TinyTaftsYes, we’ve all heard the rumors building around town.  Taft’s is getting big.  We knew they wanted to get a bigger production facility, but this?  This is massive.

When the OTR brewery opened their doors back in early 2015, they had already got people talking about the sheer size (and expense) of the phenomenal brewpub that we now know as the Taft’s Ale House.  When Cincinnati starts to see the size of this expansion, minds will be blown.

Where Are They Moving?

Let’s squash that rumor right off the bat – they aren’t moving, they are growing.  The brewery is opening up a second facility, a production facility – much like Fifty West’s production works, or Moerleins Malt House.

The new Taft’s facility (which is being called the Taft’s Brewpourium) is located at 4831 Spring Grove Ave, right by where Mitchell hits Spring Grove.  Think of the location as situated right smack in between St. Bernard and Northside.  This new building is 50,000 square feet – a former P&G lab and warehouse.  It’s big, and they’re going to pack it full of stainless steel to really enable some major growth for the brewery.

The new Taft's Production facilityWhat Are The Details?

Massive.  That’s what you need to know.  A huge 50bbl, four vessel brewhouse will be pumping their delicous beer into huge 150bbl fermenters.  They are being pretty tight lipped about how many tanks are coming, and how big this expansion is going to be – but the word I’m hearing from my “spies” is that it could be somewhere around 5 of these tanks.  Keep in mind, their current fermentation capacity can almost fit into just one of these tanks… that’s big stuff.

The new facility, sorry… Brewpourium, is going to be packed full of their new production operation.  The brewery is set on continuing their self distribution here in Ohio, which means you’ll start seeing some really gorgeous vinyl wrapped trucks full of Taft’s beer out on the roads.  Their beer will finally be canned in house on their own canning line as well, more specifically on a new Wild Goose canning line that should put out around 88 cans per minute.

Don’t think that this is just about prodcution growth, though.  The new space will also be home to a big beer garden and taproom.

The front of the building (currently big garage doors for a loading dock) will become big, retractable glass windows that look out onto an outdoor beer garden that blows anything they could ever have done in OTR out of the water.

Though there won’t be a kitchen at the new Brewpourium, there will be plenty of space for food trucks to set up shop – including a brand new Taft’s Ale House truck that should be showing it’s face in the near future.

This all means more beer, more space, and a different experience that you’re used to at the “food centric” Taft’s Ale House that you’re familiar with today.

The Great American Beer Race

On a related note, if you find yourself down at the Ale House, you can have your chance to cast a vote on something that’s pretty easy to get behind… Beer.

The brewery is asking drinkers to cast their vote for their favorite beer, which will become the very first can that will be produced at the new location when it comes online in mid April of next year… which brings up the big question…

When Is This Happening?

I always throw a big ‘ish” at these when I talk about them – but the brewery is hoping that the Brewpourium will be open sometime around May 1st of next year… though you can imagine, with a project of this size there are a lot of variables… so stay tuned as we get closer for finalized details!

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