Clyffside Brewing Company

Cincinnati’s Bockfest is upon us. For those of you who are not native to the city, Bockfest is a tradition that celebrates the heritage and history of Cincinnati, as one of the largest brewing cities in the nation. Cincinnatian’s drank more beer per capita than any other city in the United States at 40 gallons, and the city ranked fourth in terms of total volume production, per barrel. The term bock came from a tradition developed amongst the breweries, who would release all of their bock beer on the same day. Bock beer is a robust and rich lager that marks the end of winter and the welcoming of spring.

Cincinnati’s brewing history is well regarded but much of it remains unknown or forgotten. By 1888, 18 of 36 breweries in the region were located in Over-the-Rhine, concentrating along McMicken Avenue and the Miami and Erie Canal. Beer gardens, resorts and bars sprung up in the ethnic German neighborhood, which is where important matters of the city were discussed and conceived.

Regarded as an early German village, the name Over-the-Rhine is derived from its early builders and residents, German immigrants. At the time of the neighborhood’s conception, the Miami and Erie Canal separated the area from downtown, following along what is today Central Parkway. In regard to their native country, the immigrants coined the neighborhood “Over-the-Rhine,” because crossing the canal reminded them of crossing the Rhine River in Germany.

Steve Hampton, executive director of the Over-the-Rhine Brewery District Community Urban Redevelopment Corporation, shared that many postcards of that era proclaimed,

“Here’s to Cincinnati, the Queen of the West,
A dirty old city, but nobly blest.
For it’s here that fine arts with the frivolous twine,
A veritable Deutschland just Over the Rhine…
The kindliest greetings from all, whom we meet,
A good draught of beer every ten or twelve feet.”

Unfortunately, Prohibition, enacted in 1919, doomed many of the breweries. Raids, shoot-outs and a massive loss of business forced many to quit in disgust. It wasn’t until 1933 that it was repealed, but by then, the damage was done.

Since 2005, the Brewery District has hosted the annual Prohibition Resistance Tour. The tour showcases how Cincinnati’s brewing industry left an undeniable impact on the city, and how it influenced “the social, economic and cultural welfare of the city.” I was given a sneak peak at the Prohibition Resistance Tour, shared below.

Clyffside Brewing Company

Clyffside Brewing Company is a defunct brewery in Cincinnati, located on the site of Hamilton Brewery, founded in 1845 by Johann Sohn and George Klotter. In 1866, Sohn bought out Klotter; Klotter went on to establish his own brewery on Klotter Street soon after. Hamilton Brewery was renamed the Sohn Brewing Company, after his brother, in 1870.

In 1907, Sohn was purchased by Mohawk Brewery, and was known for its Zinzinnati Beer. During Prohibition, Mohawk attempted to ride out the laws by producing not only near-beer, but true alcoholic beverages. On August 3, 1925, Federal Agents waited from midnight until 6 A.M. the next morning for brewery employees to begin their shift. When the first truck was leaving the facility for delivery, agents raided the brewery. They shot at the truck driver and arrested brewery employees.

No other beer was produced by Mohawk and it closed down before the end of Prohibition.

Clyffside Brewery began in 1933 when Paul Esselborn organized the company in the former Mohawk Brewery structures. The company’s signature selections included Felsenbrau beer and Old Hickory Ale that was “aged in the hills.”

Underneath the buildings were lagering cellars 35-foot wide and 200-foot long, with walls that were 3-foot thick. It allowed the cellar to remain at a constant 53 degrees. A tunnel went underneath Mohawk Street, connecting the brewing building to the natural spring.

In 1945, Clyffside was sold to the Red Top Brewing Company, who continued to operate the facility as Plant #2 until 1957. Sans Prohibition, beer was brewed on the site for 111 years, the longest of any brewery in Cincinnati.

Distinctive handrails with posts shaped in the form of a barrel still remain.

Kauffman Brewing Company

The John Kauffman Brewing Company was known for its “Gilt Edge,” “Columbia,” and “Old Lager” beers.

In 1856, John Kauffman, George F. Eichenlaub and Rudolf Rheinbold bought the Franklin Brewery on Lebanon Road near Deer Creek from an aunt in the Kauffman family. Three years after the purchase, Kauffman, under the company name Kauffman and Company, constructed a new brewery on Vine Street, replacing the location along Deer Creek. The first of several structures was completed in 1860.

By 1861, the brewery produced approximately 1,000 barrels per year. Two years later, the company was renamed Kaufmann Brewery, soon becoming the largest in the city.

In 1866, a new brewery structure was completed at 1622 Vine Street. The Kauffman Building followed in 1876, which housed brewery employees. (Constructed of the Second Renaissance Revival style, the structure is currently being repaired through a $450,000 forgivable loan from the city.)

Kauffman was producing over 50,000 barrels per year by 1877, selling in many markets in the midwest, south and the southeast. It’s main beers included “Gilt Edge Bohemian,” “Pale Lager,” “Columbia,” and “Standard.” A popular slogan used by Kauffman repeatedly appealed to the sickly during the time, “A liquid food for the invalid a wholesome beverage for the healthy!”

The brewery became incorporated as the John Kauffman Brewing Company in 1882. Brewery production peaked in 1894, when Kauffman produced 70,000 barrels of beer per year, and the malt house had a production capacity of 150,000 bushels of barley. The brewery closed in 1919 when Prohibition was enacted, and Kauffman never reopened after it was repealed in 1933.

Many cellars were used as dumping grounds by later tenants.

Schmidt Brothers Brewery

Schmidt Brothers Brewery was located at 135 and 138 East McMicken Avenue in Over-the-Rhine. It was founded by Friedrich and Heinrich Schmidt, who operated a grocery store but had decided upon a new venture, and purchased Peter Herancourt’s Brewery at Central Avenue and Kindel Street for $1,500. The brothers brewed what they referred to as the “common ale” of Cincinnati.

The common name of Schmidt Brothers Brewing Company stemmed from the formation of a stock corporation on April 1, 1891. It’s popular slogan, “Crown Beer had a reputation second to none in the city,” helped sell the brand. Later, Gerhardt Schmidt and George Lampe purchased the facility and renamed it the Crown Brewery. One of the top selling products was “Happy Days” beer, but it’s rise was short lived. Probation began in 1919, so to keep the business active, Crown manufactured “Tang,” a near beer that didn’t last. Crown folded in 1925 before Probation was repealed in 1933

Schmidt Brothers Brewery

Find more photographs and historical background of the three breweries highlighted on this year’s Prohibition Resistance Tour by clicking through to the Clyffside Brewing Company, John Kauffman Brewing Company and Schmidt Brothers Brewery. Enjoy this update and enjoy the bock beer at Bockfest!