Lagerland: A Celebration of Cleveland’s Lager History
Celebrate Cleveland’s incredible Lager scene by visiting the beautiful rotunda at Heinen’s Downtown Cleveland for “Lagerland,” a Cleveland Beer Week event featuring 50 lagers from 20 breweries that showcase a mix of year-round classics and new seasonal favorites, like Oktoberfest and Marzen.
Friday, August 25th | 6-8 pm |Heinen’s Downtown Cleveland | Must be 21 and over to attend.
Click here to learn more and purchase tickets.
Cleveland’s Lager History
Cleveland’s rich lager-brewing heritage dates back to the mid 1800s. This legacy, provided by Cleveland’s early European immigrants, has left an indelible mark on our city that continues today. Most of these early immigrants (and brewers) hailed from Germany and brought hundreds of years of lager-brewing experience with them to Cleveland, so “Lager” soon became the primary style of beer brewed along the south shore of Lake Erie. The most influential early Cleveland brewery, Gehring Brewery, was opened in 1852 in what is now Ohio City. By 1900, Cleveland was awash in many styles of lagers produced by 23 breweries.
Prohibition started the decline and eventual demise of the Cleveland brewing industry, which sat dormant until 1988 when Pat and Dan Conway opened Great Lakes Brewing Company and launched their flagship beer, Dortmunder, a Lager of course!
Today an even more robust beer scene thrives with local breweries producing a myriad of classically interpreted Lagers that have made Cleveland one of the truly great Lager cities in the U.S.! Visit any brewery in the Cleveland area and you can taste delicious Lagers such as Pilsner, Helles, Marzen, Dortmunder, Octoberfest, Vienna Lager, Maibock and more!
What’s the difference between a Lager and Ale you might ask? Lagers are fermented at cooler temperatures and have an extended fermentation process called “Lagering.” They’re also a bit crisper than Ales and are not as hop-forward. It’s best to taste the difference for yourself, so the next time you are at a local brewery, give one a try.