Though his name is most familiar to Cincinnatians because of the beer brand that shares it, Christian Moerlein was a blacksmith by trade before he got into the brewing business in 1853. The tools and equipment have advanced over the decades, but the fundamentals of blacksmithing remain the same today: Bad welds, cracks and other imperfections are just cause to throw a piece of metalwork back into the forge.
That’s what Cincinnati Beverage Company, or CinBev, has done with the Christian Moerlein brand. The re-forged and completely revamped Moerlein lineup of five new beers debuts Monday.
“What consumers told us is that Moerlein had kind of lost its way,” said CinBev CEO Jay Woffington. “It started as this German heritage brand, and then kind of got caught up in all of the craft fanciness and became very inconsistent.”
Moerlein’s blacksmithing roots are central to the brand reset. The new brandmark incorporates a pair of blacksmith’s tongs at the center of the stylized letter M, and each of the five beers – each made using new recipes – are named for facets of the blacksmithing trade. The new packaging is elegant and eye-catching, while the liquid inside takes its inspiration from Moerlein’s German roots.
The Moerlein beers you’re used to seeing on the shelves, such as OTR and Third Wave, will no longer be packaged offerings. In their place are these brews:
- Smithy Helles Lager.
- Twist Pale Ale.
- Bronzer Brown Ale.
- Rivet West Coast IPA.
- Groove Hazy IPA.
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“You’re not going to see a bunch of fancy stuff from us,” Woffington said. “It’s going to be very core, and we’re excited about it.”
I had the opportunity to try each of the new Moerlein beers, and found them to be enjoyable and superior to their predecessors. Fans of OTR will want to give Twist a try – the pronounced biscuit flavor is accentuated by just enough bitter hoppiness to let you know it’s there.
Although German inspiration comes through in the Smithy Helles and Bronzer Brown – the latter of which is actually an altbier – modern craft IPAs remain a key part of the Moerlein lineup. Moerlein Rivet is a true-to-style West Coast IPA with the bitter, resinous, piney flavor of Cascade and Chinook hops cut with the citrusy sweetness of Citra hops.
Smithy and Rivet will be available in boxed 6- and 12-packs, while the rest will be sold in 6-packs and mixed 12-packs. Twist and Bronzer will become seasonal offerings after their debut, while the other three will remain available year-round, said Woffington.
Just as he was in the days following the announcement that CinBev had purchased the Moerlein portfolio of beer brands, Woffington was upfront with me about working with a contract brewer for Moerlein’s beer production, which was put to an end in Over-the-Rhine back in December.
Although he asked that I not divulge the identity of the contract brewery (it’s a trade secret, after all), it is most undoubtedly a Cincinnati-based operation. The contract brewery hired three former Moerlein employees after in-house brewing was put to an end, which means that people invested in carrying on the legacy of Cincinnati’s oldest active brewery still have a hand in making it a success.
“That was extremely important to us,” Woffington said. “This is a Cincinnati brand. We’ve got to keep it in Cincinnati.”
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