Moerlein Lager House Holiday Beer Extravaganza

I’ve been writing a lot about fall craft beer recently; Oktoberfest, pumpkin, and others. But since these styles are released in late summer, many have already had their fill of them and are ready to move on to winter beers. To help get in the mood for winter beers, those in Cincinnati can attend the Moerlein Lager House Holiday Beer Extravaganza.

This is an annual beer event hosted by Moerlein Lager House but there are some changes this year that makes it even better than in the past.

What’s This Event About

Christian Moerlein Logo First things first, part of the strategy to revitalize the Christian Moerlein brand in Cincinnati was to build a brewpub.

At the Moerlein Lager House, they are focused on providing the best culinary experience possible. This means the chefs and brewers often work together to pair the beers and food as well as learn how to incorporate them into dishes. They want the beer and food to have an equal impact on their customers.

So when they were working on crafting this year’s Holiday Beer Extravaganza, they knew that providing both food and beer was a necessity.

In the past, this event was more or less an announcement of special beers being on tap. You were able to order them just like any other beer while eating at the brewpub.

New Format This Year

New this year, to enjoy the special list of Holiday Beers, you’ll need to buy a ticket to the event. This ticket gets you eight 5oz pours as well as appetizers throughout the event.

Here’s why I really love this new format:

Small pours allow you to try a larger variety of beers
The appetizers are specifically selected to go with the holiday beer
Special Christian Moerlein craft beers made for this event; including ’77 Winter Warmer
16 craft beers from guest breweries
Limited tickets means a greater chance of trying these hard to get holiday beers
More social as you will have the space and time to discuss the beer with other attendees

If you are like most, you’ll spend more than $35 visiting the local taproom so check out this event where you can get your hands on some great beer and food as well as chat with others that share your love for craft beer.

Event Details

Moerlein Lager House Holiday Beer Extravaganza Here’s the rundown on what you need to know about this event:

Date: November 4, 2017
Time: 12pm – 5pm
Location: Moerlein Lager House Biergarten
Cost: $35 per person
- Includes eight 5oz beer tastings and appetizers

Buy Your Tickets Here

The Beer

This event is only as good as the beer that they’ll be serving. So to ensure you have a great time, they are providing some great holiday beer selections from their own brewery as well as others from far and wide.

Christian Moerlein Brews:

’77 Winter Warmer
- Celebrating the 40th anniversary of the year that the Ohio river froze
- It features the essence of Glayva, a Scottish liqueur, with a variety of spices, Mediterranean tangerines, cinnamon, almonds, and honey.
- Available in cans at the Moerlein Malthouse on Nov 3rd starting at 4pm
- On tap and in cans throughout the city starting the following week
Holiday Office Party Porter – 4 Variants
- Mole Spice Infused
  - Notes of cocoa, espresso and a subtle smokiness make this a dark beer lover’s dream. Infused with Guajillo Peppers, Cocoa Nibs and a hint of Cinnamon.
- Cherry Cordial
  - Notes of cocoa, espresso and a subtle smokiness make this a dark beer lover’s dream. Infused with Bing Cherries, Cocoa Nibs and Vanilla Bean
- Date Night Infusion
  - Notes of cocoa, espresso and a subtle smokiness make this a dark beer lover’s dream. Infused with Medjool Dates, Fresh Rosemary and Orange Zest.
- Rum Cake Infused
  - Notes of cocoa, espresso and a subtle smokiness make this a dark beer lover’s dream. Infused with Cherries, Golden Raisins, Apricots, Pecans and Vanilla.
- Only available on tap at the Lager House

Guest Taps

As mentioned above, there will be plenty of holiday beers from guest breweries as well.

Jolly Pumpkin Noel de Calabaza
- Belgian Strong Ale ABV: 9% IBU: NA Dexter, MI
- Belgian dark strong ale is aged in oak for 6 months. Deep mahogany and malty, with layered hops, flavors of figs, raisins, sugar plums, cashews and rum laden truffles.
St. Bernardus Christmas Ale
- Winter Ale ABV: 10% IBU: NA Watou, West-Vlaanderen Belgium
- Specialty beer brewed annually for the holiday season. Deep dark color with a velvety taste and fruity nose.
Ridgeway Lump of Coal
- Stout ABV: 8% IBU: NA Reading, England
- This 8% bittersweet chocolate stout is the best you could hope for in these dark times. Considering how bad you’ve been, this little coal-black gem is more than you deserve for Christmas this year.
Delirium Noel
- Winter Ale ABV: 10% IBU: 20 Melle, Oost-Vlaanderen Belgium
- Multiple levels of subtle flavor which should be approached with confidence, with a tinge typical of Christmas, sauced with a sweet touch, then bitterness.
Southern Tier Cinnamon Roll Imperial Ale
- Spiced Beer ABV: 8.6% IBU: NA Lakewood, NY
- Lightly toasted malts with subtly spicy hops blend into cinnamon
  flavors and creamy lactose sugar combining for the essence of freshly baked cinnamon rolls.
Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale
- American IPA ABV: 6.8% IBU: 65 Chico, CA
- Brewed especially for the holidays, rich and robust, dry-hopped for a lively intense aroma.
Thirsty Dog 12 Dogs of Christmas
- Winter Ale ABV: 8.3% IBU: 21 Akron, OH
- Generous amounts of toasted and caramel malts combine with honey, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg into a delicious holiday treat.
Fifty West Home Sweet Home
- American Brown Ale ABV: 6.5% IBU: 30 Cincinnati, OH
- Brown ale with cinnamon, sage, molasses, pecans, and sweet potatoes. Thanksgiving in a glass!
Fat Head’s Holly Jolly
- Winter Warmer ABV: 7.5% IBU: 18 North Olmsted, OH
- WInter classic with notes of ginger, honey and cinnamon.

They are pushing to get some of the first kegs of these holiday beers that will be available this year. So this is the place to be to kick off the winter beer season.

Christian Moerlein Giving Back

77 Winter Warmer Ale Alongside the release of ’77 Winter, Christian Moerlein Brewing Co. will be hosting a coat drive with St. Vincent DePaul.

Moerlein fans can bring a new or gently worn coat (all sizes & genders) to the Taproom beginning on Friday at 4PM and they will receive their first pint of Moerlein ’77 Winter for $1.

Coats can be dropped off through the weekend (Nov 3 – 5, 2017), but $1 pint promotion ends at 9PM nightly due to Ohio law.

This is not tied to the Holiday Beer Extravaganza so feel free to stop in at any point during the weekend to help St. Vincent DePaul and get to try ’77 Winter for just a buck.

Future Events

Every brewery is working hard to get people into their taprooms. Many do this through special events. There’s special beers, music acts, trivia nights, car shows, food trucks and many more ways that breweries entice people into the taproom.

I’d love to see the Moerlein Lager House offer more ticketed events like this one.

This is a great way to ensure that you get to experience the beer, food and whatever else they have without being overcrowded or beer running out before you get a chance to try it.

Check out the event page on Facebook and purchase your tickets for the Holiday Beer Extravaganza through their Eventbrite page. If you are a fan of holiday craft beer then this is the event for you.