When Moerlein announced that they would be installing their own canning line as part of their big expansion, we knew that it would mean good things for not only their limited releases, but for their core line-up as well. This morning we’re finally starting to see some of those changes come out, and I’m really excited to share them with you to speculate on.
Disclaimer: These are label approvals from the TTB, so nothing is guaranteed, and not only are the final labels possibly different, it’s possible that they won’t come out any time soon, if at all. That being said, I’d start planning on where you’re going to pick these up if I were you.
What’s most exciting about these, is not that we’re going to see them in cans but that the branding is seeing a little bit of a refresher too… I’m curious to see if the changes extend to the whole line-up (they should) including the bottles that we’re familiar with that haven’t seen a major change for quite a few years now (I think it was around 2008 that the current “look” made it’s debut).
Here’s what we know so far:
Christian Moerlein OTR
Now featuring a bright red design, the label features a background of the old Christian Moerlein Brewing Company in the background with the Moerlein logo front and center. The brand name is prominent down the center of the can with the familiar, yet revamped description on the side:
This Amber Ale takes you back to 1800’s Over-The-Rhine, the German neighborhood where brewing was born in Cincinnati. It is reminiscent of early settlers’ ales brewed by OTR’s first residents, but now sets the standard for today’s craft Amber Ale. The medium malt body is met with a subtle hop addition to give OTR a perfect balance.
I love this beer… it’s a rich, balanced “everyday” drinker that satisfies both hopheads and non, alike. A refined beer that really does remind you of something you could picture people drinking in pre-prohibition times in Cincinnati.
Christian Moerlein Purity Pils
We are a city with a love for lagers, and tradition in brewing. One of the earliest beer laws put on the books is the Reinheitsgebot, also known as the German Purity law. Christian Moerlein has a long tie with the purity law (they were the first US brewery to produce a beer that was certified Reinheitsgebot pure) and they continue that tradition with this Pilsner.
Packaged in a bright yellow can Purity Pils comes in at 5.5% ABV, and a crisp 40 IBUs, the brand and packaging pulls in the Reinheitsgebot tradition with an old picture of what seems to be a couple old German dudes, reading a book (probably studying up on the pretty complicated German Beer law… it’s a nice look, and a great play on the tradition and “purity” that this beer is going for. The bright yellow package reminds me of the sunshine, bright crisp days that call for exactly this… a clean, crisp pilsner beer. The can reads:
Reinheitsgebot! It’s the law, the German Beer Purity Law of 1516. Nothing but malt, hops, yeast and water. Christian Moerlein was the first American beer to certifiably pass the German Purity Law known as the Reinheitsgebot. Today, Moerlein Purity Pils is brewed to these standards – serving up a clean and refreshing full-bodied taste with a hoppy, lemon zest aroma.
As Moerlein has been pushing out a few different pilsners over the last year, I’m not sure yet if this is a new or slightly re-tweaked version of one of those… It’s stats are closest to the Lager House’s ‘People’s Pilsner’, but not exactly the same… so I suppose we’ll have to wait to try it ourselves!