Toast to our history

Cincinnati has a rich brewing heritage centered on the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood. Join us for a number of special events

2025 Bockfest Tour

Exclusive tours of Cincinnati's brewing heritage

Offered Saturday March 8 and Sunday March 9, 2025
Join the Brewing Heritage Trail on this special, Bockfest Weekend Tour (March 8 & 9), with access to a historic brewery not normally open to the public and only available through this tour!

The Lafayette Brewery originally opened in 1832 and its brewhouse is the oldest brewing structure in Cincinnati! Built at a time when lager beer was just beginning to be brewed in the city, it also has the oldest accessible underground cellars in Cincinnati! The brewery later became a malthouse, as part of Albert Schwill & Company, who would go on to become the largest producers of brewing malt in the world.

Along the tour route, we'll share some neighborhood history, including saloon activity along Vine Street and the unique Schwartz Point building. Upon arriving at the Lafayette Brewery, we'll grab a bock beer (included with the 21 & up tour ticket) and check out the site from top to bottom, learning about it's storied past, current activities, and future plans for the facility.

Tour check-in is inside the Rhinegeist taproom (look for the Brewing Heritage Trail Tent!) and they run rain or shine. The total walking distance of the tour is about 1/2 a mile and multiple flights of stairs are required to explore the facility, so please make sure to wear appropriate shoes for the tour!

Bockfest Heritage Series

Speakers and Presentations about Cincinnati and Brewing History

Offered Sunday March 9, 2025
Enjoy a cold bock beer while learning about Cincinnati's rich heritage from a variety of local brewers and historians . This event is FREE.

Sunday March 9
  • 12P-1P Dr. Don Heinrich Tolzmann - Grammers Cafe - An Over the Rhine Landmark
  • 2P-3P Thea Tjepkema - Zeitgeist: Germans and Music Hall
  • 3P-4P Dr. Frederic Krome – Prohibition: Beer Production and Consumption after 1934

The Bockfest Heritage Series takes place in the Beer Baron Hall at Moerlein Lager House the Moerlein Lager House, 115 Joe Nuxhall Way

Want more?

If you can't get enough history, we offer a wide variety of tours all year long along the Brewing Heritage Trail.

​Visit www.BrewingHeritageTrail.org for details!