Category: Beer

Brewery Review: Rockmill Brewery

Rockmill Brewery

– TheBeercat

Every once in a while you need to take a road trip. I was surprised to find out beer exists outside of the greater Cincinnati area. Naturally I had to get out and try it. Just Southeast of Columbus sits Lancaster, OH. In Lancaster you’ll find Rockmill Brewery. I can’t recommend seeking out this hidden gem enough. With its close proximity to Hocking Hills you can bet the landscape is amazing.

(They have opened a second location in Columbus to spread their liquid happiness to others but if you have a chance to visit the original, do it.)

Rockmill sits on an a beautiful old horse farm and all of their beer is Belgian inspired Farmhouse ales. They’ve been open since 2010 so they know what they’re doing. They’re family owned and operated and are cranking out delicious beer of all kinds.

The property itself is worth a visit. They have several buildings housing their brewery operation. They have a patio and the most unique taproom I have every been to along with several barns and trails to walk on to see the property you get a one of a kind experience at Rockmill.

While the Lancaster location doesn’t serve food packing a picnic is perfectly acceptable. If you visit during warmer weather months a picnic on the property is a great way to see all of the natural works and with the wooden tables scattered about its pretty easy to find a nice spot.

The Hocking River rolls through the brewery’s property, a natural resource the brewery uses to its advantage in the brewing process.

Walk into the taproom and you won’t find a bar-like atmosphere or something that reflects a brewery atmosphere either. You’ll find a small bar in the main room and a lodge. I’ll call it a beer lodge. It resembles a cabin in the mountains more than anything really. Multiple rooms with tables, leather couches, ottomans, fire places, and some high top tables with chairs. Upstairs you can take in the exposed beams of the ceiling as well as several private cozy rooms. In the main room upstairs a look out of the window lets you see the patio and an awesome view of the entire property.

Beer? Oh they have that too. At the bar they have six taps and offer more beer by the glass poured from their bottles they bottle and sell right out of the taproom themselves. They offer anything you fancy, all with their Belgian twist.

Pilsners, IPAs, Stouts, Saisons, dubbels, tripels, you name it. They also have some outstanding barrel aged beer to choose from. The Cask Aged Tripel was easily my favorite beer I tried. It’s a tripel aged in whiskey barrels from a local micro-distillery Middle West Spirits. It’s smooth at 10.5% ABV.

A close second was the Sour Cherry Saison. At a cool 5% ABV it has a cherry start with a tart finish that isn’t too overbearing and won’t make you pucker it’s light and crushable.

I did bring home a Le Cheval bottle, at 5% ABV with a very attenuative yeast strain from Northern France it leaves a dry, crisp session saison.

(I’m very anxious to try it but I’m trying saving it for a bottle share.)

What’s really cool about this place too? They host private parties and weddings too!

You can find Rockmill Brewery at:

5705 Lithopolis Rd NW, Lancaster, OH 43130

www.rockmillbrewery.com

They’re also on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

 

Beer of the American Athletic Conference

Must Try Breweries of the AAC

People say a lot of things about the American Athletic Conference. Some say, like those within the conference, that it’s a Power 6. Others insist it’s a Group of 5. “The football is sub par, the basketball isn’t competitive.” What’s the Big 12 doing? Does the Big 12 know what it’s doing? No one really wanted to go to Iowa that many times anyway. While March draws closer we’ll have to wait to see how many teams get a bid to the Big Dance but UCF was the National Champions in football, went undefeated, and dominated Auburn so take that.

Regardless of all of those talking points out of the American one of the things AAC fans should be talking about is some of the cool cities we can travel to for away games. I mean New  Orleans, Memphis, Cincinnati, and Orlando all have great things to offer traveling fans.(So let’s decide to have the AAC Tournament in Hartford, CT almost every year! More on that at another time.)

So for you traveling Bearcats fans, or any fans traveling to watch your team in the American we thought you should know which places in each city to stop and grab a pint or six of local deliciousness. We researched and put together a formula and picked out one brewery in each city for you to make sure you visit on your next road trip to watch your team. The formula? Beer Advocate rating + Untappd Rating + a bonus for close proximity to campus (for easy navigation) = making it on this list + a double bonus if we’ve already had beer from or have been to one of these breweries.

Here we go:

Annapolis, MD – Navy

Chesapeake Brewing Co. If you’re in town good luck against the triple option. I’d check this place out before you get ran all over. It’s one of the few places in the area that brews their own beer and has a good selection of food. Their owner is a graduate of the Naval Academy. If I’m there I’m definitely trying the Oyster Stout and of course the BEAT  ARMY Golden Lager. They host a handful of events through out the year. Patrons had good things to say about this one too.

“Great brewery with good selection of brews, owner and family are super nice people. A must if you are visiting Annapolis.”

Cincinnati, OH – University of Cincinnati

Rhinegeist. It was hard picking one brewery from the hometown but if one brewery captures the city best I think it’s this one. Located in Over-The-Rhine it’s a short drive to campus. The building and architecture is a must see and the beer is top notch. They host all kinds of crazy events to days featuring animals from the Cincinnati Zoo and a wild German Costume contest you’d have to see to believe. I’d also venture to say Rhinegeist is one of the best in state of Ohio. I suggest you have a Truth.

Dallas, TX – Southern Methodist University

Peticolas Brewing Co. In its first year of operations, Peticolas Brewing Company won a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) for its Royal Scandal, an English pale ale, a second one a year later for its Great Scot! A Scottish Ale, and a silver medal for It’s Always Something, a Belgian Strong Ale in their third year. So what does that mean? It means they have some awesome beer available for you to try the next time you’re in Dallas!

Greenville, NC – East Carolina University

Trolling Wood Taproom & Brewery. This microbrewery has a pretty cool history. They’re housed in a completely remodeled building that dates back to 1924. The brewer is a graduate of ECU and they operate on a 3 Bbl system, which is basically the smallest system you can have for a commercial operation. What does that mean? Small batch beer that comes out just the way you want it every time. They have a solid patio and live music regularly. It looks like locals love this place which is always a good sign.

“Awesome brewery. I had a great experience here. Owner/brewer is super friendly and knows his beer. The beer was great and the atmosphere was really chill. If you are a beer geek and you don’t hit this brewery up when you are in Greenville, you are missing out.”

Houston, TX – University of Houston

Spindletap Brewery. When you think of Texas what do you think of? … I think of high school football, the beard of James Hardin, and Oil. The last of which is where this brewery finds its heritage and start. Just read the story on their website. They have all all star line up of beers that they can and serve up fresh in the tap room. Special events and food trucks are there all the time. It isn’t Texas Tea, it’s better, it’ Texas craft beer done right.

Memphis, TN – University of Memphis

Ghost River Brewing Co. Memphis, TN is a cool place to visit. It gets called a more tame New Orleans and while I don’t know about all that it is serving up some great beer. Memphis beer is also very interesting because every brewery there uses water from the The Memphis Sand Aquifer because it is purified naturally through 850 feet of fine sand and natural quartz. How cool is that? Ghost River cans or bottles some of its beers too so if it’s football season load up before heading out to tailgate.

New Orleans, LA – Tulane University

Parleaux Beer Lab. With everything there is to do in New Orleans make sure to add this to your itinerary before you forget you made one and can’t remember where Bourbon St is anymore. (Hint: you’re already on Bourbon St.)  This micro-brewery is located in the Bywater community in New Orleans. They have an ever changing beer line up on the taps because this place really is a beer laboratory. They love to experiment!

“This is a really great craft brewery. Great beer selection, chill atmosphere, and a fantastic patio. I’m from Atlanta but if I was local I have a feeling this would be a regular stop.”

Orlando, FL – University of Central Florida

Ellipsis Brewing. Now if you’re a basketball fan this is an important one because the 2018 AAC basketball tournament is hosted by UCF. When you’re there stop by this place. It’s probably the most recently opened brewery on the list but that shouldn’t discourage you. It’s a two story building that houses a 10 Bbl system.  They’re already very popular and have added a stronghold of beer in a newly found beer scene in Orlando. They’re a quick drive from the airport and offer a wide variety of beer.

“Came from out of town expecting an average brewery with average beer and I was blown away. Great brews, great staff and felt right at home. A definite must visit!!!”

Philadelphia, PA – Temple University

Crime and Punishment Brewing Co. This place is cool and it’s located in Philly’s Brewerytown neighborhood. Seems fitting doesn’t it? The beers are unique and the food is Russian inspired. This place aims to mix the once great local brewing tradition with the new age of craft beer techniques and  international influences. They’ve brewed a little known style of beer they call The Grod Inquisitor. Grodziskie, they say “the beer  originates from 14th century Poland and is brewed with 100% oak smoked wheat, and is often soured. They utilize a technique called kettle souring to achieve this desired subtle tartness. Smells of smoked ham and alfalfa bring way to a taste of cloud like sausage lemonade, which finishes with a crisp, dry airiness similar to a brisk wind blowing through your arm hair.”

Stoors, CT – University of Connecticut

Willimantic Brewing Co. I wasn’t sure what I’d find in looking for a brewery in the area but with a short drive from Stoors down to Willimantic you’ll find this brewery housed in an old US Post Office from 1909 to 1967 it sat empty for 30 years until they showed up and started brewing. They brew on a 7 Bbl system and produce a lot of good beer. You’ll feel at home in a cozy atmosphere add some food and you’ll never want to leave. They serve up some award winning chili.

Tampla, FL – University of South Florida

Cigar City Brewing. The first of two of the best breweries in the world on our list. Yeah you can visit 2 of the top 100 breweries in the world by traveling with your team in the American. This place promotes its self as inventive and it certainly is. With beers like Berliner-style Weisse with Cherries and Lime, a Brown Ale with Lactose and Jameson Barrel-rested Coffee, and Double Barrel-aged Imperial Pumpkin Ale. This place knows what it’s doing and is a must stop the next time you’re in Tampa.

Tulsa, OK – University of Tulsa

Prairie Artisan Ales. This was another one I wasn’t sure what we’d find until I remembered this awesome brewery. They can and distribute so odds are you don’t have to travel to far to find one. I just had Bomb! on Saturday (It was top notch) but if you’re in Tulsa look no further than this place. It’s the second of two places on this list that made the Rate Beer list of Best Breweries in the World list for 2015! That alone makes this place a must visit. Be on the look out for their cans and bottles the artwork on them are second to none.

Wichita, KS – Wichita State  University

Central Standard Brewing. You have to seek this place out. It has a chill atmosphere, board games if you want to play with friends or kick back and relax on some retro furniture or on the open patio good for all sorts of things. They use an oak fermentation vessel which is pretty unique. I don’t know if I’ve seen another place do that but I could be and probably am wrong. You can get anything from a crisp pilsner or a truly unique Saison Brett aged on blackberries and French oak.

 

As always we put together a Wish List of one beer from each of these breweries on our Untappd profile (TheBeercat1) for easy findings.

Have you already visited some of these breweries? Let us know how they were with a comment or a reply on twitter.

Former Bearcat Hoppin Things Up

Kevin Youkilis is the Greek God of Hops

You almost definitely remember Kevin Youkilis the baseball player. You might remember him playing in a Bearcats uniform from 1998-2001. While at Cincinnati Youkilis was a two-time Second-Team AP All-American and First-Team All-Conference USA his junior year. He also set the UC career records for home runs (56), walks (206), slugging percentage(.627), and on-base percentage(.499). Mr. Youkilis manged to get inducted into the University of Cincinnati Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007 as well.

You probably remember Youkilis the Boston Red Sox player that won two World Series. He had a very successful career in the MLB by any measure. He was a 3 time all star, Gold Glover winner, and Great Bambino curse breaker. He also once held the record for most games without an error and won the Hank Aaron Award in 2008. So yeah, the guy could play the game of baseball pretty damn well.

Somewhere along the way he took on the nickname the Greek God of Walks. Well now he’s tweaked that just a little bit.

Since he hung up his cleats in 2014 Youkilis has been working on his post baseball career. One that we at GoBeercats were super excited to hear about once we read it.

Youkilis is now the owner of Loma Brewing in Los Gatos, California. Which is in the Bay Area close to San Clara and San Jose. This could be the coolest thing we’ve ever heard of. A former Bearcats and Baseball all star to brewery owner? That’s right up our alley. From the looks of their social media accounts the place looks legit too.

In an interview with Draftmagazine.com Youkilis said he discovered craft beer after college and while playing professional baseball.

“The beer you’re drinking changes once you can afford better beer,” he says. “I realized there was really good beer out there created by smaller-producing individuals. What I loved the most was I realized I didn’t have to drink 10 beers to enjoy a night out. A couple well-made beers was more my style.”

So he partnered with his brother Scott and opened up Loma Brewing Co. As mentioned above, Kevin is used to winning awards and whatnot so would it surprise you if we said Loma Brewing won the 2017 California Commercial Beer Brewery of the Year. Well it shouldn’t because they did just that. Now, I didn’t know how prestigious that award is or whatever because it took place at the California State Fair but I do know that California as a whole has an awesome reputation for good beer so winning anything out there isn’t an easy task. After doing some research on the “competition” it turns out it’s legit and super competitive. With more than 1,488 beer entries from more than 400 breweries, the fair has become one of the largest beer competitions in the country. Only the Great American Beer Festival and the World Beer Cup are larger!

Loma Brewing Co. offers a wide range of beer styles and is well cemented into the community at this point. Appeasement IPA  is the beer that won the gold medal at the California state fair. There’s also a Kölsch, called Warren Peace, and (No Oranges Allowed) an American wheat ale that won silver in the same competition.

It looks like Loma Brewing does can some of its beers and I will be asking any establishment willing to order beers outside of the normal realm to bring anything it can to the area for GoBeercats to try. I’m looking at you Jungle Jim’s. Hopefully the pictures aren’t just of to go crowlers.

For you Untappd users there is a Wish List on our profile for an easy finding of the brewery and its beers. (@GoBeercats)

For those Bearcats fans planning on making the trip to UCLA for the Bearcats football game in September you should definitely check his place out. According to Google Maps its a mere 5+ hour drive. I’m sure it would be totally worth it.

Now, Kevin Youkilis is known as The Greek God of Hops.

Brewery Review: Little Miami Brewing Co.

This past weekend I visited Little Miami Brewing Company for the first time. They are located at 208 Mill St. in Milford, OH. LMBC (I don’t know if they’re using that acronym) has been open for just over one month and is already a very popular spot on the weekends.

The Place

To start they have plenty of parking behind the building, which is a plus considering the crowd you can expect inside the taproom. I was there on a Friday night and the lot was almost full, still there was parking. The building is hard to miss and really sticks out in the part of town locals call “Old Milford.” Just to the left of it is a huge grain silo. You can’t miss it. You walk in and the setting is that of many breweries today. This one separates itself though with it’s extras. Each window in the front is like a mini roll up cargo door which is something I had not seen before. Tanks and fermenters are placed behind a half wall behind the taps and a large patio is on the far side. With it being January they have the patio door open and a large tent covering it for overflow seating. According to their twitter you can reserve this space for private events. They also have a small open kitchen that serves pizza (which I heard was delicious), pretzels, and an assortment of other things. Above the taps behind the bar they have a giant canoe and other decorations. The canoe and wall is littered with arrows, which I thought was a really cool touch.

The Beer

When I visited, LMBC had 8 of their own beers on tap. The styles ranged from a blackberry witbier to a red IPA. The beer was certainly fresh and the service was great. Of the 8 beers they had on tap of their own I had 6. They also had 4 beers on tap from other local breweries. In addition to that they offer, wine, and spirits as well. The highlight of their beer list were Bike Path a pilsner and Ruby in the Dust a red IPA. I was really impressed with Bike Path. I didn’t expect much since it was a pilsner, they’re not my favorite, but this one was very well done. At 4.8 % ABV and 20 IBUs it’s very crushable. A close second for me was the Ruby in the Dust Red IPA. There is some balance with this one with the hops and malts but I picked up a lot more of the malt. At 7.9% ABV and 50 IBUs it’s a solid red IPA. That night the Ruby was popular, the keg was blown pretty early.

The one criticism I have of the beer line up was that the darkest beer they had on tap that night was a brown ale. If you’re a craft beer drinker looking for dark beer you know a brown ale isn’t really what you’re looking for. According to Untappd they do have a porter they call Smoke on the Water, I’m guessing that just wasn’t available that night.

Overall

LMBC has a lot of potential and with the crowd I saw this past Friday night it looks like they’re going to do very well. I really have no reason to visit Old Milford so if bringing new people into the area was one of their goals they’re certainly accomplishing it. I’ll definitely be back soon, I’m anxious to see what other beers they have lined up in the near future.

They are opened daily and you can find out more about Little Miami Brewing Company on their website and their social media accounts. ( www.littlemiamibrewing.com or @littlemiamibrew on twitter )

Naming the Bearcats Beer

Our Top 9 names for the Bearcats beer that May Never Be

The University of Cincinnati needs to partner with a local brewery to put out a Bearcats brew stat. We know the craft beer scene in this city is top notch and there are several breweries in town with the ability to make this happen.  Will the University ever come out of its shell of sobriety and partner with a local craft brewery to give UC it’s own beer? A lot of people think this will never happen but we certainly hope UC comes around. There are already a number of universities leading the way on this. Here’s what I found so far…

*Updated List*

  • LSU – Bayou Bengal Lager brewed by Tin Roof Brewing
  • Tulane – Green Wave Wheat by NOLA brewing
  • U of Louisiana – Lafayette – Ragin’ Cajuns Genuine Louisiana Ale, from Bayou Teche Brewing
  • Colorado State – Old Aggie Lager by New Belgium Brewing
  • New Mexico State – Pistol Pete’s 1888 Ale by Bosque Brewing Co.
  • University of Montana –Griz Montana Lager by Big Sky Brewing
  • Purdue – Boiler Golden-American Golden Ale by People’s Brewing Co.
  • *New* Northern Kentucky University- Norse Pale Ale by Braxton Brewing Co. 

If you want to know more about these beers you can check out the wishlist on our Untappd profile (@GoBeercats) under college beers.

We know that at least one major brewery in town (Madtree) has reached out to UC and was shot down.

That’s really too bad because the possibilities are almost endless and here are some of our ideas here at GoBeercats:

  1. Five More Yards to go then Hop. Breweries love the hop puns. I think this one works well. Make it an IPA around 6% and throw the Jimmy Nippert stiff arm pose on the label.
  2. Mick & Mack Attack. A milk Stout with obvious branding.
  3. Ring of Red. A Red IPA and an honorable brew.
  4. The Grid Gang. We tailgate at the grid, make a beer out of it with the Sigma Sigma landmarks. Make it a session IPA 4.5% sounds about right and lets crush them on game day.
  5. Back-to-Back. A throwback beer of the 2 National Championships. Obviously it would need to be a double IPA because once wasn’t good enough when it came to titles, the same for hops. Somewhere on the can it would need to throw shade at the useless nuts up north. 10% and 100 IBUs.
  6. Down the Drive. *chug* *chug* *chug* UC! A pale ale at 6% with 61 or 62 IBUs
  7. Lets Gose UC! A tart gose beer that starts with Ohh Ohh Ohh!
  8. Bearcat. A bock beer. It would fit in nicely with a certain OTR brewery’s line up of other cat themed beers. (Saber Tooth Tiger, Cougar, Panther, and Puma) Just throw red and black stripes on the can.
  9. Kings of the Queen City. An Imperial porter 12%

Honorable Mention

  • Huggy (Brown) Bear Ale. A brown ale
  • Cronin’s  Crushable Kolsh. A nice starter beer before making your way to the Shoemaker Center.
  • The Fight of Fickell. A Helles Lager  that brings the pain.

Lets get this done UC!

Have a beer name we should add to the list? Comment or tweet us to let us know what’s up.