Easily one of TNE best beer festivals in the area. My particular group of friends have now gone to this fest for 10 years straight. A TON of amazing beers every year, from the slightly pedestrian to the most obscure (even more so if you choose to take the connoisseur level). We typically get early entry and enjoy every minute until they kick everyone out. In addition to all those beers (the reason to go), they also have several food trucks/booths, silent disco, tricycle racing (MUST do), inflatable horse racing (new this year), virtual reality, and even live music. Location is great in the heart of Cinci, so multiple lodging options within stumbling distance. If you haven't been already.....GO!! You'll be glad you did!! read more

See all

its trash, boring, and this year i was offer free tix, and would go. at this point, you couldn't pay me. Weak shitty promoters that exploited the beer wave and didnt do anything different than over chargue from your local bar. read more

Great place to try new beers, hang with friends and spend a great night out. I have been coming here for years and this even never fails to exceed expectations. read more

Cincy Winter Beerfest - Festivals Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

This is my first time attending the Cincy Winter Beerfest located in Downtown Cincinnati at the Duke Energy Convention Center. What a great experience! For $40.00 ($50.00 at the door if you do not buy tickets in advance) you can enjoy over 350 beers from all over the US. This is a two night Event (Friday and Saturday night). We went on a Friday night. There were different ticket options online to choose from: Connoisseur Package (food pairings with your beer) $75.00-$100.00, I was upset because it was sold out quickly and I wanted this option. VIP Package (you get to go in one hour early at 6:30 p.m., 25 samples in an 8oz. Souvenir Acrylic Mug. And last is the Regular Package- you enter at 7:30 p.m.- which includes 25 samples in a 5 oz. Souvenir Acrylic Mug (this is what my husband and I chose). It was very hard to blow through 25 samples of beer (there are buckets for you to dump the beers that you do not like). My list that I tried: -Stella (Cidre) -Kona Brewing (Kona Longboard) -Deschutes Brewery (Mirror Pond Pale Ale) -Ace Cider (Berry & Perry)-Gluten Free (My favorite beer of the night) -Rhinegeist (Cougar) -Jolly Pumpkin (Maracaibo) -Ithaca Beer (Apricot Wheat) -Rivertown Brewery (Blueberry) Was not found of this beer, I threw it out -Crispin (Fox Barrel Pear) My 2nd favorite -Smuttynose Brewing Company (Really old Brown Dog Ale) I liked that there was an option for Designated Driver Ticket which is only $20. Very spacious and you were able to sit down and relax. Coat check available. Food vendors at the event. Bathrooms easy access. Live bands. Last call at 10:40 p.m. and last pour is at 10:45 p.m. I will definately go again next year. read more

Cincy Winter Beerfest - Festivals Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

See all

That's a fun thing to do with a group of friends. I attended the early session (12pm entry) on a Saturday. I would highly recommend getting the early admit entry, as the cup you get for samples is double the size of a mini mini standard one. The standard entry is 1pm for the early session. The check in process went incredibly smooth, no lines. The place was well organized, no wait time at the booths, plenty of beer to sample and food for purchase. Not so much sitting space, but sufficient. There was an optional coat check for $3. I have not been to this event in the years prior, but heard the early session was better and calmer, you beat the drunk crowds, no lines and they don't run out of beer, so if you are looking into serious sampling, early session is the way to do it. If it is more for socializing, the evening session might be better, as it was fairly empty and spacious during the 1-4pm. They had live music on 2 stages, the Listermann's stage had a good DJ, but the other stage was some karaoke with wanna-be-singers and that was frankly awful... The Fest is a great way to hang out with friends and taste a lot of new beers. Overall, the stations were well marked and the types of beer offered were clearly visible, but they were also giving a map and a list of beers, so you could study your must-haves. The sample tickets they gave were not needed, nobody took them and they should eliminate that and save trees in the future, as it is humanely impossible to drink your ticket allocated limit anyways. Even though we had a bigger taster cup, very few places would fill it, but they would if you asked. Value wise, I don't think you can get the paid price in beer, so look for a Cincysaver etc whenever you can. read more

See all

So much fun and fabulous people watching at the end of the session! Wow, some people looked like they had never day drank before....pace yourself people! We attended the day session on Saturday, which is perfect if you're a little older than 21 ;). There is SO MUCH beer to sample, you simply can't try it all, trust me. It is a nice variety, too (ciders, seltzers, beer, etc.). It's a really well run event, the same people have been doing it since the beginning and they know what they are doing. Pro tip for ladies, the bathroom lines in the back of the hall are way shorter than up by the entrance, you're welcome. Also, take the time to make a pretzel necklace and actually eat it, it may save you from being one of the drunken asses we were entertained by later in the afternoon. read more

Went to Cincinnati's Winter Beerfest for the first time this year with a large group of friends and had such a fun night! We all purchased the early admission / VIP tickets so that we had the extra hour to sample beers and not have to fight people in line for drinks. I HIGHLY recommend this to anyone - the extra money is worth it! We not only had minimal to no lines during this hour, but we were able to get samples of most of the food / extra tastings they had as supplies were limited and most ran out within the first hour! However, even being there early as a VIP we missed out on the Graeters samples and people flocked to that booth right away - there were clearly people there where this wasn't their first rodeo! Once the VIP hour ended you did notice the place filling up quickly and lines at the top booths started to form. You really couldn't go wrong with any booth / beer - they were all just very hoppy and heavy - not something I personally normally drink. The activities that were going on were VERY fun and we stopped at them all - the tricycle races, silent disco, dance floor, etc. The lines for these went up and down as the night went on, the silent disco always being the most packed. Outside of TONS of drinking it was nice to have some food stands for when we ran out of the pretzel necklaces we had on - also FYI people go all out with their pretzel necklaces here - some people had cheese sticks, slim-jims, and more added on with the pretzels and some people had soft pretzels, ranging in size from small all the way up to HUGE Servatii ones held around their neck with rope! Overall, people say to bring 1 pretzel per beer if you are making a small pretzel necklace - but I recommend more, after some of the beers you need a couple to wash down the flavor if it isn't something you're a fan of. Cincy Beerfest is definitely something I would attend again next year - it was a nice lower-key event that a group of friends could enjoy together and it allowed you to try some beers that you most likely wouldn't normally try! Ratings on the Morgan Scale: Experience: 9/10 Drink Price: 7/10 Food Price: N/A read more

Cincy Winter Beerfest - Festivals Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

See all

I've been to this proverbial "Mecca" of Cincinnati beer four years so far and I absolutely enjoy it every time! It's truly a must-attend for any craft beer fanatic in the greater Cincinnati area. So many fantastic breweries all under one roof! Your admission price gets you 25 tickets to sample brews from everywhere (though some places will "accidentally" forget to take your ticket). There are also free water stations everywhere so you can pace yourself and stay hydrated. Hydration is truly key here with so many choices for great beer. You'll also find a plethora of food options in the form of local eateries and food trucks all around. So you have plenty of option to absorb all that tasty brew you'll be consuming. There's also good music playing, plenty of room to get your boogie on (after a little liquid courage), and even a "Silent Disco" if you really wanna get down on it! Of this year's options (2018) as far as beer, I found lots of impressive options from breweries both local and nationally known. Warped Wing, March First, Taft's Ale House, Christian Moerlein, Oddside, Heavy Seas, Fretboard, and Platform Brewing Co. were real standouts in my opinion. But with so many beers and so little time (and stomach/liver space), it's impossible to try them all. I highly recommend getting an Uber or Lyft there and back because... Well, there's LOTS of beer here! I also recommend taking in the afternoon session on Saturday if you're not really a fan of huge crowds. And if you go next year, come look for me, and I'll buy the first round! Tickets on me! read more

I love Cincinnati Beerfest! I will either volunteer or attend as a patron. This year I was glad to see an easily accessible hydration station and karaoke! However, I was disappointed that I paid for an 8 oz. pour and most booths only did half pours. I asked about it and was told that everyone had been advised to only do half pours. If that continues to be a thing for future Beerfests I would not recommend it simply because it makes you feel like you are be shorted on what you were told to expect (a fairly full pour depending on glass size.) So I will go back again to see if this is the new thing but if so I may not recommend the event in the future just because of cost-to-experience. read more

Cincy Winter Beerfest - Cincinnati Winter Beerfest 2023 Early Admission - Festivals Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

I love volunteering here year after year!! I'm not a big beer drinker... I'm a medium beer drinker. Ok I admit it- I'm a pretty thick beer drinker but enough about my body type LOL. LAUGH IT UP there's so much local beer to try and drink and sample and pour. So many people to meet. Cool attendees in beer themed costumes to watch and judge (favorably of course because they committed to beer cosplay!) read more

Cincy Winter Beerfest - My big mouth open and ready for beer tasting and pouring. Not pouring from my mouth. That would be gross. - Festivals Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

This is going to be the 4th year of the Cincy Winter Beerfest. Cincinnati's ORIGINAL craft beer festival! They outgrew the Hyatt last year, with more than 3100 craft beer fans in attendance. So this year they have moved to the Duke Energy Convention Center, and will have more than 3x the space! I've participated for the past three years, and this year looks to be even better! All the fun & craft beers your remember from prior years, plus even more to celebrate at this years event! The dates are Feb 11th &12th. Check out their Official Beerfest Beer, an award-winning beer which won out over 200 other beers from around the country! It was specially brewed here for this event by Will Magnuszewski, who created this recipe! Will brewed this version at local craft-beer juggernaut Rivertown Brewing. Will is a College Hill resident, who is a member of the Cincinnati Malt Infusers homebrewing club. The beer list will continue to be updated periodically as more confirmations are made. Proceeds benefit the Big Joe Duskin Music Education Foundation, as in prior years. Information & ticket sales at www.cincybeerfest.com. read more

Cincy Winter Beerfest - Cincy Winter Beerfest - Festivals Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

i wanna write about my experience with the ultra-elite/special connoisseur ticket! It was $65 in the advance sale. Was it worth it? Quick answer, yes! The Connoisseur experience not only gives you access to the beerfest early, but it gives you early access to a special section only for "us". This special section lasts from 6-8. They have "all you can drink" beer. No ticket necessary. They also have samples from many restaurants. There were cheese samples flown in from Colorado. "20 Brix" had Kentucky Bread Pudding with bacon-ham-cheddar-tomato. Django's in Northside had beef tongue tacos, The star booth of the night not only had the best beer to offer (KY Coffee Stout & a Lambiac Raspberry) but S'mores with bacon (and some kind of cookie instead of grahams). I usually complain about bacon desserts..that they are decadent for decadency sake but don't taste good..this was awesome. I tried every beer before 7. They also give you a bigger glass. Then you have 25 tickets use at the real beerfest. I was at Beerfest from this early Connoisseur entrance to "last call" and i may have had to use 10 of the 25 tickets. I was drinking consistently. So for $65, its worth it. I've paid $65 for concerts and all i got to see was like, Scott Weiland. I didnt get "all you can drink" beer! Now for my ONLY complaint. The "connoisseur area" was open til 6-8 and beerfest lasted til 11. The connoisseur area had its own bathroom. After 8, that bathroom was closed. Y'know how it is when you are drinking. So after 8 I had to use the same bathrooms as everyone else. YUCK! Speaking of the bathroom situation, i had a zippered sweatshirt and was able to put my glass in my pockets and zip it up. Afterwards I washed the glass out in the water fountain all nice. Now, y'know how yelp was nice enough to give pretzel necklaces? Pretzels on a string to wear around ones neck? I saw some ANIMALS going to the bathroom with these goddamn pretzels around their neck, pissing and shitting, with all the piss fumes & shit fumes in the air, with edible snacks out in the open, absorbing god-knows-what. really skeeved me out, not going to lie. Anyway, only complaint! otherwise, great time and well worth the extra! read more

See all

Once again the crowds on Friday night were much lighter than the nearly packed house on Saturday night. The added hour of VIP early entry is well worth the extra $10, even on Friday. And despite your best efforts, you will likely still have somewhat of a hangover the following day. There were also a couple of differences that I noticed throughout the weekend. It actually seemed like crowds were down slightly. Either that or some changes were made to the floor to better spread the crowd. I didn't see too many excessive lines even during the peak of Saturday's session, when last year everything was a 10 minute wait or more. Regardless of how it was accomplished it was much appreciated as that was my biggest complaint from last year. Plus there were even more local breweries available this year. Their booths seemed to get the majority of my attention, at least early on. It is nice to have an ever-growing list of local options when choosing what to drink. Hopefully they all will start appearing in local stores soon, making it even easier to sample their products without having to go into a bar or restaurant. On the opposite end I know some people who skipped this year due to an unimpressive lineup of beers. I did notice a few area where it seemed that there were more harder to find beers last year, but that's what the connoisseur area is for anyway. This year's connoisseur area was easily twice the size of last year and it offered private restrooms, plenty of harder to find beer, and tables full of finger foods. If that's your thing it is easily worth the $75 price tag. The best part for me is that while doing all the above I was able to enjoy a wide offering of beer with both new and old friends alike. As long as this event is held I will likely be a participant in one way or another. read more

Cincy Winter Beerfest 2019 Sat Night. I have gone various different years, yet this year seemed a little different. I am not sure if there were way fewer vendors this year, or they were just only allotted smaller tents. Our group opted for the early admittance (1hr ahead of general, different than VIP, only $10 more) and it is well worth it. You receive a mini mug for your samples and tickets for each sample (rarely collected). Each tent has at least 1-2 selections on tap, but popular beers run out quick, so if there are certain things you want to try I recommend mapping them out ahead of time. By the end a lot of things run out. For your entertainment they have a live band on one end, karaoke on another, and silent disco in the middle. There are several food trucks, but we made our own pretzel necklaces at home (highly recommend). Kinda neat this year, a company was giving away free bags of pretzels so we were able to restock our necklaces once we ate through them. The beers: this yr had various hard ciders, and some places were offering samples of their canned cocktails, I also had an apple rum. Beerwise my friends were complaining there were too many IPAs. Some stouts, very few porters. Decent amount of sours, wheats, and lagers. I really think there is just something for every taste. Worth checking out this yearly event. read more

I would definitely recommend paying the extra for VIP as it will get you in the door an hour earlier than the regular ticket. I would also recommend you decide on your top beers and map it out by examining the floorplan. Once 7:30 hits, it becomes more or less a zoo and the lines get rather long. The lines do move fast, but the time spent in line adds up and regardless of whether your drinking to get drunk, or to sample as many as possible, lines will suck up lots of time. If you are not a germaphobe, have your group split up and "command and conquer" by getting samples of different beers. Share and then repeat until its time to leave. The DD ticket is a good option for non beer drinkers and don't worry, the beer police probably aren't going to "get ya" if you take a sip from someone in your group. But if you are the DD, don't cheat the system and abuse the privilege, you are there to help make sure our streets are a little safer. Stick to water or pop please. Bring your own snacks! Save some money and keep your belly slightly full but not so full that the beer's carbonation prevents you from drinking as much as you want. This year (as expected) taxi's were in short supply so arrange a ride long before the event is over. It was super cold this year and I saw lots of stumbling people with that sad look on their face as they combed through their phone list in vain attempt at a ride. This year my favorite drink was the Black Cows from Lefthand Brewery. I didn't sample many other regular beers but do recall a nice dark beer from Maumee Bay and another thick stout from Fathead's. Other tips: *Don't wear clothing that you want to keep really nice as there is always the possibility of someone (you or someone else) spilling beer on it. *Guys, it might be good to go with a few women as their purses can hold snacks and water bottles. (and as sexist as it sounds, they might be able to cut in lines and get you beers, ha!) *Ladies, wear comfortable shoes. There is little to no carpet so you'll be literally pounding the pavement for 2+ hours. Leave the 4" heels in the car for later festivities, or pack flats in your purse. *Friend up Cincy Beerfest on facebook/twitter, etc as special events and free ticket opportunities are posted there. Last year I went for free. :) read more

Those who ran this event must have made lots of money. My first question for you is can you drink 125 ounces of beer in three and a half hours? This event proved to me that I cannot, so If your answer is no or maybe, you would greatly benefit from having the VIP pass, which sadly I did not. The other tool that I suggest making use of is the DD option. It is great that they have this option for those that want to be responsible, and perhaps you should consider this if you don't want to attempt drink 25 beers in less than four hours. If you just want to sip a beer you might consider this as a cost saving option, which I have to say the cost for this event is a bit pricey. Even if you can drink all of the beers in the allotted time, you are paying roughly two dollars for a five ounce glass of beer. If you are like me and can only drink about half that, you're paying closer to 4-5 dollars for a five ounce glass a beer. That's not a very good deal. Some other minor detractors for this event: e-ticket will stick you in a slow moving line if you get there around 7:30, so get the real deal if you can. This place was totally packed with people and there were plenty of long lines around this time as well. I definitely stood in a very long line only to have the brewer run out of beer before my friends and I got any. Get a map, plan your route, and get the good stuff early. And there is plenty of good stuff to be had. My personal favorite was the Graeter's inspired Milk Stout Floats. Beer+Ice Cream was totally amazing and I did not think it would be. You should try it if you get the chance. All told, I thought this was a very fun event and I'll be better prepared next year. read more

I'm not a beer fan ... usually but I had forgotten that Beerfest was going on when we decided we wanted sushi downtown. Then we walked by Fountain Square and there it was ... "Oh yeah!" I said to my friend. We went the first day of the weekend right when it started so it was slow but that was good so we could try out beers. Admission was free and each beer ticket was $1. MOST of the beer samples were 1 ticket and some were 2 for a 3oz. sample. We had a quick five samples each and enjoyed the atmosphere, the band playing on stage and the BMW giveaway. It would have been something I'd like to go back to. :) read more

I have attended the Cincy Winter Beerfest 3 years in a row now and have had fun each time! I always make sure to buy my tickets far in advance in order to get a good deal. In years past, VIP tickets are the same price as regular tickets if you buy them before Christmas. This is a great value and I highly recommend it. VIP allows you to enter an hour earlier than general admission and you also receive larger samples. You can even save on the online processing fee if you buy them at a local vendor. I have always been impressed by the wide selection of breweries from near and far. I am a huge beer fan/snob, so clearly my favorite part of beerfest is trying new beers! For the past 2 years I have had the goal of only trying beers I have never had before and I succeeded! I also made sure to keep track of them and what I thought. Let's be honest, your memory may be a little hazy the next day. Everyone at the event, from the brewers to the volunteers, is super friendly. I enjoyed chatting with people who are passionate about beer and learning new information. The event organizers do a great job of promoting the event, organizing it, and adding fun new things each year. The only negatives were the coat check and seating. Every year the coat check line is really long, with only one or two people working it. Then it costs money, which is frustrating given that you just dropped money on your tickets. Also, there needs to be more seating! There are very few tables and seats in the entire event space. My friends and I ended up sitting on the floor again this year for lack of a better option, which I'm sure annoyed people. Sorry! Tips: -Attend on Friday. It is less crowded, kegs will not have emptied, and it's just a better experience overall. -Eat lots of food before you come. There is food available for purchase but you may need cash. Speaking of.... -Bring cash. There is a coat check but it costs $2 (which is annoying) and you may get hungry. -Wear comfortable shoes. As stated above, seating is limited and you will spend a majority of the evening walking or stand on concrete. This is a wonderful event that I plan on continuing to attend. See you next year! read more

As I looked through my tiny glass collection, I realized I've been to this event 2007-2009 and then this year. Those early years were far better because this is an event where bigger isn't better. The first ones used to include food, as in a make-your-own coney buffet (ah the good old days!) Having gone this year on Friday night with a VIP ticket and working a booth Saturday night, it is true if you don't want to deal with about 3x the crowd, go Friday. That said, the people on Saturday night weren't as drunk because they probably spent most of their time waiting, longing for a beer. A line to pick up tickets, a line to get in, a line to check a coat, a line to get a beer. I think they need to offer fewer options or get their act together on what they're doing. I'm not sure why they don't offer a map the week of the event on their (terrible) website so that people have a better idea of where they would or would not like to go. Since they don't, you're better off getting your ticket early (like December) when they offer the VIP ticket for the price of regular admittance and using that first hour to put together a game plan. As for the price, if I remember correctly this benefits the Big Joe Duskin Foundation. As for the glass glasses, I think they would have had more (or plenty) if those who dropped and broke theirs were given plastic replacements. I agree with the others about having more food options, but not Duke food vendors. read more

I realize I'm late to the party with this review, but I suppose late is better than never, right? First the good: great beer. That can not be understated. They was so much good beer that there was no way I was going to be able to try everything I wanted. There was an excellent mix of beer styles and an equally impressive balance of national/local Ohio brewers. The volunteers here were great, too. They could help you out with picking a beer or point you in the right direction if you were looking for a certain booth. Now, the bad: The crowd, oh dear God, the crowd! I made the mistake (apparently like everyone else) of coming on Saturday. At first it wasn't too busy, but as the night progressed, it became almost impossible to get up to the beers. I realize that they were excited about the new large space they had in the Duke Energy Center, but I really think they need to regulate the number of tickets sold a bit. Other than this, though, I have no complaints. Will I be back next year? You bet I will. Will I be showing up on Friday instead of Saturday? More than likely. I've been to a couple other beer events in Cincinnati, and this rivaled any of them. Kudos to the volunteers and staff and cheers to next year! read more

Ok the only reason this is getting a 2nd star is that I did have a good experience... last year... on Friday. Never again will I buy a VIP ticket. The place sells out of VIP and Connoisseur tickets, so that means they have only a certain number of tickets correct? For purposes of this I'm going to say 200. You have 200 VIP tickets for Sat. VIP's get special collector's glasses that are larger, so its kind of the trade off for paying more, other than getting in early. So one would assume that you would order at least 200 glasses right?!?! Guess not. We had a group of 20 of us come Sat night for a bachelor and bachelorette party, with 2/3 of us getting VIP as they were sold out before the others could buy them. So we were nice and waited to go in at 7:30 with the group. I was told to also buy DD tickets at the event, which was good as we hadn't hammered out the DD's yet until Friday. This is where it all goes downhill. We go in while the DD's get their tickets, we get our VIP bands and are handed... a regular glass like everyone else with 25 tickets. Excuse me? You ran out?! I'm not getting reimbursed and have to "just deal with it?!" Oh no you didn't! Fortunately it was more than just our group, and i guess we threw a big enough fit that she just handed some, not all of us an extra thing of tickets. Thats when we hear that down at the end they might have some left. Not really. If you call regular plain bar glasses, the nice handy aesthetic collectors glasses... which I come to find out they weren't, so even more money wasted and not compensated. Thats when I get a call from my 2 DD's. They're sold out of DD tickets... WHAT?!?! HOW DO YOU SELL OUT OF DD TICKETS?!?! We were too the point where they didn't care about the food or drink that was allotted to them in their ticket price, 18 of us were already in here, and we needed to get those 2 in with us as well. They aren't Cincinnati natives so that wasn't going to work. It took 3 ppl basically having to yell at someone to get any help whatsoever... But eventually we did get our people in, and beer was drank. But the mood was ruined. I will never ever go on a Saturday again, and I will never ever get VIP tickets, as we were just treated like absolute scum because we "didn't come early like you were supposed to" Yes "supposed to". It just says you CAN. Thats how I looked at it... but I guess the stick-up-their-ass door people had other plans... read more

300 great beers - why aren't you here? This is an absolute must for me and 4-5 buddies every year. The quantity of brilliant beer is off the charts - you'll probably never get to try half of the brews you want to. Local, regional, national, and international brewers bring their best brews to this festival. I don't think it is possible to oversell this event. This year (2012) the entire Duke Energy Center was set up, and it makes a huge difference. I'm sure there was a bigger crowd last night as compared to last year on Friday, but with the extra space, you don't really get crowded much. Food is plentiful and good, even great. The highlight of the food for me was the offerings from SmoQ - Andouille sausage, brats, and metts all cooked in Bell's Expedition stout and finished on the grill, topped with slaw, relish, peppers. It was just fantastic. Their best is their pork rib tips however - insanely good, and I wish I had about 15 of them right now. There is live music and a couple of different dance floors - including one with headphones so that you can dance away in your own little world. This is an epic annual event by itself, but the money you spend on your ticket goes to a very good cause as well. You can both do good and eat, drink, and be merry at the same time. Come down here, if you can get a ticket. You will not be sorry. read more

Last year was better in my opinion, at least in how it was ran. It ran smooth no problems getting in or anything, that was 2011. However this year when we got there we had nothing but problems for about the first 30 mins we were there. We had bought VIP tickets so we were suppose to get a bigger glass. we paid extra for this. When i handed them my ticket they gave me the regular plastic cup. I told them we had VIP and they said they were out of glasses. It took us throwing a fit to get a glass. The glass that they gave us was suppose to also have been a collectors glass but we just got a basic bar glass. That was just problem number one. This is the thing that really pissed me off. We had two people in our group that were our DD's. They didn't buy there tickets in advance, they were going to buy them at the door because they were the same price. Everyone else was in waiting for them and we got a call. It was our DD's say that they could get tickets because they were out of DD tickets. The first thing i thought was how the hell do you run out of DD tickets. So i went back up to the same guy and went off. He got on the radio and told the to keep selling DD tickets and we got our two people in. We wasted 30 mins of our time with just bull crap. After we got everyone in though and the beer started to be drank we did have a good time. In 2011 we went on Friday night and if I go again it will definitely be on Friday not Saturday. Saturday was just way to packed the lines were a lot longer and some of the booths had already ran out of beer. I also will never go for VIP again either because I felt that i got to taste more last year with the smaller glass and wasted less if I didn't like it and had to dump it out. I will most likely go again next year and see how it is, but if i have problems like this again no more. read more

Like your stereotypical male, I'm a big fan of beer. When Cincinnati Winter Beerfest was announced I was intrigued but wasn't sure if I wanted to pay $30 for it. Luckily I won a drawing on Yelp for free tickets and didn't have to pay a dime! After my experience I will definitely attend the next beerfest, even if that means paying for it. Beerfest was held in the convention center halls b and c, and was basically a giant room with tables of craft beer from around the USA, including many local breweries. For standard admission you get 25 drink tickets and a 5 oz glass, you have about 3 hours of drinking time if you get there when doors open. If you are VIP you get an hour headstart and a bigger glass. I sampled many delicious beers, but did not come close to using all 25 tickets. If you are there to truly sample many beers I imagine it would be difficult to use all 25, unless you chug which is pointless for beer tasting. I liked most of the beers I sampled, some more than others. Next time I will bring a small notepad to write down the ones I really like so I can head to party source and buy more of it. The only questionable booth there was Coors Light. Sure its a popular beer, but it seemed out of place at a craft beer event. If there is gonna be a Coors Light table I think there should be a 5 ticket penalty for anyone who "samples" it. (end beer snob rant) Overall I was really impressed by Cincy Winter Beerfest. Very well run and organized with many great beers to sample. This will now be another Cincinnati event I look forward to each year. read more

I was really excited for this event as it was two of my good friend's Bachelorette/Bachelor parties and I was their DD along with another of our friends. We got there and it was mass chaos, there was no parking (which it was kind of expected) and our group went ahead and went in.. We went to get our DD tickets, except they SOLD OUT.. HOW IN THE HECK DO YOU SELL OUT OF DD TICKETS? Me and the other DD got upset and our group went into action and got a lovely gentleman to help us get in.. I never got his name but I thank him so much!! It got better throughout the night, there was cowbells and dancing with headphones! It was impossible to find where everything was and most of the staff had no idea where anything was. So all in all, I would only do this event if they straightened things up. read more

This review is for the 2013 winter beerfest. We had the regular, $36 Friday admission. I think that the key to enjoying Cincy Winter Beerfest is understanding that you aren't paying for 25 tickets. You are paying for unlimited samples. The tickets are just a formality. Whether these unlimited samples are a good deal for you personally depends on the following: 1. How much beer can you drink? 2. What styles of beer do you like to drink? I like trying IPAs and Belgian-style beers. Those beers often cost more than some other beers, and this holds true for at beer festivals. At beer festivals which care about tickets, I would expect samples of such beers to cost 2, 3, or even 4 tickets. At Cincy Winter Beerfest, every beer I tried cost a single ticket. So even though I only used 12 tickets, I feel like I got 24+ tickets worth of beer. Like others have already stated, Friday is the day to go. I went on Friday, and the beer lines never seemed to have more than two or three people waiting. I went with one friend, and we didn't have any of the "logistics" problems that others have mentioned in earlier reviews. Maybe they learned from last year's mistakes. I almost didn't go to beerfest, because it seemed overpriced on paper. But having been once, I'm definitely coming back next year. read more

Beerfest gets this many stars mainly for one reason: for the cost of the VIP ticket, you get more beer than you can ever drink in one night. Ever. It's quite the deal! However... The logistics of Cincinnati Beerfest need to be improved upon, and very badly. First of all, they ran out of the *glass* glasses for the VIPs. (I got mine, so I was happy, but my friends who showed up 20 minutes after us were given plastic cups instead.) Also, they ran out of Designated Driver writstbands and wouldn't let the DD's past the turnstiles even though they paid the money for their tickets already. They hide the band's stage in the far corner of the room. We had no idea there was any music until we ventured to the back wall and saw the stage. There were some awesome things, though! First off, the "virtual dance floor" was hilarious and such fun. Wear headphones and dance with others wearing headphones. From the outside looking in, it looks like a bunch of fools dancing to no music, but when you're on the dance floor, it's as if you are in a club! Also, the absolute massive size of the place is ideal for this kind of event. Although Friday wasn't as busy as Saturday, neither day felt uncomfortably crowded. In the end, we had a good time. I just hope that next year they work out the kinks in the logistics. read more

This was my first year at Beerfest. I remember hearing about it last year and thinking it seemed pricey. But it's definitely worth the price! I think next year I might try to go on Friday because Saturday is apparently notoriously crowded. I didn't have to wait more than maybe 5-10 minutes for beer at any point, but I also avoided popular places like Rheingeist. I loved the variety of breweries in attendance and while I didn't try anything I'd never had before, I liked getting to drink from favorite west coast breweries for the same price as Yuengling, etc. A couple tips: buy your tix before Christmas and you get the VIP for the same price! Also, go to the early check in on Fountain Square, especially if you are going on Saturday, because then you do not have to wait AT ALL to get into the building when you get there. When you get in, head straight to finding a table so you have a "home base" as others have said. My favorite extra features were the silent disco (always a favorite thing of mine whenever they are available), and watching others do karaoke. Also it's always fun to be in a place where the line for the men's bathroom is three times as long as the women's! read more

O, Beerfest. I have such mixed feelings. Conceptually, it's a great opportunity to sample craft beers from locally and beyond. It's a great event to leisurely enjoy a handful of brews you may not find all in one place very often. Practically, it's a bit of a...mess, as one would expect when the patrons are given 25 drink tickets and three hours to use them. Craft beer, my friends, is not meant to be drank in volume. It's worth doing once, and I enjoyed myself, mostly because the crowd was especially light due to weather. But, I'd imagine with larger crowds, having to wait in line, and more time at the event, it gets real interesting as the event shuts down. Some tips for a good experience (as others have offered): -We went on Friday, and those there told us it was the day to go as it was much less crowded. (It had also snowed, so the crowds were light) -Eat before hand/bring snacks/water. You can bring snacks in your purse/pockets. -Bring cash for food (there are some good vendors) -As a friend said, 'Don't offer a ticket.' We went all night and only one booth actually asked for a ticket. I don't know that it's humanly possible to drink all your tickets, but in case you're worried you'll run short. -The Quickie Stations allow you to double fist. Yup, this is a great idea. -If you're really there to sample beers, check out the list of attendees before hand so that you can plan your strategy. It can be tough to make it through the whole place. And yes, there is coat check. This was a concern as we were deciding how to dress for the night. read more

I went here with a small group of beer geeks last weekend. We went to the Saturday tasting. Overall in terms of the festival itself, it was well run and organized. One exception was the entrance gate where I had to show my ticket to no less than 3 different people. I wasted about 15 minutes of my VIP time just waiting in line. If it says "doors open for VIPs at 6:30" I don't expect to have to get there 15 minutes early just to queue up. There were rinse stations at every booth which is awesome. A good beer selection, many kinds from session to strong. By the end of the night, I had tickets to spare. Yes, Coors Lite was there but they had a small booth and were easy to avoid. The Yelp booth was cool (naturally!) and I scored a souvenir glass cozy. It was very very busy, probably because they were giving out free stuff. The only other downside I can see was that it was absolutely PACKED inside the convention center. I read that it had 3x the space from last year but they must have sold 3x the tickets. By the last hour it was literally shoulder to shoulder and difficulty to get to any of the fill stations. read more

Go on Friday. Forget Saturday. Take off work if need be. Just go on Friday. I came with a party of eight. We all checked our coats. We entered early with our VIP pass, with no queue at the turnstile. We all received collectors glasses. A good time was had by all. As a Friday attendee, I had a much more positive experience than my friends who went on Saturday and encountered a throng of festival goers. Even at the peak, the Convention Center still had plenty of space for people to walk around on Friday night. Lines for beer were minimal; most stations you could walk right up and fill your glass. I really enjoyed having a map of all the booths with a list of the beers served on the back. I'm not a beer connoisseur, but I know what I generally like. This helped me hunt down the fruity beers and Belgium ales. I would suggest having more fruit beers next year...especially with more flavors than just raspberry. For four hours, we walked around with 25 beer tickets in fist and went from booth to booth. Since our collector's glass held a half pint, I only used 5 of my tickets. I think the most used in our group was 10. That averaged out to $3.50 per half pint of beer consumed. From a mathematics standpoint, we probably didn't drink our monies worth... but who can drink 12 pints of beer in four hours!?! I would have gladly preferred smaller pours for more tastes rather than being committed to an entire half-pint. Less waste if you don't like a beer, more opportunity to try a variety. While drinking, my plan was to go for all the beers with an asterisk, which means they are limited edition or seasonal. From what I sampled, my favorites were: - Fathead's Bumbleberry Ale - Blue Moon Raspberry Cream - Crispin Saint Cider There was also plenty of entertainment as well, from bands, to a dance party with headphones, to a mobile bar cart. A few more activities would be fun to include. Food was lacking. A few more vendors would have been fantastic. Taste of Belgium was amazing as always. The gourmet pretzels were delicious, but the line grew to be 12 deep and there was a fifteen minute wait for the next round of pretzels to cook. Then there was the donut cheeseburger which gave me a heart attack at first glance. All-in-all, our group had a fun time and tasted a wide variety of beers. I'll return next year, on Friday, with a map and a game plan. Maybe I'll use 6 tickets next time. Cost: $35.00 Things to bring: - Soft pretzel necklace - Holster or carrier for beer cup - Cash for food - Wear comfortable shoes. Ladies, this is not the place for a fashion show. - Set a "meeting place" for your friends. You will wander off and get lost from each other. It's inevitable. I suggest making your base the Yelp booth. Everyone knows the Yelp booth. read more

This was my first Cincy Winter Beerfest. I went on Saturday night and purchased the VIP ticket. My group arrived around 6:15. Once we figured out which line to get in, it was smooth sailing. The first hour was great. Lines were short and it was easy to walk around. Pretzel necklaces were the hottest accessory of the evening. We brought our own but Yelp was also handing them out. After that, things got crazy. Long beer lines and longer bathroom lines. But I really don't see any way around that. It's a small complaint. Everything else was great. We would hop in the next beer line right after getting our last pour so we were never empty. I wish I would've used the dump buckets more often so that I could have tried more beers but I ended up drinking the entire 8 ounce glass most of the time. I only used half of my beer tickets. Next year I want to try out the silent disco. My friends didn't want to get in any lines without beer. Also, I may try for Friday night to see what it's like with a smaller crowd. read more

Beer lovers? Yes! 350 beers in one place? Oh yes please! This is a top shelf event (pun intended). The Cincy Winter Beerfest is an annual event held at the Duke Energy Convention Center. Admission comes in three tiers - regular, VIP, and Connoisseur. The VIP and Connoisseur packages feature early admission. The VIP gives an 8 oz mug vs. (5 oz for the regular) and the Connoisseur comes with a keeper glass. Which package should you choose? If you order before 12/25, you can get VIP for the price of regular ($40). After 12/25, the price on VIP jumps to $50 and Regular stays at $40. The Connoisseur is $75 before 12/25 and $80 after 12/25. The Connoisseur comes with appetizers, but if you are going with someone, save your ($35X 2) and go have a nice meal together. This event features an app that shows all of the beers, their location, and it gives you the ability to rate them as you try. There are multiple dump stations so that you can dump out the beers that you do not enjoy. They technically give you 30 samples, but many of the stations stop taking tickets and no one really runs out at any point during the event. The event allows you to bring your own snacks and there are a number of water stations around the convention center floor. If you can go on Friday night, the crowds always seem lighter than Saturdays. We usually go on Fridays, but the Friday session was held on Valentine's Day this year. The Saturday crowd was, as usual, packed. The one big negative is that there are never enough bathrooms. You would think they would bring in additional options for a beer drinking event, but that has yet to be the case for the events we have attended over the years. That being said, just grab another beer and get in line with friends. It also gets very hot during the event. If you can avoid wearing a heavy coat, we would highly recommend it. You will have a great time if you are beer drinkers. Enjoy! read more

I was excited to attend this beer festival as I have never partaken in something of the sort. I had to scramble to find a ticket three days before the event but after that small task was completed and ticket in hand I descended upon the venue to find just how popular the event was by waiting in line for about 30 minutes before I even got to the entrance of the festival! After "scanning our tickets" which meant someone with a black marker crossed through the barcode we had our IDs checked and finally were given our plastic 3oz beer glass. Remember to keep your ticket for the turn-style guy who will carelessly throw it in a trashcan. I thought the entrance process was a bit redundant. Upon entering the final exhibition room it opened up to brewing companies all lining the walls with the Kentucky Bourbon Barrel smack in the middle. They give you more than plenty of sample tickets, have a few food vendors and one tiny place to sit down, about 5 tables. Finding a bar table to stand around are pretty few and far between along with the trashcans in case you didn't like the particular sample that was handed to you.Other than the throng of people that you had to fight to get through if you wanted to make a step in any direction, the Yelp table saved my munchie craving by allowing me to make a scrumptious pretzel necklace! Overall the festival was intriguing and for the amount of the 35 dollar ticket, I think I shall return next year. read more

I went last year and loved it. Probably the best $35 I've spent drinking in Cincinnati. You get to try over 100 new beers and decide which ones you like. And if its your thing you can get pretty wasted. There was barely any seating, but that was about the only down side. read more

I do enjoy the Beerfest, as obviously there is plenty of good beer to be had...BUT...it could be done so much better. I have a few major improvement suggestions. 1) The Vendors need signs or blackboards that describe their beers so that you can make a decision while in line. Often there is no such information and you feel like your holding up the line if you ask questions once you get to the tap handles. This was a major issue. With so many new Breweries and new Brews you always find some you have NO CLUE about and there is nothing to explain to you what they are. 2) There needs to be a few more food vendors. Sometimes a slice of pizza, a Mett with Mustard, a soft pretzel , etc. is GREAT with the beer and helps slow down the pace of drinking and keeps some from getting too intoxicated. It would be a great addition that would help avoid having to rush out from work to eat elsewhere before the Beerfest starts. 3) there needs to be more seating to sit and enjoy my first 2 suggestions. at 52 years old my legs were getting tired after a couple of hours and the seating was filled everywhere. read more

You're not going to have a better beer experience than this all year... unless the beerfest people are behind it, they are learning quickly how to put on a top notch event. One piece of Advice, preorder before christmas, and you get the VIP ticket for the price of regular admission, and VIP is a perfect chance to sample many beers and get your groove on BEFORE the hordes come. Sample the rare beers during that hour, and then go to work on everything else. The glass was nice, wish it had been a full size one, just to keep it with my other pint glasses, but seriously, if you love beer... this is your christmas... Save the Date!!! read more

I would give 5 stars if stars were given for getting what is advertised. It's true, there is lots and lots of beer at this event, hard to find beer, distant breweries, far-off lands, and forgotten recipes. It sounds so nostalgic and wonderful. However, when you add in the typical Cincinnati festival crowd (i.e. the streaming masses of people cramming toward the flow of alcohol), the nostalgia tastes more like a Flemish sour than a malty stout. It is just impossible to get all the beer you want, to try all the cool things, to not lose your beer-mates. So although I got to try some very cool beers and had a fun night with friends and cowbells, was it all I had hoped it could be? Sadly, no. It might be just me, but I have found that I value the time I get to enjoy the drinks I drink and the company I'm with over the overwhelming quantity of the 'fest. read more

My husband and I went this year on Friday and had a pretty nice time. I was very happy for coatcheck! For me, its hard to drink 25 samples of beer, I only used about half of my tickets. My husband used about 15 tickets and he is quite the beer drinker so I was surprised. I wish they had an option to buy like 10 or 15 tickets instead of 25. I was hungry towards the end of the night and ended up paying $5 for a brattwurst, a little overpriced but I was starving. We *might* go back next year, not sure yet.. read more

This event was a blast, however I'm glad I didn't have to pay for it. The tickets were a little rich for my blood, but after going I can totally see why. The amount of beer you get is definitely equal or greater to the amount you pay. I also enjoyed listening to the karaoke decrease in quality as the night wore on and the beers flowed. There were even some non-beer options for the more picky drinker, like cider and kombucha. plus now I have a cute little beer stein to hold my paper clips on my desk :) read more