blue-hairs, I was a little disappointed with the presence, or lack there of, of Christian Moerlein representation. Maybe they were there and I just missed them, but I don't think that's the case. I know the event was hosted by Cincinnati Magazine, but with all the talk of rebuilding Over-the-Rhine and bringing their brewing operations back to Cincinnati, I expected more. There was a brief announcement just past 6:00, but I wasn't able to get close enough to hear what was said or who was saying it.
The Future: I love the idea of rebuilding the Cincinnati brewing tradition and improving Over-the-Rhine. Once Moerlein rehabs the old Husman potato chip plant, plans are to move most brewing back to Cincinnati (currently brewed in WI and PA), along with the Moerlein Brew Pub near the river in the Banks project. Rebuilding that tradition is a daunting task, but I'm hopeful Christian Moerlein is just the beginning of something great.
