Brink Brewing acquires adjacent College Hill building in a move to boost in-house barrel production

 

A small Cincinnati craft brewery is close to completing an expansion project in College Hill.

 

Brink Brewing Co. is on track to finish work on its new production space, the instillation of its own canning line and barrel-aging room – along with an expanded patio for guests – this summer.

 

The brewery, which is located at 5905 Hamilton Ave., currently occupies 3,200 square feet. With the recent purchase of an adjacent building at 5909 Hamilton Ave., it's adding 2,400 square feet of space.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/05/06/brink-brewing-craft-beer-expansion-college-hill.html

 

Humble Monk Brewing announces move from Northside location

 

A Northside brewery is looking for a new place to call home.

 

Humble Monk Brewing Co. is moving after spending five years at 1641 Blue Rock St. The final day for taproom and brewing operations will be June 22, and according to a Facebook post, the owners do not have a new spot lined up.

 

“Unforeseen circumstances” prompted the abrupt move.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/05/07/humble-monk-brewing-move-northside-craft-beer.html

 

Inside look: HighGrain Brewing opens at former Brentwood Bowl

 

Silverton's HighGrain Brewing Co. just opened its doors inside the former Brentwood Bowl bowling alley in Springfield Township, and we've got your look inside.

 

HighGrain Brentwood Pub hosted its grand opening at 9176 Winton Road May 3.

 

The new facility boosts HighGrain's brewing capacity, while serving as a beachhead into a new neighborhood. Some of the features and fixtures from the former bowling alley remain, like signs and original seating.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/05/09/highgrain-brewing-opens-brentwood-bowl-look-inside.html

 

Humble Monk Brewing Co. to move locations within Cincinnati's Northside neighborhood

 

A Northside brewery has found a new spot to call home within the same Cincinnati neighborhood.

 

Humble Monk Brewing Co. is opening a new taproom at 4100 Colerain Ave., just down the street from its original location at 1641 Blue Rock St.

 

The nearly 10,000-square-foot property is the former National Association of Letter Carriers building, which was constructed in 1890.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/06/17/humble-monk-brewing-move-colerain-ave-northside.html

 

Voodoo Brewing Co. to open second area location

 

A Pennsylvania-based franchise brewpub company is opening a second location in the Cincinnati area this summer.

 

West Chester Township native Sarah Lister, a former probation officer, is opening Voodoo Brewing on her home turf June 27.

 

The 7,500-square-foot restaurant is located at 9456 Waterfront Drive in the former Mitchell’s Fish Market space.

“This is something I really wanted for a very long time,” Lister told me.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/06/20/voodoo-brewing-open-west-chester-mitchells-fish.html

 

MadTree Brewing breaks ground on $8.5M Blue Ash facility

 

Cincinnati’s third-largest locally owned craft brewery is planning to open its third location in the first quarter of 2025.

 

A groundbreaking ceremony for MadTree Brewing’s Parks & Rec facility in Blue Ash was held Wednesday, June 26. In December 2023, the company landed key funding for the project, in which it will repurpose a 15,000-square-foot former airplane hangar at Summit Park.

 

Over the next few months, the facility will be transformed into an indoor/outdoor restaurant within the city's Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA), meaning patrons can consume alcohol in open containers.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/06/27/madtree-brewing-breaks-ground-on-blue-ash-project.html

 

The Best Brewery In The U.S.—According To The U.S. Open Beer Championship

 

Third Eye Brewing out of Hamilton, Ohio took home the U.S. Open Beer Championship’s ultimate award and was named the 2024 Grand National Champion, the competition announced on Monday night, July 8. This means it is the highest point scorer this year and 2024’s best brewery, according to the competition.

 

“I am incredibly proud of our Team at Third Eye Brewing and grateful to see all our hard work recognized,” Kelly Montgomery, head brewer and co-owner of Third Eye Brewing, told me shortly after the award was announced. “Winning Grand Champion is a dream come true for all of us at Third Eye.”

 

The U.S. Open Beer Championship was founded in 2009 in Ohio by brewer Dow Scoggins and is one of the most prestigious brewery festivals in the world along with notable festivals such as the World Beer Cup and The Great American Beer Festival. Unique among U.S. beer festivals, the U.S. Open Beer Championship allows award-winning homebrewers to compete against professional breweries. This is the first time the competition’s top award has gone to an Ohio brewery, Scoggins told me. He added, he’s excited it went to a brewer with Montgomery’s pedigree. “Kelly is a three-time winner of the Great American Beer Festival’s Brewer of the Year and the only brewer to receive this honor at two different breweries,” Scoggins said.

 

Cont

 

Underdog's Almost Famous Wieners to open inside Swine City Brewing's kitchen in Fairfield

 

Fairfield’s first brewery is announcing the launch of a new hot dog stand concept.

 

On July 12, Swine City Brewing is introducing Underdog’s Almost Famous Wieners. The restaurant concept is owned by the brewery, which is located at 4614 Industry Drive, and will operate out of its kitchen.

 

Since the brewery opened in 2018, its kitchen has been home to many different restaurants from pizza to Southern-style comfort food.

 

Most recently, Mama’s Corner Kitchen operated out of the space. The business shut down in June after only a two-month-long run. Now, the brewery is taking back the reins and repurposing the kitchen to accommodate its own concept.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/07/11/swine-city-brewing-underdogs-almost-famous-wieners.html

 

West Sixth Brewing to open new taproom, restaurant in Covington

 

A Lexington-based brewery is expanding its Cincinnati-area footprint with the opening of a new, larger taproom in the region.

 

West Sixth Brewing will open West Sixth Covington Haus in the former Flying Axes space at 100 W. Sixth St. in the unit below Second Story, a cocktail bar.

 

West Sixth currently has a small operation in Newport on the Levee at the Bridgeview Box Park, an open-air shipping container park on the banks of the Ohio River. The brewery opened there two years ago, but the company has been eyeing a permanent Northern Kentucky expansion for nearly a decade.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/07/11/west-sixth-craft-beer-covington-flying-axes-food.html

 

It looks like there is a new brewery coming soon to the former Taft's Ale House on Race Street.

 

https://mellotonebeer.com/

 

https://www.facebook.com/mellotonebeer

 

http://www.instagram.com/mellotonebeer

Fifty West Brewing Co. announces grand opening of third location

 

A well-known Tri-State brewery is announcing the grand opening of its third location this weekend. 

 

On Saturday, Fifty West Brewing Co. is celebrating the opening of its new restaurant and taproom in Deerfield Township, located at 5224 District Park Drive.

 

The brewpub has been running quiet soft openings for the past week. The 6,000-square-foot space sits on a 2-acre lot in the $120 million District at Deerfield development by Silverman & Co. Inc.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/08/21/fifty-west-brewing-deerfield-township-opening.html

 

On 8/9/2024 at 5:10 PM, taestell said:

It looks like there is a new brewery coming soon to the former Taft's Ale House on Race Street.

 

https://mellotonebeer.com/

 

https://www.facebook.com/mellotonebeer

 

http://www.instagram.com/mellotonebeer

Looks like they are doing some real construction inside, not just taking over/reopening Taft’s as-is:

Father and son to open brewery and pizzeria, Hearth Brewing, on the West Side

 

A new brewery and pizza joint is about to open on the West Side.

 

Hearth Brewing, which is located at 1195 Stone Drive in Harrison, is holding a grand-opening celebration Sept. 28.

 

About three years ago, father and son homebrewing team Cory Otis and Greg Otis teamed up with their friend Andy Plogsted with the idea of transforming their passion into a business.

 

“(We) knew it was going to be in the West Side,” Greg Otis told me.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/09/20/hearth-brewing-open-harrison-west-side-greg-otis.html

Newport's Wooden Cask Brewing Co. unveils second floor taproom expansion

By Christian LeDuc – Staff reporter, Cincinnati Business Courier

Sep 27, 2024

 

A Northern Kentucky brewery and taproom is hoping to attract bourbon lovers with its new expansion.

 

Wooden Cask Brewing Co., located at 629 York St. in Newport, is announcing the opening of its long-awaited taproom expansion called the Alley.

 

Co-owner couple Karen and Randy Schiltz invested $500,000 to renovate the historic building’s 3,000-square-foot second floor, which was previously used as storage and office space.

 

MORE

New OTR brewery offering Blink-themed sneak peak before formal opening next month

 

A new brewery slated for Over-the-Rhine is offering a preview to patrons during the city’s biennial Blink light festival, which is expected to attract record crowds in 2024.

 

Mellotone Beer Project, a concept founded by Dennis Kramer-Wine, formerly of Rhinegeist Brewery, and Alexandra Nowell, the first brewmaster to helm Los Angeles-based Three Weavers, is opening its doors to the public for the first time Thursday, Oct. 17, for a sneak peek of the space and in celebration of Blink, a massive display of art and light that spans the region's urban core.

 

Mellotone will host “Arcade of Light,” an interactive art installation by Cincinnati-based Kemper Sauce Studios throughout the duration of the show, scheduled for Oct. 17-20.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/10/16/mellotone-beer-otr-blink-preview-open-november.html

 

Mellotone Beer Project announces official grand opening in former Taft's Ale House space

 

A highly anticipated new brewery coming to Cincinnati’s Over-the-Rhine neighborhood has just announced its grand opening date.

 

Mellotone Beer Project is celebrating its first official day of service starting at 4 p.m. Friday, Nov. 22, following a public sneak peek of the space during last month’s Blink light and art festival.

 

The 12,345-square-foot brewpub is located inside a historic church building at 1429 Race St. in the former Taft’s Ale House, which shuttered in November 2023.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/11/20/heres-when-mellotone-beer-project-otr-opening-date.html

 

Braxton Brewing opens fifth location inside $5M Union Commons development

 

A new Cincinnati-area family destination is now officially open for business.

 

Braxton Brewing Co., Graeter’s Ice Cream and Dewey’s Pizza have teamed up to create Union Commons, a family-oriented destination in Union, Ky.

 

Graeter’s has been open since last November. Both the brewery and the pizza restaurant officially opened Nov. 25 and will be celebrated in a grand-opening ceremony Nov. 27.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/11/26/union-commons-braxton-brewing-graeters-deweys.html

 

Taft's Brewporium to close its doors for good on December 29th.  

 

https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/crime/2024/12/04/tafts-brewing-co-under-new-ownership-brewpourium-to-close/76763209007/

 

Cincinnati Beverage Co. announces brand acquisition of Taft's Brewing Co.

 

Taft’s Brewpourium Cincinnati is closing at the end of the month following the acquisition of its parent company by another major local player in the beverage industry.

 

Cincinnati Beverage Co. has bought the Taft’s Brewing Co. brand and plans on closing the Brewpourium after a final day of service Dec. 29.

...

“The team at the Brewporium have largely been with Taft’s from the beginning … and are a truly extraordinary group,” Taft's Brewing said in a news release.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/12/04/cincinnati-beverage-company-buys-tafts-brewporium.html

Has there been any updates on the renovations of Clyffside and the Jackson Brewery?  Feel like we haven't heard anything about that in a long time.  Is it still actually happening? 

1 hour ago, Cincy513 said:

Has there been any updates on the renovations of Clyffside and the Jackson Brewery?  Feel like we haven't heard anything about that in a long time.  Is it still actually happening? 

 

I heard somewhere (can't recall if it was just an in person conversation) that they putting the Jackson Brewery complex on the backburner for the moment, and aren't prioritizing the Clyffside Brewery building beyond production for the moment. I know they have larger plans for a taproom at the Clyffside Brewery, but I think it's going to be a little while.

The felsenbrau building looks to be up and running with production, but I haven't seen any work being done at Clyffside or Jackson brewery with the exception of the Clyffside smoke stack getting fixed up. I'm not sure if they still do any production at the CinBev Moore street building or if Felsenbrau has taken that over.

 

I loved the old Moerlein tap room in the vaulted space at Moore Street that I hope comes back in some way and there is a ton of potential for cool spaces in the Jackson brewery. They seem to be slow rolling the redevelopments but I'd rather that they do things slowly but get them right instead of rushing to do things and getting over their skis, but there is a ton of potential and I truly think a tap room focused on Hudy Delight, Little Kings, Moerlein, and now Taft  would be very successful in any of their owned locations (especially Jackson) and something that would be so uniquely and historically Cincy. 

1 hour ago, ucgrady said:

The felsenbrau building looks to be up and running with production, but I haven't seen any work being done at Clyffside or Jackson brewery with the exception of the Clyffside smoke stack getting fixed up. I'm not sure if they still do any production at the CinBev Moore street building or if Felsenbrau has taken that over.

 

I loved the old Moerlein tap room in the vaulted space at Moore Street that I hope comes back in some way and there is a ton of potential for cool spaces in the Jackson brewery. They seem to be slow rolling the redevelopments but I'd rather that they do things slowly but get them right instead of rushing to do things and getting over their skis, but there is a ton of potential and I truly think a tap room focused on Hudy Delight, Little Kings, Moerlein, and now Taft  would be very successful in any of their owned locations (especially Jackson) and something that would be so uniquely and historically Cincy. 

 

There is no brewing on Moore Street and I don't think there has been for a while now. All production was contracted with Taft's for a while, and they've been brewing in the Felsenbrau building for a while now, not sure if the production was split somewhere beyond Felsenbrau and a contract brewer in recent months or not. I took a tour of the Felsenbrau building almost a year ago and it was in full operation

MadTree Brewing Co. announces grand opening for third location in Blue Ash

 

Cincinnati’s third-largest craft brewery has announced the grand-opening date of its third location.

 

MadTree Brewing’s Parks & Rec facility is opening in Blue Ash Feb. 6, 2025, according to a social media post made by the organization.

 

The company broke ground on the project in late June of this year. It is repurposing a 15,000-square-foot former airplane hangar at Summit Park.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/12/20/madtree-brewing-blue-ash-parks-rec-opening-date.html

 

West Sixth Brewing sets opening for Northern Kentucky taproom

 

West Sixth Covington Haus will open in 2025.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2024/12/31/west-sixth-brewing-covington-haus-taproom-open-jan.html

 

West Sixth Brewing opens first taproom in Northern Kentucky

 

Lexington-based brewery West Sixth Brewing opened its Covington taproom Jan. 11. We've got your look inside.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2025/01/13/west-sixth-craft-brewery-photos-taproom-covington.html

 

First look inside MadTree's massive new $8.8M Blue Ash outpost

 

The wait is nearly over. Cincinnati’s third-largest craft brewing company will open a massive new multimillion-dollar suburban outpost this week.

 

MadTree Brewing’s Parks & Rec is hosting a grand opening at its new Blue Ash location Thursday, Feb. 6. The 25,000-square-foot property is located at 4321 Glendale Milford Road inside Summit Park.

 

The plan to expand northward started about two years ago. The company broke ground on the project in late June 2024. It repurposed a 15,000-square-foot former airplane hangar and has an additional 10,000 square feet of outdoor patio, grass and kids play spaces.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2025/02/03/madtree-parks-rec-blue-ash-summit-park-craft-beer.html

 

Humble Monk Brewing scraps plans to relocate within Cincinnati's Northside neighborhood

 

A Cincinnati brewery is not moving forward with plans to relocate.

 

Humble Monk Brewing Co. is no longer opening a new taproom at 4100 Colerain Ave. in Cincinnati’s Northside neighborhood.

 

The brewery, which specialized in Belgian-style beers, was going to move into a nearly 10,000-square-foot property in the former 1800s-era National Association of Letter Carriers building. It’s a space just a few blocks away from its original location at 1641 Blue Rock St., which opened in 2019.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2025/02/14/humble-monk-relocation-brewery-northside-closing.html

 

There's no Kentucky alcohol thread, but there are some bourbon distilleries within the Cincinnati MSA, so putting this here:

 

Maybe they should've publicly supported someone who didn't say they'd impose tariffs.

51 minutes ago, ColDayMan said:

Maybe they should've publicly supported someone who didn't say they'd impose tariffs.

Yep! I have no sympathy anymore. 

It's also interesting how these kinds of communications are worded so gently. If this were Biden, they'd be screaming!! Even they are afraid to upset Dear Leader. He would have to lash out and rage about the unfair radical bourbon contingent. 

I live in Kentucky and love bourbon, but it is hard to not see this as a 'leopards ate my face' moment. Despite our democratic governor, the state is clearly very red and very Trumpy and the bourbon industry hasn't distanced themselves from any of that in any way despite many of the companies actually being Japanese now. The bourbon trail and Kentucky's relatively small tourism industry will also majorly impacted.

 

On an off topic note, UPS worldport and DHL will also be negatively impacted by Trump's tariffs. Toyota, GE Appliances & others depend on Mexican and overseas factories. It's all very frustrating for a state that is near the bottom of most lists anyway and our biggest companies and employers are going to suffer even more all while dumbasses claim they're "winning". 

And now KFC corporate is getting Plano'ed just like Toyota did.

They also specifically said 'retaliatory tariffs' are the issue, and didn't say the reason that there's retaliation happening in the first place.  I'm sure that's so they don't piss of Trump. I wish they'd come out and just say it.  No one wants to be first, but large players need to push back on the current 'kiss the ring' methodology that our economy is operating under.

Blame Canada 🎶

Higher prices mean its international profile will rise.  It'll gain a mystique. 

Woodburn Brewing to close, temporarily, as parent company March First opens new shop

 

The parent company of Woodburn Brewing in East Walnut Hills is closing the brewery, it says temporarily, as it moves the management team to a new retail endeavor elsewhere in the region.

 

March First Brands, the owner of Cincinnati Distilling, Woodburn Brewing, FigLeaf Brewing and March First Brewing, is opening its third bottle shop for its craft spirits brand. It plans to open a Cincinnati Distilling bottle shop this spring in the Cincinnati Premium Outlets in Monroe. An exact opening date has not been disclosed.

 

March First Brands in a news release said that the East Walnut Hills-based management team of Woodburn Brewing would be reassigned to the new bottle shop, necessitating the temporary closure of the brewery.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2025/04/21/woodburn-brewing-closing-temporarily.html

 

Craft brewery closes downtown Cincinnati location after nearly two years in business

A downtown Cincinnati brew pub franchise has closed after a nearly two-year run.

A note was posted to the door confirming the closure of Voodoo Brew Pub, located at 120 E. Eighth St., earlier this week.

In it, franchise owner Chris Sands said he and his team tried to make it work, but the "mojo" just wasn’t on his side.

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2025/05/14/voodoo-brewing-beer-pub-closes-downtown-location.html

Breweries need to get with the program. My wife and I went to Voodoo several months ago and the place was pretty empty. Their food was always decent but their drink prices were in my opinion, too costly. If you want to get return visitors, you’ve got to lower the drink prices to entice them.

Viking-inspired adult beverage company opens in former NKY winery space

A new mead tasting room and retail shop is now open in Northern Kentucky.

Allfather’s Meadery is located in the former Camp Springs Winery space, at 6685 Four Mile Road in Melbourne. Allfather’s is a mythologically-themed brand that places a heavy emphasis on Nordic culture.

“This is modern mead inspired by ancient gods,” owner Jason Catanzaro told me.

Mead is an alcoholic beverage, often called honey wine, made by fermenting honey, water and other ingredients. Its history dates back thousands of years.

That lore plays heavily in Allfather’s branding.

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2025/05/16/allfathers-meadery-northern-kentucky-mead.html

NKY craft brewery to open second location in West Chester Township

A Northern Kentucky-based brewery born in 2018 is expanding across the Ohio River.

Alexandria Brewing Co. is opening its second location in the former DogBerry Brewing space, at 9964 Crescent Park Drive in West Chester Township, later this year.

DogBerry closed in the fall of 2024, around the same time Alexandria Brewing’s owner, CEO and head brewer Andy Reynolds was searching for a new spot.

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2025/05/28/alexandria-brewing-dogberry-west-chester-beer.html

Braxton Brewing Co. acquires Hi-Wire's Factory 52 location, announces rebrand

A Tri-State brewery is taking over a taproom in Norwood.

On June 2, Braxton Brewing Co. announced the acquisition of Hi-Wire Brewing at Factory 52, located at 4600 Beech St.

The facility will be closed for the next few weeks for minor renovations and will reopen later this month as Braxton Factory 52. The company is also taking over the green space and full-service bar in front of the brewery, which will be rebranded to the Porch by Braxton Brewing Co.

Current Hi-Wire employees will be retained by Braxton, and several Hi-Wire beers will remain on tap in addition to Braxton’s lineup.

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2025/06/02/braxton-brewing-hi-wire-brewing-factory-52.html

March First Brands plans to sell Woodburn Brewing in East Walnut Hills following 'temporary' closure

A Greater Cincinnati hospitality group is looking to sell its East Walnut Hills brewery, restaurant and pub years after acquiring the business on the heels of the Covid-19 pandemic.

March First Brands is selling Woodburn Brewing, according to a sign posted on the door of the business, located at 2800 Woodburn Ave.

March First, owner of Cincinnati Distilling, FigLeaf Brewing and March First Brewing, announced its plans to temporarily close Woodburn Brewing in April. At the time, the company said it would be moving its management team to its new bottle shop in the Cincinnati Premium Outlets in Monroe.

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2025/06/10/woodburn-brewing-for-sale-march-first-brands.html