Tales of ales from the heart of Ohio to the ends of the Earth
Let’s start this story about Columbus Brewing Company (CBC) with some indisputable facts. Fact #1: Founded in 1988, CBC is Ohio’s second oldest craft brewery. Only Cleveland’s Great Lakes Brewing is more venerable, and not by much. Fact #2: CBC is Central Ohio’s second largest craft brewery (only trailing BrewDog), producing 26,840 bbl in 2019.... Continue Reading →
Every year the Brewers Association conducts a survey of the best beer bars in the US via their online site CraftBeer.com. The public is asked to rate bars on their appreciation of aspects including atmosphere, staff, beer selection and special events. The Brewer’s Association compiles the data and publishes a list of the top bar... Continue Reading →
What’s your favorite Central Ohio brewery? With the number of choices rapidly approaching 30 it’s a daunting, subjective task akin to picking your favorite David Bowie album, but that doesn't stop people from trying. One such attempt is the Columbus Underground reader’s poll of the best microbreweries in Columbus (strange that they still use the term microbreweries). For... Continue Reading →
If you thought you’d checked off all of the stops on the Columbus Ale Trail think again. Ill Mannered Brewing will officially be opening their doors three weeks from today—Friday, September 4th at 5 pm, just in time for the Labor Day Weekend. The brewery, which features a 3-barrel brewing system and will be the first... Continue Reading →
A blow by blow account of my mission to locate and infiltrate the newly opened Hoof Hearted taproom.
If breweries had theme songs Land Grant’s would have to be the old Ringo Starr song “It Don’t Come Easy.” Things got off to a promising start when they launched a successful kickstarter campaign in February of 2012, but it would take 33 long months from that point to opening day. Despite or more likely... Continue Reading →
Not content to be outdone by the likes of Westerville and Gahanna, Powell will soon be getting its own brewery, Ill Mannered Brewing. The brewery will be located just north of downtown at 30 Grace Drive. The Ill Mannered team consists of long time homebrewers Brian Mathias, Greg Dannemiller, Ryan Romer-Jordan, and Tom Ayers. They... Continue Reading →
Fourteen months after initially breaking ground the taproom at Wolf's Ridge, a topic of several posts on this blog, finally opened to the public last night. I was fortunate enough to be invited to a sneak peek of the taproom on Thursday night. So Mark Richards, who does most of the photography for the brewery... Continue Reading →
If you frequent the beer aisles of local stores like I do, you are bound to encounter the colorful bottles from Sideswipe Brewing on an increasingly frequent basis. It's been a phenomenal first year for owner, head brewer, bartender, hop cultivator, and martial arts guru Craig O'Herron. This coming Saturday, January 24, Sideswipe is throwing a party at the... Continue Reading →
As many people know the folks at Wolf's Ridge (215 N. 4th Street) have been working on a taproom for just about as long as it takes Founders to make a batch of KBS. Lest you think I'm exaggerating check out this story by Columbus Underground from last February announcing the taproom and it's expected... Continue Reading →
Have you ever felt overshadowed by the success of a sibling, a teammate, a predecessor? What would it be like to walk a mile in the shoes of Scottie Pippen, Kenny Guiton, Ron Wood, or the new CEO of Apple, whatever his name is? In a small way that must be what it feels like... Continue Reading →
This story, published in October 2014, takes on an entirely different tone in light of accusations of sexual assault against Fred Lee published in Alive Magazine on February 5, 2019. If the accusations prove true, or even partially true, they are disturbing, reprehensible and I condemn them in the strongest possible terms. I contemplated deleting this... Continue Reading →
This past week my blog turned one year old. In the short period of time five Columbus breweries have either come into existence or opened public taprooms—Actual, Sideswipe, Wolf’s Ridge, Zauber and Zaftig. Three more breweries, Land Grant, Pigskin and Temperance Row, are on the verge of opening, and Columbus is still in the running... Continue Reading →
Until this past week Sideswipe was the only Columbus brewery that had neither a taproom nor a brewpub. To get your hands on their beer you had to make a trip to a local store and pick up a bomber adorned with one of their distinctive splatter art themed labels. I respect them for taking... Continue Reading →
Recently I had the “opportunity” to drive across a pretty wide swath of the country. I purchased a 2008 Pontiac Solstice from my father who lives in Pocatello, Idaho. To get it home I flew out to Idaho to pick up the car and drive it back to Columbus, Ohio. I was accompanied by my 19... Continue Reading →
This past weekend I paid a visit to Columbus’ newest brewery, Zaftig. I’ve read a few things about Zaftig online but I’d not yet had a chance to try any of their beer. Their taproom is located in an industrial space (545 Schrock Road, Worthington, OH 43085) that is practically in the shadow of the... Continue Reading →
