It’s time for Listermann to grow up a little bit.  I don’t mean that in any negative light – it’s just that Listermann as a brewery, as a brand, as a space has by the very nature of a brewery that opened before you were allowed to have taprooms in Cincinnati, and as a company that grew without the help of big outside investment has done so very slowly.

They are one of those places that for a long time would find ways to “just make it work”.  It’s not a bad way to do things… it just means that stuff doesn’t happen quickly – and in a market like Cincinnati, that has exploded in the years since they opened, it left Listermann feeling a little bit outdated.  It’s all being fixed, though.

The New Taproom

I feel like I’ve been talking about the new Listermann taproom for a long time, again… it’s been a slow process.  I stopped in earlier this week, though, and the finishing touches were being put into place in the “lower taproom” where a beautiful wood backbar was being installed to match the big wood and copper bar that you guys have hopefully seen by now.

The brewery’s taproom has been split into two, very distinct, areas.  The lower bar area is just that… a bar.  This is the space that you’ll find yourself if you want to sit down with your fellow beer geeks and chat about the notes of stonefruit and coriander that you’re tasting… it’s quieter than the biergarten side of the taproom.  With a English Pub-like look and feel, this is the space that I prefer when I’m swinging by alone for a pint or two.  But upstairs?  Upstairs is a whole different story.

If you find yourself at Listermann with a group of friends, or if you’re looking to get into a vicious game of giant Jenga – the upstairs indoor biergarten is definitely the space for you.  It’s packed full of large picnic tables where you and all your friends can gather and play games, drink your beer – and live it up. Wide open, and bright with garage door-style windows that can roll up when the weather permits, the feeling upstairs is night and day compared to the lower taproom.

Situated right in between the two sides of the taproom is the new kitchen from Renegade Street Eats.  If you need to fuel up on some food during your drinking, you’ve not got a killer on-site location at Listermann to do just that.

A New Logo – New Branding – New Direction For Packaging

Brand is a big deal in beer.  The artistic side of how you relate the personality of a brewery into their logo, their packaging, hell… it works its way into everything, from the colors in the taproom, to the look of the building, what the bartenders wear.  Branding is everywhere, and it’s something that Listermann finds themselves redefining and clarifying as they grow up, and start becoming who they are today.

The brewery has been working with the phenomenal LemonGrenade Creative for a long time, and the design firm has done some of the coolest bottle and can art in Cincinnati for Listermann.  When the time came to start to look at a new, more grown up logo – of course they called up LemonGrenade to help with the work.  What the team came up with doesn’t venture too far from the previous design – it keeps the signature kettle, but simplifies it all.  The reasoning behind the simplicity is going to become much more apparent this weekend as they not only reveal the logo, but the first packaging that uses it as well.

It’s about Art.

As Listermann has started canning their beers the can art has become more and more important to them too.  The new simplified logo enables the brewery to showcase who they are in a format that puts the artwork front and center – it doesn’t compete with the brewery’s name.  This new signature look for Listermann has been evolving over the last 6 months or so – and seeing it finally come together is exciting for an excessive geek like me.

Getting A Look At The New Listermann

You probably need to go ahead and let your family know that you’re going to be busy this Saturday.  Listermann is releasing their next two cans (Lil Jimmy IIPA, and Bring The Hops IPA) in their now signature 16oz cans at 10am.  The cans have now taken on the new Listermann Look, with metallic foil labels that feature the new “art forward” design that we’ve been talking about.

While you’re picking up your cans, though, you’ll also get your first look at the completed taproom.  The beautiful handmade wooden bar has it’s mate, a big wooden back bar, with an updated draft system – the taps now run through the wall…no more carrying kegs down into the taproom – though I think that’s how Karenna trained for her Punch Out victory…

I struggle trying to think of a better way to put it into words, other than to tell you that it’s flipping exciting watching a brewery that I feel like I have grown up with finally crack the code of who they are.  As you pull up to the brewery, you’ll see the new wall on the side of the building.  It features Grafitti – a joint project with Elementz that will always be changing and evolving just like the brewery – yet capturing the spirit and personality of who and what Listermann is deep inside.

Piece after piece of this “new Listermann” each element stands as a work of art on it’s own, and yet as it all comes together and fits into the greater picture you start to see exactly who the 26 year old Listermann Company actually is. The uniformity that some breweries hang their hats on is nonexistent here.  It’s about unpredictability, creativity, art… craft.