SIDNEY — The Shelby County bicentennial beer has a name.
Members of the Shelby County Bicentennial Beer Subcommittee met last Tuesday evening in the County Commissioner’s Board Room to select the winning entry for the name of the special beer being brewed for the Shelby County Bicentennial. The beer, a pilsner, will be formulated and brewed by Brew Master Nick Moeller of Moeller Brew Barn. It will be available only during Shelby County’s Bicentennial celebration, which will begin April 1.
“This was more difficult than I thought it would be,” Shelby County Bicentennial Beer Subcommittee Chair and Shelby County Commissioner Tony Bornhorst said at the conclusion of the process. “We had a lot of great entries. Some of those that made the final cut included ‘General Shelby’s Grog’, ‘Colonel Hardin’s Revenge’, ‘Founder’s 200’, ‘Shelby 200 Lager’, ‘Shelby County Pils’ and ‘Pioneer Pilsner’.”
“In the end, we selected ‘Shelby 1819 Limited’, the entry submitted by David DeVelvis,” Bornhorst stated. DeVelvis resides in Sidney.
“When I heard that my name for the Shelby County Bicentennial beer was selected, I was both surprised and excited,” said DeVelvis stated upon learning the news. “Being the husband of a local history teacher, it is nice to have a connection to this local event. I can’t wait to taste the beer.
“We had entries from several Ohio counties and a couple from outside the state,” Bornhorst said. “The contest was open to anyone currently residing or employed in Shelby County, as well as those born in Shelby County,” Bornhorst said.
“Working with Nick (Moeller) has been a great experience,” Bornhorst said. “He had indicated that he would like the beer to be a pilsner. Pilsner is a type of pale lager. It takes its name from the Czech city of Pilsen, where it was first produced in 1842.
“We plan to make a formal presentation to the winner, but can only do that after the first batch of beer has been brewed,” Bornhorst said. “The winner will receive a check in the amount of $250. and the first case of the beer produced.
“Creative Marketing Strategies President Mary Beth Monnier will be helping design the labels for the cans, and we expect that design work to be completed soon. Once that work is finished and approved, all we have left to do is allow Nick, his team and Mother Nature to do the rest of the work,” Bornhorst saod.
“We are excited and honored to help create ‘Shelby 1819 Limited’ – Shelby County’s Bicentennial beer. I know it will help Shelby County’s individual communities celebrate the county’s bicentennial,” Nick Moeller said.
“Creating a new beer starts well before the beer is brewed and it’s been exciting to join Shelby County’s leaders in producing a new product,” Moeller said. “We have finalized the recipe so now we’re ready for the easy part – making the beer!”
The beer is expected to have a limited production run, and will only be produced for consumption during Shelby County’s Bicentennial. It will be available for purchase locally and at special events during the year, including the Shelby County Fair and community celebrations such as the Botkins Carousel, the Anna Homecoming and Jackson Center Community Days.
Shelby 1819 Limited will join Moeller Brew Barn’s other products. Those beers include Dirt Track Kolsch, Frogtown IPA, Moweizen, Wally Post Red, Hoppy Heff, Hazy Mae Ekuanot, Marzen Oktoberfest, Honeywagon IPA, Blackberry Prairie Wheat, Baked Oatmeal Stout, Dunkel Weizen and Sawcreek Pale.
