Editor’s update:
Voting is now active!
Here are the complete instructions and rationale behind selection and seeding.
How the game works:
1) In the Round of 64 (first round), there are four regions — Westside, OTR, NKY, Eastside (as with regions in the NCAA tournament, they’re not at all geographically accurate by “team”) — with 16 beers in each region. We will be voting on one region per day, so the first round will last four days. The bracket will be updated after the end of each round.
3) Each round will last 24 hours (active from 8am–7:59am) and voting will be open — in its first year, I have decided to not make this a competition among voters. This is a learning experience for all of us, so I would like to make it as uncomplicated as possible.
Selection and seeding:
1) All currently open breweries were listed and given a certain number of “berths” depending on their weight in the industry — considering, but not limited to size of facility, distribution, how many beers in production, etc.
2) “Berths” were then selected based on their popularity in Untappd (combined number of check-ins and rating).
3) All 64 beers were then listed in order from highest Untappd rating to lowest, where they were divided into groups of four (four different regions) and seeded accordingly.
Please do not drink and drive!
Previous post:
Coming soon!
With the help of my husband and Untappd, I have put together an NCAA-style bracket to coincide with this year’s March Madness. 64 local beers will go head-to-head in single-elimination match-ups as we collectively decide which Cincinnati beer reigns supreme — lord knows there are a lot of great ones!
When the bracket is released next week, Round of 64 voting will begin. Keep your eye out, tell your friends, and be sure to vote for your favorites!