American Byways

The 20th annual Bockfest 2012 was held on March 2, 3 and 4th in downtown and Over-the-Rhine in Cincinnati, Ohio. A celebration of the city’s German brewing heritage, of Over-the-Rhine and the coming of spring, The event was named after bock beer – a dark, rich lager that was originally brewed by German monks for sustenance during Lenten fast.

Prior to Prohibition, the dozens of breweries in Cincinnati would introduce their seasonal bock beers around Lent. But the tradition was not reintroduced until 1993, when the Hudepohl-Schoenling Brewery Company released Christian Moerlein Bock. Today, the Christian Moerlein Brewing Company and the Hudepohk-Schoenling Brewing Company continue to be an integral part in Bockfest. For this year, three bock beers were released: the Emancipator Doppel Bock, Hudepohl Festival Bock and Schoenling Bock.

Bockfest’s parade began at 6 PM after a heavy rainstorm. Led by a goat that pulled a keg of beer, a motorized bathtub from Arnold’s Bar and Grill and the Sausage Queen, the parade began in front of Arnold’s before proceeding down Main and McMicken Streets towards Bockfest Hall, or the Christian Moerlein Event Space on Moore Street. The diversity in the participants is what makes Bockfest great: a trojan goat, “bocking” dogs, monks and musicians.

Erwin Dobler was the 2012 Bockfest Parade Marshall. Dobler had immigrated to the United States from Bavaria Germany in 1959 and has been involved in keeping the Cincinnati German-American community connected to their heritage. He has formed the Enzian Tanzgruppe to celebrate a Bavarian form of dancing, and was one of the founding members of Cincinnati’s Oktoberfest.

Following the parade, there was the blessing of the bock beer, which featured Franciscan Monks blessing and then tapping a ceremonial keg.

Here comes the Trojan Goat led by k. Jenny Jones!

Keith Baker, Joseph Schneider, Randy Bailey, Cliff Jenkins, Eric Evans pull the Trojan Goat down historic Main Street.

Jim Tarbell, former owner of Arnold’s and otherwise known as Mr. Cincinnati, plays an integral role in Bockfest.

Further Reading

• Bockfest in 2010 and 2012

Didn’t mind the foot of snow Cincinnati had just weeks earlier. And the deep overcast skies that dominated the winter scene.

It was time for Bockfest!

Cincinnati is home to the world’s oldest Bock festival, and the city’s deep connection with its beer heritage is well evident in this event. For those who are not aware, the Queen City was once home to 38 breweries, one for every neighborhood and then some, producing so much that it was the fourth largest manufacturer of lager in America. Cincinnatian’s also drank every city in the United States under the table, consuming two-and-a-half times more beer more than any other: forty gallons of golden hues per resident in a given year were consumed, mostly concentrated in the deeply German-ethnic neighborhood Over-the-Rhine.

I photographed the parade and took part in the events over the weekend that spanned the weekend of the 5th of March. Click through for more information and history of Bockfest and to view the full 56 photographs in the gallery. Enjoy!

Jim Tarbell, also known as Mr. Cincinnati, makes his way down Main Street.

Arnold's Bar and Grill, the oldest bar in the city, represents at Bockfest.

The trojan goat of Cincinnati!

2009 Sausage Queen