Bircus Brewing

Full bar

Rooftop seating

What an experience last night. Last day on Business trip and wanted to hit up Rhinegeist since I…read morealways grab a six pack when i see it in stores. It's been awhile since I have been to a Brewery that checks all the boxes. Atmosphere, Beers & Service are out of this world. Keep up the good work.

Big space, plenty of room to spread out. Cool spot on paper, but honestly it was a little too…read morechaotic for me, kind of loud and all over the place. Asked the bartender for a beer recommendation and didn't really get much. Felt like they were just going through the motions, no real interest in helping me find something. Might give it another shot on a slower day, but the first visit was just okay.

Some of the Rhinegeist beers on the revolving taps.

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Main taproom decorated for Dad's day.

Voodoo Brewing

4.4(97 reviews)

2.2 mi•Downtown

Stopped in recently for dinner after a Bengals game and had a great time. If you're leaving the…read morestadium area it's a 20 minute walk with some uphill, but well worth the trek to get ahead of the crowds. The bars near the stadium were mobbed. The seating is family style with long tables. You can order via QR codes (meh) or walk up to the side of the bar for food and drink. The manager came around and introduced himself to everyone and was all over the place. Helping in the kitchen, bar, cleaning up etc.. He's definitely an asset because he didn't disappear as the rush started coming in. The inside is nicely decorated and I was digging their Voodoo/skull theme. We settled in and watched the 4pm NFL game on one of the large TV's while chatting with some disappointed Bengals fans and locals. Beer wise they had a nice selection of classic Voodoo brews (we used to get them a lot in the Philly area several years ago), a balance of styles and some newer brews I'd never heard of. If you enjoy the dark side of beer the Where Our Secrets Go Imperial Stout was delicious and thankfully more along the lines of the traditional style Impy Stout. I had an IPA that I can't remember the name of, but it had a nice Belgian yeast/hop twist to it. My son enjoyed their root beer. Food wise the Jumbo Chicken Wings, roasted in house hit the spot, I highly recommend them. I added their Good Vibes BBQ "Sawce", but you can get them dry rubbed or chose from several other "Sawces". The wings were big with fresh meat and the sauce was great. The Pub pretzel we ordered was huge and the good vibes beer cheese complimented it well. The Mr. Pickles Fried Pickles were also a great choice for an app. They were a big portion. My friend had the Chili Mac and my son ordered the Lil Mashburgers - 2 little smashburgers oozing with cheddar & chippies off the kids menu. We ate, had a couple of beers and enjoyed our dinner at Voodoo before we explored more of downtown Cincy. I'll be honest I wanted to avoid BrewDog and Voodoo and experience home grown Cincinnati breweries, but we were really happy we stopped at Voodoo. Thanks guys you earned a fourth star for great friendly service from the manager and bartenders!!

It wasn't great, it wasn't bad. We got the beer cheese queso, some wings, and fries. The beer…read morecheese wasn't great, the chips were a little stale. We ordered extra hot wings, and the sauce was great but to make it "extra hot" they just added a metric ton of hot pepper or some hot seasoning, and it was nearly inedible. They were extremely over sauced. The fries were okay. My dry rub wings were good. It's basically self serve, you order on the website via QR code. They brought our food all at once due to that, to include the appetizer. Service was quick but we only saw our "waiter" once to deliver our food. If we had needed refills, we wouldn't have gotten them. We didn't even get silverware and only got one appetizer plate. The ambiance was nice, it's a great looking facility. I probably won't be back though, unfortunately. Just not great enough to bother going again. We did have one beer off the draft list that was good. The dragons milk.

Food menu

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Fabled Brew Works

4.7(61 reviews)

5.1 mi

Wife and I went in to check them out and ordered a couple of flights. We enjoyed all of them -…read morequite impressive for a brewery that's really not been around a long time. They carry some stellar ratings on Untapped and are the top brewery in Kentucky per Finding Beer. The IPAs were superb - especially James and The Giant Peacharine. The stouts were also ridiculously good. There are plenty of beers barrels aging in the back which tells me they understand what customers want. Hopefully we can get back to this place again sometime soon.

This place has the most unusual beer selection that I have ever seen and far more types of beer on…read moretap than most bars. The atmosphere inside is really cool and hard to explain. The outdoor seating area is great. I love their "dessert" beers. The Goblin Goblin food truck has been in the parking lot each time that I have been there and their burgers are crazy delicious too.

Bar with atmosphere

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Nine Giant Brewing

4.4(413 reviews)

8.9 mi•Pleasant Ridge

Locally sourced ingredients

Hipster vibe

1st timer in Ohio and stumbled upon this cute little area with lots of local shops and restaurants…read more The beer was crisp and refreshing, a little bit of variety for all. The food was delicious; the Peruvian chicken and nachos are both phenomenal. You order at the bar and the service could not have been better. Can't wait to go back!

Man, so sad about this place! Decided to stop in here for my birthday and was extremely…read moredisappointed. To start this place is a "sit down" but you have to order at the bar and they bring it to you. We were a tad thrown off with that since they literally had waiters and people roaming around, didn't make sense to me. But that was just the start! We decided to order nachos and a pretzel to start the meal. The pretzel was disgusting, hard and lacking flavor and the $14 nachos was a side plate with a small portion of nachos on it. I asked the server what was with the size of the nachos and he said he though they were normal. They aren't, you go to a normal bar and for $14 comes out a platter with nachos that are loaded. Then our mains came out, my wife's salad was gross, lacking flavor and with dry chicken and my burger was decent. For $90 this meal should have been WAYYY better. We left feeling very disappointed and will definitely not be coming back.

Save Ferris Cranberry Orange Berliner is Back!

Carnitas nachos with habanero salsa and crema

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Killer beers across a wide range of styles

Braxton Brewing Company

4.4(334 reviews)

2.2 mi•City West

This is a nice brewery in Covington. There is a good beer for everyone and they also have hard…read moreliquor available. Do you want something to eat? They also have Dewey's pizza available in the brewery. There's some pretty cool rooftop seating in the staff was friendly and nice. There also a playing card vending machine. Slide in for a cold pint next time you're in Covington.

It's been fun to watch Braxton evolve over the years and help shape the neighborhood along the way…read more Consistently serving up great beers, they have recently opened up the main space on the first floor by removing the 'garage' that was in the middle of the room. They were doing some live trivia the night we were there, with lots of people enjoying the game. Easy ordering of delicious pizza from Dewey's next door, this spot in the heart of Covington is always a winner.

Out front

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Flight

BrewDog Cincinnati

4.0(189 reviews)

2.4 mi•Over-the-Rhine

After striking out at Braxton down the street (Closed on a football Sunday for an event wtf?) we…read morewent to BrewDog. The layout was pretty typical for them albeit on a smaller scale than their locations in Las Vegas and Columbus. Several bar areas, a gaming mezzanine, couches, art on the walls and a roof deck (wasn't open when we visited). The large L shaped bar was clean and manned by a nice fellow. We headed up to the mezzanine and played some games while watching the 4pm game on their big screens. Food wise - we didn't eat here, but I can tell you from past BrewDog experiences their wings are always on point. Beer wise - They had a good mix on their 24 or so taps - IPA/Pale Ales (8 on tap), ciders (4), stouts & dark beers (3), lagers & pilsner (2), sour & fruit-based (2) and five beers for a community beer festival that was running that weekend. $1 of every pint poured went to charity. I had a Winter Staycation at 7.5% - our seasonal stout that brings rich pecan and sweet toffee flavors right to your glass. Every sip is a warming blend of nostalgia and bold flavors, crafted to remind you of the comforts of the season. If you loved last year's cozy winter release, this one's sure to feel right at home. It was average with sweet pecan flavors, caramel, vanilla, toffee and tasted malts. Drank like a porter. It was OK which is what most of their beers are. Just above average in my humble opinion. From my experiences between BrewDog and Voodoo, it seems the outsiders are better options than the local breweries (except Northern Row they were good) in Cincinnati. Can't go wrong with visiting this BrewDog. Thanks guys!

We had a great pre-concert experience at this location! Service was great! Elvis juice is always…read morehittin! Honey adobo wings is straight gas!

Some of the Cincinnati crew

Upstairs work in progress

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Lots of cool lighting

MadTree Brewing

4.4(698 reviews)

8.0 mi•Oakley

Probably the best nachos I've ever had…read more Plus service, drinks and atmosphere is delightful as well.

3.5 stars... This…read morejoint came highly recommended by a reputable source so I had to pop in... Hazy's and even a Mexican lager on draft, but the pizza was the star.

Playing cards at MadTree's Oakley Taproom

Large outdoor patio. Plenty of room for privacy and large parties.

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Fire pit at Night at MadTree's Oakley Taproom

Urban Artifact

4.2(182 reviews)

4.6 mi•Northside

Fantastic venue in an old Northside church!…read more Hop downstairs to the church basement and you will find a well stocked bar. UA specializes in sour and fruit beers, but also includes some guest beers, NA products, and canned cocktails. Staff is friendly, knowledgeable and will guide you on your fruited brew journey. Check out their calendar for events!

While the block surrounding the place isn't great, I was surprised to find a welcoming interior. A…read morelot of the plaster upstairs in the main room is damaged but the charm is still there. They were able to move the chairs out of the way quickly to create the "dance floor" area for the wedding I attended. We were able to cater pizza with little difficulty along with provide a few different dishes throughout the night. Drinks were all from the same small bar on the opposite side from the side entrance. The bathrooms, while large, are only located downstairs with the general public. I also loved the downstairs bar area! Service was great and the staff were super nice. I didn't love the drinks but I'm hoping with the wider selection downstairs I'll find something that I like. The only one I'd try again is the lemongrass poppy seed!

Flight!

Interior

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Exterior

Listermann Brewing

4.3(152 reviews)

5.5 mi

We had a really fun evening at Listermann Brewing Company's beer and cheese pairing event. The…read morepairing of four of their beers with Urban Stead Cheese Company had been thoughtfully chosen. A representative from both the Listermann and Urban Stead gave us some background on their businesses and then talked a little about each offering. We enjoyed all of the beers, but Chickow!, a Double Brown Ale with Hazelnut, was definitely our favorite. Hubby even bought some cans to bring home! Their restaurant is closed on Tuesdays, so perhaps we'll go back on another day of the week next time to check them out as well.

One of my favorite activities when traveling with friends of like mind is some beer tourism. This…read morewas our first spot in Cincinnati. We had hoped for food, but the business that does food in the building is another company and they were out for spring break. So sad. ;-) The brewery has a nice vibe to it. There is a small taproom with a much larger Oktoberfest styled hall (meaning large community tables). There are plugs here if you work remote, although I would NEVER do that. :P The beers are not the best I had in Cincy, but they are above the average in Cincy, so it is definitely above average. It is also a well-known, stable brewery. I understand Listermann recently sold the spot, so it will be interesting to see if there are changes going forward. The board is a bit heavy at this point, with quite a few brews over 10%. My feelings on the beers? The IPAs are decent, but they shine brightly with their stouts and pastry sours. The blackberry cobbler sour (12%) and Forbidden Imperial Stout got my top marks. Would love to return and see how the food is here, but spring break worked against me. If you go through my profile, you will find I have a couple of hidden gems we found on our trek.

12.1 mi•Anderson Township

Tap list

It's too tasty!

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Men's room.

Wandering Monsters Brewery

4.3(83 reviews)

We absolutely love wandering monsters. Huge parking lot area for parking, quick service inside even…read morein a busy night, and duck pin bowling! They host trivia nights, private parties, and have awesome merch if you are into that. Always a new fun drink on the menu and their classics. The food is classic bar food + BBQ and it's pretty good for not being their main gig. Duck pin bowling can have about 45-60 wait if you get there at peak time on a weekend night, but if you put your name in as soon as you get in it times out well with having a drink, eating, and catching up some! A go to for us when we need a night out of the house but want something easy.

First timer and didn't disappoint! Great atmosphere and food! You can play Duckpin while enjoying…read moredinner before or after. Great place for the entire family. Reasonably priced. Cheese curds were a huge portion and the smash burger had a really good taste. Staff were really nice and welcoming and I appreciate that they put the instructions on how to order and where to sit when you first walk in.

Viator Obscura stout (caramel & chocolate) and the blueberry mallow Pomona.

The bar

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Duckpin

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Jesse T.

205

3 years ago

Bircus Brewing Company is hands down my favorite brewery in the greater Cincinnati area. Located in the charming river town of Ludlow, Kentucky, it's housed in an old theater and boasts a one-of-a-kind setup. The owner's circus background adds a unique touch with live performances. I've traveled the world, and this brewery stands out as the most distinctive. Exceptional beers, friendly people, and delicious food make it a must-visit gem if you're in the Cincinnati area. read more

Ryan F.

109

7 years ago

What a fun place to visit. 12 great, unique beers on tap, plus wine, cider and limited spirits. If you haven't visited since 2018, you must go check out the newly renovated Ludlow Theatre. Music and food almost every weekend now and one the most unique spots in the city for sure! If you want the most up-to-date beer menu, you can easily find it on UNTAPPD as their website simply showcases all the beers they have brewed to date. read more

Bircus Brewing - breweries - Updated September 2026

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I've been to the tap room several times and I've never been up to the second floor spirits! Half…read moreprice on Saturdays. It's a great place to explore any curiosities on scotch, bourbon, rye... Japanese whiskey too. Come up to the second floor and have Eden take care of you. She was fun!

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Alexandria Brewing Company

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Stopped in on a Saturday afternoon and were surprised to find a mini music festival going on. The…read moreplace was packed with families and others of all ages. Fortunately a couple got up from the bar as we were walking by. We enjoyed a couple beers. Since it was an event they weren't doing flights but were able to accommodate with a couple half pours so we could try something of the higher ABV offerings. There was a nice imperial IPA that was over 10% abv with a nice hop balance that I'm glad was available in a half pour. We didn't eat on this visit but lots of people were eating! The team behind the bar were super friendly and just the right balance of having fun and delivering great service. I wish it were closer. I really enjoy this spot!

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Fretboard Brewing - Factory 52

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Another good place to hang out and do a few beers in Factory 52 and watch a game. Beers are good…read more So grab some eats from the food court then do some beers

Although I did not try any of the drinks this place was great for hosting an event! You have tons…read moreof food options from the gatherall. The bartenders and staff were great as well as the dj that was playing hits all night long! I love how there is also an outdoor patio to hang out on no matter the season due to their being heaters! Perfect place for a night out in Norwood!

Braxton Union

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We have been driving past here a long time and wanting to stop in and we finally did! The…read moreatmosphere is great and the staff is friendly. They have so many beer options there is something for everyone. I love all they have! The outdoor area is the best part. We got to hang out while the kids played and there was music. The only thing that would make it better is a few yard games to keep the kids entertained like cornhole. Fun place!

The food was decent even if the presentation was underwhelming…read more The inside was pretty dusty and needed a good wipe down just about everywhere. The service left a lot to be desired. When ordering drinks, the bartender seemed extremely irritated that we came. When I asked about a drink they were extremely short and unresponsive. Not sure I will be returning again.

13 Below Brewery

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The brewery was friendly and I liked that they had beer cocktails and seltzers. The food from the…read morefood truck was not very good. The wings looked unappetizing and they didn't have much flavor. We were looking forward to trying the food truck but were disappointed. The brewery itself was great though!

Fibonacci Brewing

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What a fun urban farm brewery. We visited on a Sunday afternoon and enjoyed a brew on their…read moreextensive outside wooded area. It is Located in "the city" of Mt. Healthy but has a definite farm-like atmosphere. There are chickens and goats on the property, which provide a relaxing atmosphere when sitting outside. I might add the livestock is in their own penned area and not roaming freely among the guests. They had some great beers to choose from. The American stout had. Wonderful flavor. The staff was extremely friendly and knowledgeable and the prices very fair. They have live music on Friday and Saturday evenings we were told. So, we will definitely revisit on a Friday or Saturday evening!

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