Dry January in a City That Never Quite Was

Cincinnati has never been very good at being told no, especially when it comes to drinking.

Long before craft cocktails, speakeasies, or Dry January trends, this city was already writing its own rulebook. In fact, Cincinnati played a starring role in one of America’s most defiant chapters: Prohibition.

A City Built on Beer (and a Little Rebellion)

By the late 1800s, Cincinnati was one of the largest beer-producing cities in the country. German immigrants brought brewing traditions with them, and neighborhoods like Over-the-Rhine became dense with breweries, beer gardens, and saloons like Hudepohl Brewing, Christian Moerlein Brewing Company, Jackson Brewery, and numerous other corner saloons. In fact, by 1890, Cincinnati averaged one saloon for every 230 residents - one of the highest ratios in the country. Beer wasn’t just a drink - it was culture, community, and commerce.

So when the 18th Amendment went into effect on January 17, 1920 (almost 126 years ago to the day!), banning the manufacture and sale of alcohol nationwide, the city wasn’t exactly thrilled.

A snippet from the Cincinnati Enquirer on January 17, 1920, the day Prohibition was enacted.

While Prohibition may have dried up taps on paper, in practice it did anything but. Breweries began producing “near beer,” a lower-proof beer that could be “finished” elsewhere. Cincinnati’s proximity to the Ohio River made it a prime corridor for moving liquor, as the infamous figure George Remus did, whose empire supplied much of the Midwest. Speakeasies thrived downtown and in OTR, hidden behind soda fountains, social clubs, and unmarked doors. In true Cincinnati fashion, the city didn’t stop drinking; it learned how to drink creatively.

Dry January, Cincinnati Style

Now fast forward to January 2026. Dry January has become its own modern ritual - a month-long pause, a reset, a chance to rethink habits and rewrite resolutions. And while it might sound ironic for a historic cocktail bar to talk about not drinking, the spirit (pun intended) actually aligns more than one might think.

Prohibition forced intention. You didn’t drink mindlessly - you drank deliberately. You sought quality over quantity. You appreciated the experience because it wasn’t guaranteed. Dry January offers a similar moment of reflection.

At Japp’s, we see it as a chance to slow down, to savor the history behind the bar, and to enjoy a ritual of your own - whether that’s a zero-proof cocktail crafted with the same care as a classic, or simply soaking in the space and the stories it holds.

Non-alcoholic mocktail options at Japp's OTR

In addition to a vast variety of historic cocktails named after our origins of being a hairstore, Japp’s provides a selection of non-alcoholic cocktails and canned beverages. Try The Fresh Fade, made with Cleanco non-alcoholic gin, blackberry-lavender simple syrup, lemon, lime, soda, and a dehydrated lemon, or the Pomade & Pomelo with pomegranate, lemon, lime, simple syrup, soda, and a lemon twist. Looking for something a bit simpler? Sam Adams Just the Haze and Budweiser 0.0 are available as well.

Cincinnati survived Prohibition not by abstaining, but by adapting. That resilience still defines the city and its bars today. So whether you’re fully dry this January, dabbling in moderation, or just stopping by for the atmosphere, you’re participating in a long tradition of doing things your own way - the Cincinnati way.