Ohio Brewery News

Friday Six Pack with Seth Blewitt, Old Capitol Brewing

Every Friday, we ask an Ohio craft brewery owner or employee to answer six questions about their path to the brewing industry, what sets their brewery apart and their thoughts on craft beer in Ohio.

Today we’ll chat with Seth Blewitt, owner and brewer at Old Capitol Brewing in Chillicothe.

 

What made you decide to get into the craft brewing industry?

The love of brewing beer and wanting to create a convivial taproom/brewery for our hometown.

 

You’re Old Capitol Brewing and Chillicothe is the former capital of Ohio. Does local history play a big part in your brewery or your beer?

History is a big part of our brewery and a source for several beer names we’ve come up with. We actually revitalized the logo and brand for a brewery that existed in Chillicothe back in the late 30’s and early 40’s. It was called “Old Capitol Brewery” and features the state house in the logo. We were inspired by the fact that we used to have a brewery in our town and wanted to pay homage to that. As for beer names, there are several that come from local history such as the beer we make called “Canal Jumper.” There used to be a canal that ran through town where our aptly named “Water St.” exists today. Local story is that a man by the name of Dan DeLong attempted to jump the canal in his Model T. To break the suspense, he didn’t make it but we love telling that story.

 

Which of your beers do your customers enjoy the most and why?

In south central Ohio our most sold beer styles are light-bodied and crisp beers, like our Pilsner or Kölsch-style brews. The palate in our city tends to favor domestics on draft and we believe this is due to being in a market that hasn’t had much exposure to the vast varieties of beer that exist.

 

What’s your favorite thing about your brewery?

People in our community enjoy the space and utilize it for community related meetings, making us an active member in revitalizing and improving our city.

 

Besides your own, what Ohio craft breweries impress you the most and why?

The origin story of Jackie O’s is pretty neat and they aren’t afraid of going the extra mile on beers like their Oil of Aphrodite. Many of the beers also have local connections or highlight locally sourced ingredients, such as their Paw Paw Wheat beer.

 

Where do you think craft beer is headed? What do you think craft beer will look like five years from now?

Craft beer will continue to grow as an industry with many more smaller towns seeing their first brewery open up over the next five years. One of our philosophies is that there’s always room for an appropriately scaled brewery in every city.