The Enquirer

Who says Cincinnati's not cool? We've uncovered some pretty cool spots all over the city and in Northern Kentucky this summer.

We're not talking Club Clau red-carpet cool, Paris Hilton at a premiere or even baseball-cap-worn-backwards cool. We mean Grandma-fetch-your-sweater cool.

Chilly. Frosty. Nippy. The antidote to a steamy, muggy summer day.

Supermarket sweep

There's no admission charge, you don't have to dress up, and since you're there at least once a week anyhow, the freezer section of your friendly neighborhood grocery store is a shoo-in as one of the coolest places to be this summer. Think about it: there's that quick blast of frigid air that rushes out to greet you when you tug open the glass freezer door and reach in for your Lean Cuisine entree. Or the heady feeling you get when you strain to stretch your arm to the bottom of the freezer case to nab the coldest tub of whipped topping. So next time you're on a mad, sweaty dash to find something for dinner the kids will eat, stop and linger a moment over the quick-frozen berries, the tidy little pints of sorbet, the frozen pizzas. When you leave, you'll carry the cool - and maybe even a frozen pot pie - with you.

Cool cows

You think your office is too chilly?

Ray Niemeyer and his co-workers don't hang their cardigans over the backs of their chairs at the office. They just pull on their parkas and gloves and get to work.

Niemeyer's office is the 2,000-square-foot freezer at Heringer Meats Inc. in Covington.

"They go up to zero in the day and down to 10 below at night," Niemeyer says.

Sounds more like Buffalo than the Bluegrass State to us, but it keeps the boss (and the meat) happy.

Water fun

At 36 degrees, the 8,000-gallon Kingdom of Penguins display is the largest cold spot in the Newport Aquarium, and maybe in most of Northern Kentucky this time of year.

The exhibit's 14 Gentoo penguins and 10 king penguins keep cool with the help of chiller units, a snow machine and a HEPA (high-energy particulate air) filter, says marketing coordinator Kerri Marriott.

The equipment also helps keep the water a frigid 40 degrees.

The low temperature is critical. If it gets too warm, the penguins could develop a condition called aspergillosis, a fungus that could lead to a respiratory infection, Marriott says.

Being human, the aquarium's biologists must don warm clothing, rubber boots and protective eyewear before entering the exhibit to clean it and feed its tuxedoed tenants.

But if you're just watching the penguins parade around from the outside, you'll be fine in your T-shirt and shorts.

Cool as a duck

Hang out with the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks while they're practicing and you might have to bring a sweater.

Off-season, the temperature inside the team's home base at the Cincinnati Gardens on Seymour Avenue in Roselawn - and its annex, the Mighty Ducks Skating Center - is in the 70s while they're practicing.

"There's no ice in there then. The temperature is usually whatever it is outside, but about 20 degrees cooler," says team spokesman Don Helbig.

Add ice and temperatures rinkside dip into the 40s and 50s during hockey season, Helbig says.

"If you're going to stick around a while, you're definitely going to need a winter coat," he says.

The venue is heated for the audience during games, Helbig adds.

Creamy cool

Walter Willis mixes ingredients at the Graeter's production facility. (Enquirer photo/MICHAEL E. KEATING)

You might think a Cincinnati factory that churns out 800 gallons of ice cream a day would be a polar-like workplace, with employees in wool sweaters and long johns. But no. Most areas of the Graeter's ice cream plant in Mount Auburn are no more frigid than an air-conditioned office.

When we mention this to Richard Graeter, one of the owners, he points to a digital read-out on one of the famous French pots that make the ice cream, two gallons at a time. It registers a temperature of 12 below zero.

Then he steps into the freezer where ice cream is stored after being hand-packed into containers. The goodies don't stay in this 25-below-zero environment for long; perhaps only a few hours when demand is high.

But it's Walter Willis, tending a batch of butter pecan, still in the French pot, who rattles off the reasons this is a really cool place. "The people. The owners. I ain't out in the hot sun. It's a steady job."

And finally: "We're making something everybody loves."

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Contributors: Lauren Bishop, Peggy O'Farrell, John Johnston, Barb Lowell