Ohio Brew Week

The Plain Dealer

Sunday, July 09, 2006
Scott Stephens
Plain Dealer Reporter

Athens - Plans to create Ohio University were hatched in the Bunch of Grapes Tavern, a Boston watering hole favored by Revolutionary War veterans. In the spring of 1886, 11 of those vets huddled in the dark bar over pints of strong ale and planned the settlement of the soon-to-be-formed Northwest Territory.

That boozy backdrop would seem to make this college town, nestled in the hardscrabble Appalachian foothills 90 minutes southeast of Columbus, the ideal place for Ohio's first statewide beer festival.

Ohio Brew Week, which runs Monday-Saturday, July 17-22, is a celebration of suds. More to the point, it is a celebration of suds brewed in Ohio by small, craft brewers who favor quality over quantity.

At least 15 microbreweries from across the state will be represented at the six-day event, which is hosted by the Athens Independent Restaurant Association. The group hopes the festival will provide a jolt to its members' quiet cash registers during the slow summer months when most Ohio University students are away.

The week will include seminars on the history of beer, home-brewing lessons, beer song contests and cooking-with-beer demonstrations.

"Microbrewing is an art form, and the celebration of that craft fits perfectly with the Athens community's rich artistic talent," says Jon Sparhawk, who initiated the festival idea.

Hate the taste of beer? Drink in the wide array of music, art, crafts and food - either fine or fast - that promoters have on tap.

One of the best things about having a beer festival in Athens is the town's compact downtown. Everything is in walking distance, although the local bus system will be circulating along the tasting route. Court Street is the main drag, and most of the town's restaurants, bars and shops are on or near it. Union, Washington and Carpenter streets are the major roads that cut through. Quieter, they hold their own surprises for the visitor on foot.

That in mind, the best choice for lodging is the Ohio University Inn, a beer bottle's throw from the college's West Green and a 10-minute stroll from the heart of town.

The sprawling inn is an old-fashioned, full-service motor hotel from another era. Desk clerks in jackets and ties greet guests. An on-premises restaurant, Cutler's, is a stately sit-down affair where chefs in billowy white hats turn out filet mignon and shrimp cocktails. Newly refurbished rooms are large and well-appointed. The shady, stone courtyard, featuring an ample pool and wrought-iron furniture, is an inviting place to beat the summer heat.

Before venturing out, set the mood with a cold microbrew at the inn's bar, which is called Bunch of Grapes Tavern. Sample a hearty brown ale from nearby Marietta Brewing Co., one of the many good choices that grace the bar's taps. Soak in the polished wood and low lights and imagine you're with those heroes in Boston, preparing to explore a new frontier.

Those who arrive in town July 17 may want to catch the official kickoff of Ohio Brew Week with a ceremonial keg-tapping at Toscano's restaurant, 14 Station St. The 4 p.m. event will provide the first glimpse of Alan Eames, a Vermont-based writer, historian and beer anthropologist who is often called the "Indiana Jones of Beer."

Five more days of tapping and tasting will follow. Each of the 10 restaurants participating in the brewfest plans to showcase individual microbrews and a variety of special food offerings.

Festival events won't begin until 4 p.m. each day, so that leaves plenty of time to pursue the area's other pleasures. With most university students gone until the fall, Athens becomes a slower, quieter place. For a few weeks, the bustle of the university is on recess, and visitors can better appreciate the quiet natural beauty of southeast Ohio.

A good place to do that is nearby Strouds Run State Park, 2,600 acres of hardwood forest about six miles from the heart of town. The woods feature 15 miles of hiking trails - as well as an eight-mile bridle trail - that offer many scenic vistas. The unglaciated Appalachian Plateau was untouched by the massive sheets of ice that moved over the state 12,000 years ago, but torrents of glacial water cut the deep ravines and high hills that adorn Strouds Run today.

That process also created Dow Lake, Strouds' shimmering jewel popular with boaters, swimmers and fishing enthusiasts. Anglers will aim for rainbow trout, channel catfish and largemouth bass. The less ambitious can unwind on the lake's 900-foot sand beach.

All of that physical activity can work up a hunger, so scoot back to town and make your way to O'Betty's Red Hots, a hole-in-the-wall hot dog joint at 15 W. State St. The quirky, 3-year-old snack shop, whose name reflects the early 20th-century moniker for frankfurters, has become a quick legend, with devotees claiming it has the best thing on a bun this side of Tony Packo's (in Toledo).

After lunch, allow yourself a leisurely stroll around town.

Athens' isolation has preserved a variety of small, unusual shops that have yet to be forced out by chains. One of the oldest, and best, is Lamborn's Studio, 19 W. State St., next to O'Betty's. The store, open Monday through Saturday, has been a fixture since the 1940s and features an eclectic mix of local artwork, antiques, historical photographs and custom framing.

The Dairy Barn Southeastern Ohio Cultural Arts Center occupies a 1913 building that was once part of the dairy farming operation of the state mental hospital. Today, the Dairy Barn features classes, a craft shop and two international exhibits of quilts and beads. Hours vary, Tuesday through Sunday.

If you've worn out your shoes by now, you're in luck. Nearby Nelsonville is headquarters of Rocky Shoes & Boots. The footwear is no longer made inside the walls of the original manufacturing building that dates to 1932. But visitors can still browse the retail store, which remains a landmark on U.S. 33.

Also in Nelsonville is the grandly refurbished Stuart's Opera House. Opened in 1879, it was closed for years and nearly destroyed by fire in 1980. It reopened in 1997. The stage, once graced by the likes of George M. Cohan, is now the site of top music and theater productions.

Back in Athens, long-time residents will recommend a dinner at Casa Nueva. Founded by eight unemployed restaurant workers in 1985, the West State Street landmark is believed to be Ohio's first worker-owned restaurant. The kitchen churns out steady Mexican fare, with the massive $7 Casa Burrito remaining a top seller. The restaurant features seven homemade salsas.

Top it all off with a cold Ohio microbrew. Casa's horseshoe-shaped bar features eight Ohio-only brews on draft, a perfect marriage of the best of Athens and the best of beer.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:

sstephens@plaind.com, 216-999-4827

The Plain Dealer

Sunday, July 09, 2006
Scott Stephens
Plain Dealer Reporter

Planning a trip: For a schedule of events in Athens Monday-Saturday, July 17-22, go to www.ohiobrewweek.com. For information about Athens and the surrounding area, contact the Athens County Convention and Visitor's Bureau at 1-800-878-9767 or go to www.athensohio.com.

Getting there: The two routes from Cleveland to Athens are about 200 miles and both take 3½ to 4 hours, depending on traffic.

From the West Side, take Interstate 71 south through Columbus to U.S. 33 east. A new bypass will spare you the traffic around Lancaster and Logan.

East Siders may choose Interstate 77 south. At Marietta, take Ohio 7 west along the Ohio River, exiting at U.S. 50. Follow U.S. 50 to Athens.

Staying there: The Ohio University Inn & Conference Center. Rates start at $130 a night double for a room with a king bed, a beer-tasting ticket, taxi voucher and free breakfast. Call 740-593-6661 or go to www.ouinn.com.

Eating there:

Case Nueva, 4 W. State St., 740-592-2016.

Miller's Chicken, 235 W. State St. 740-593-6544.

Seven Sauces, 66 N. Court St. 740-592-5555.

O'Betty's Red Hots, 15 W. State St. 740-589-6111.

Purple Chop Stix, 371½ Richland Ave., 740-592-4798.

- Scott Stephens

Brew fest will let you get a good taste of Athens area