Hoppin Frog Brewery - Akron, OH

Our last stop in Akron was to the Hoppin Frog Brewery.  I have seen their beers all over, with tons of variety.  Their Christmas beer was one of my favorites I have ever had, but at 8-12$ a bottle I rarely buy their stuff because I just don't know if it's good or not.  So I was excited to finally visit the brewery.

We drove by it our first time, it is on the right side of the road right as the thruway ends, which is confusing.  Once we found it, we realized it a giant strip of offices all dedicated to Hoppin Frog.  Once inside the tasting room, we saw a nice big open room with tables and a double sided bar.  It was roughly 9pm and we were seated immediately.

We got a 5 beer sampler which included:
Fresh Frog Raw Hop Imperial Pale Ale which was excellent, really nice and hoppy and bitter..unfortunately this isn't released in bottles.
Gangster Frog IPA which was real good.
Hoppin To Heaven Double IPA was eh.
Mean Manalishi Double IPA was too strong for my taste, but good for what it is.
Hop Dam Triple IPA was very bitter but smooth.
I was happy with the beers, except that the sampler isn't a flat price and the last 2 beers were 3.50$ and 4.50$.

We got the 18$ cheese board which was worth it! Came with meats, olives, bread, and more! I enjoyed it very much.

Very easy decision..if you're in Akron, GO here! They also have a fun selection of merchandise including all different types of glasses, a Frog cutting board and the same beer sampler they serve theirs in (it was 50$ though). It is really good, service was top notch and beers while they can be pricey are good and there are LOTS of choices.  Stop by Trailhead, then Hoppin Frog and top it off with Thirsty Dog if you have time.  But for now, check them out! www.hoppinfrog.com/‎

Thirsty Dog Brewing Co - Akron, OH

I must say before I go into my review, this is based on my one and only visit to this brewery. I have had their beers in the past (Citra dog, 12 Dogs of Christmas) and I enjoyed them very much. 

 We went on Thirsty Thursday (2$ off growlers) 90 minutes before they closed. BIG mistake.  While it wasn't PACKED it was crowded enough to be uncomfortable and not a space at the bar.  Parking wasn't bad, but can be confusing since it is an industrial type area. I couldn't find any spot at the bar since there were quite a few larger beer drinkers, men and women, (I am big myself so I can say it), and they weren't drinking anything for a good 45 minutes but just wanted to hang out and chat.  I found a spot in the far corner that had extra tables piled up. I pushed a table out of my way, snuck into the corner and asked about samplers.  I was told samplers are ordered by the single, BUT there is no menu except on the wall that I couldn't see so I said give me any IPAs, stouts, or pale ales you have.  She brought me 8 beers as you can see below.

Now all these beers were very good, but I had no clue what they were!! And I wouldn't dare ask the ONE bartender who was constantly filling growlers and could careless about telling me what I'm drinking.  To add to it, some old man next to me sitting and drinking a growler by himself gave me the 45 degree head turn about 15 times no show his disapproval of either me crowding his corner spot or just drinking samplers. 

I wanted to buy some merchandise and a mixed 6 pack, but I waited 20 minutes at the bar and eventually gave up and left.  It is sad, because half the reason we stopped in Akron was for this bar.  So note to self...DO NOT go on Thirsty Thursday or before they close.  Very snobby crowd..and not sure why you live in Akron, it isn't the Hamptons.  But I do like their beer so check them out! thirstydog.com/‎

Trailhead Brewing - Akron, OH

On our way back from Columbus we stopped in Akron for the night to visit the two big breweries and I was lucky enough to come across Trailhead Brewing in my searches to add a third stop.  This place is a very small operation, one main brewer who is a really genuine and nice guy who you can tell loves to brew and takes pride in his work.  You may drive right past the place since it is located in a mini plaza.

 We tried all 4 beers which were the Gold which was real nice, the Winter which had a really good Christmas beer taste to it, the Black IPA which was very easy to drink..my girlfriend who doesn't typically like Black IPAs was a fan, and the Calvin and Hops IPA was excellent I ended up taking home a growler of this.

I was tired from a long day and since we were the only customers we were so into chatting I completely forgot to take pictures but if you check out their yelp page others have posted pictures http://splashurl.com/lmnpbqc  or you can check out their Facebook page for updates http://splashurl.com/n7mureh

Elevator Brewing - Columbus, OH

Our last brewery stop in Columbus was Elevator Brewing.  I knew this was the most tourist of them all, plus it is located right downtown.  Real nice from the outside and the inside has plenty of space and a very giant bar area.

For happy hour many apps were only 5$ so we ordered pot stickers and calamari to snack on. Both were very tasty, good quantity and only 5$!

As for the beer, you can order samples so we got 3 each.  The Bear Ass Pale was kinda hoppy but smooth, Xtra was just okay, Mojabi Double was really nice and real hoppy, Flying Hydrant was light and crisp, Heiferweizen was good for a Hefe, and the Three Frogs IPA was good but nothing special.

As I expected the beer didn't blow me away, food was good, service was very good the guy working the bar was excellent and very nice.  If you visit Columbus it is highly worth stopping in, but I wouldn't expect greatness from the beer but for a place to enjoy a good beer and good food hell yeah! Check them out www.elevatorbrewing.com/‎

Wolf's Ridge Brewing - Columbus, OH

Wolf's Ridge Brewing is located right on the outskirts of downtown Columbus.  Plenty of street parking all around.  This place is fresh and new.  Tons of seating, fancier looking then most breweries.  Since it was still early (4pm) on a Wednesday it was dead...except for a group of guys who came to drink from Elevator Brewing (the next brewery we were going to). 

 Can see the brewing process from the way back to the bathroom.

Good bartender, quick service.  We ordered a beer sampler with five beers. I like that all the names of the beers reference wolves.  Harvest Wheat was light and crisp tasting, Ridge Tail was light with not much to it, 3am IPA was fruity and had a bitter aftertaste not bad, Howling Moon Double IPA was really hoppy and had a citra taste to it I liked this one easily the most, and lastly the Canis Lycaon Stout was really good.

We ordered a 12$ cheese board, which was good but as you can see below didn't consist of quite much.

All in all I really like this place and wish we had one in my city.   Quality food, good beers, nice scenery, and excellent service...then again it IS brand new so we shall see how it turns out.  Check them out! www.wolfsridgebrewing.com/‎

North High Brewing - Columbus, OH

North High Brewing is located on the strip known as Short North. Basically 3/4 mile of shops, restaurants, antiques and much more. It is located basically at the end of this fun little strip.  From the outside, it looked foreclosed...shady windows and the area itself looked a little dead.  But come to find once we were inside it was roomy and really nice. 

 The brewery can be seen right behind the bar.

They make a big selection of beers.  We got the sampler which included all of them:
White wheat was real light and easy to drink
Wildcard English Ale Nitro was smooth and had a very sweet taste.
Queen Maudine Milk Stout Nitro was only 6%..it wasn't bad but even better knowing it was only 6%.
Olentangy Brown Ale was a little hoppy, not bad.
Red Ale was okay, had a very interesting after taste I couldn't pinpoint.
London Gentleman ESB nothing special but wasn't horrible.
Poolside Pale Ale was real hoppy and quite good.
Imperial IPA was a little too sweet for me, like candy.
Old Fort Porter was tasty.
Vanilla Bourbon Porter definitely had the bourbon taste, real nice.

We were the only customers when we were here, but it WAS like 3pm on a Wednesday.  The guys who were working were really nice, talkative and helpful.  Worth checking out for sure! www.northhighbrewing.com/‎

Columbus Brewing Company - Columbus, OH

This was the big one I was looking forward to! And it did not disappoint. Located in the Brewery District of Columbus, it is kind of tucked away but not hard to find.  Plenty of parking lot parking. 

I didn't bother with a sampler here because all I wanted was the Bohdi which I have had in the past, but man is that a good Double IPA! I also tried the pale ale and their wheat beer...not shocking both were fantastic.
We started off with preztel bread which came with two different types of mustard. They were real good, nothing special but good.

Next we split a Caesar salad, which they split for us in two different bowls.  And lastly we split the Bye Bye Miss American Pie pizza which consists of hose made fennel sausage, sliced banana peppers, pepperoni and smoked provolone. It was excellent and it was buy a pint get a pizza half off night, so it was only like 6$!

 Our server was beyond excellent,  food was really good, beer was outstanding, and I just had a great time here. This is the MUST stop brewery if you are in Columbus.  Check them out...columbusbrewingco.com

Zauber Brewing - Columbus, OH

Not much I can say here because I didn't get to try their beers.  The facility is beautiful, as you can see below. 

The bartender...forgot his name, was excellent and very friendly.  This place is all set to be a great brewery..once they have the beer.  A gift shop/growler fill station is located outside the bar, inside there are plenty of tables and a bunch of TVs. 

They have about 12 beers on tap..mostly all local beers, and every Thursday they tap a couple of their own but quantities are small.  They hope to be serving daily very soon. 
They sell t-shirts, magnets, all different types of glasses, growlers, and more! I hope to see them succeed because it looks very promising. Check them out...zbeers.com

Barley's Smokehouse & Brewpub - Columbus, OH

Finally made it back on the road for some brewery trips...this time Columbus & Akron, OH. Our first stop was at Barley's Smokehouse & Brewpub for lunch.  Barley's also has just a brewery located about 10 minutes away.

For lunch time, it was pretty dead. Not complaining...I like uncrowded places.  This place is really big with plenty of seating and a giant bar.

They had about 8 of their own beers on tap, lots of guest beers and a huge bottle list, but we got a sampler of 4: Christmas Beer...really good Christmas beer with a lot of the good flavors you expect from that kind, Alexander Russian Imperial Stout...we both really enjoyed this and was as good as most Russ Imp Stouts I've had and at only 7.6% it was great for me, Bitter Dan Extreme IPA...this beer was 103IBUs and you could tell! It was smooth and tasty, lastly was the Highland Hammer IPA...just too sweet for me for an IPA.

For lunch, I had the slider sampler which consisted of three different sliders...pulled pork, brisket and pulled chicken.  The brisket was a big stand out for me.

All in all, very solid place, good service, not overpriced, they had a few merchandise items just typical t-shirts and pint glasses.  Check them out...smokehousebrewing.com