Long before the Fall Classic became America’s biggest October tradition, it may have started as an idea shared over a cold beer at 1410 Vine Street in Cincinnati. In 1873, Henry Wielert opened a German beer garden here in Over-the-Rhine. It became the hangout of Cincinnati’s power brokers, including “Boss” George Cox and Reds president Garry Herrmann. As the story goes, conversations in this garden led Herrmann to help create a championship series between the National and American Leagues. We know it today as the World Series. The building has other claims to fame too. It has ties to the founding of Billboard Magazine and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Its upstairs Yokum Athletic Club is where Ezzard Charles, “The Cincinnati Cobra,” trained on his way to the heavyweight boxing title.

After sitting empty for decades, the old Wielert’s building was reborn in 2022 as Alcove, MadTree Brewing’s restaurant and bar. Last week, my son Cam and I stopped in after a doctor’s appointment in downtown Cincinnati. When you walk in, you’re greeted by a beautiful, light-filled atrium full of greenery, a true “nook of nature” in the middle of the city. In one corner are old photos of Henry Wielert, some showing the original bar back when it looked like something straight out of Cheers, or its real-life Boston inspiration, the Bull & Finch Pub. I enjoyed a MadTree Happy Amber while Cam, my brewery wingman, sipped his Diet Coke. Our bartender was studying brewing at Cincinnati State, and he shared even more of the building’s history with us. There’s something special about raising a glass in the same spot where baseball’s biggest stage may have been dreamed up. So during October, order a Happy Amber, find that corner of history, and toast Garry Herrmann.

Address: 1410 Vine Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202
Website: https://madtree.com/locations/alcove-bar-restaurant/