Great atmosphere, amazing beers and the outsourced food (Smoked Out) is absolutely phenomenal!

First-timer last weekend and the place was rock-in! The band Ernie Johnson from Detroit was in the house and they had the large crowd dancing and drinking excellent brew! The location is different, but it's a brewery so the industrial vibe makes sense. If you're toward the north end of Cincinnati and you want to check out some excellent beers and live music, give the Fretboard a try! I finished off the evening with one of their Coffee Shop Jazz Stouts and it was very good! If you see Ernie Johnson from Detroit playing there again, go! This ten piece band was excellent. They jammed all night with drums, bass, trumpets, trombones, sax and great percussion. Cheers! read more

Nice venue, even though it's in the middle of an industrial park, I tried several of the beers, but only liked a couple of them. I noticed they have several Pilsners and Lagers, personally not a real fan of either. The food was descent , and the staff friendly, we were there before the band went on, but they were playing some good tunes. read more

A slightly better than average hyper local brewery. The beer is meh, the highest rated beer on untapped (3.79) is barely drinkable hop water IPA. The space is cool and the food menu looks interesting. An ok space if you're local but the beer is just drinkable. Since there are much better breweries / local beers don't be confused by the high rating read more

This beer is fantastic. We buy a lot of craft beers from Craft Shack and this beer rivals any one of the California IPA's we have tried. Great beer and good atmosphere. Warp Wing could definitely learn something under the wing of Fretboard brewing. Hands down their beer wins over warp wing and several other local breweries we have tried. read more

I like Fretboard brewing. But for a long time I couldn't put my finger on why. But then it hit me as I was having a quiet pint of Improv (IPA) on a slow Monday afternoon. The late October sunshine was flooding in through the Garage style doors that are De Rigeur in the craft beer community, and I thought "this music is great !!" And indeed I think fretboard take pride in their playlists (pause while I Shazam current song). Their live music is great also if you come later in the week - their beer is good and their resident food spot - Smoked out - is great, serving BBQ staples. I will be back. read more

Such a fun local place. So happy to see this place pop up. Will definitely be back as it is soo close. Really good amber, holiday beer and Czech pilsner. Delicious smelling barbecue. read more

Fretboard Brewing - Breweries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Beer and food were really good. Awesome appetizer selection. Nice little find and definitely will be in our rotation of breweries post work

What a cool place. I wasn't sure what to expect as it is settled in an industrial park but WOW, they made this place cool! It's a very large space with a stage for live bands. They have a nice size bar too with plenty of seating. I sat at the bar. I had the opportunity to taste three beers. The have a Czech lager that I felt was very well done. It was a little higher in alcohol % than most Czech lagers but i wasn't bothered by that. Solid beer. I tried their Amber next. That beer has some backbone! What a great offering. Most people seem to overlook Ambers but this thing is a must try. I also got a sneak peek of a coffee stout. It was very balanced. Often it seems brewers will overdo additives but they nailed that one. They have a nice little restaurant inside they have partnered with. I got the smoked wings and fries. Great flavor but i would prefer the wings to be a little crispier. They flash fry them after they smoke them. I am sure they will accomodate if I request it next time. All in all i felt this was a great visit. I wish they offered wine and cocktails. No chance of ever getting my wife to go if all they have is beer. I will be back. read more

This place is a great addition to the Cincinnati craft beer scene. Cool industrial vibe inside. Corn hole and pool is available. The attention to detail is cool and didn't go unnoticed. The flight is served on a fretboard which is nice touch. Now the real important stuff, the beer! I started out with the blackberry wheat, Janis. It was just enough blackberry, tart without being overly sweet. My favorite ended up being the El Jefe. It's more flavorful than a normal light beer without being too heavy. These guys know what they are doing and it shows in the taste and quality of the beer. Overall I am impressed! read more

Cincinnati gets another great craft brewery! I stopped in during their Grand Opening to meet up with a few new friends and enjoy a few beers. The space is great, plenty of space in the renovated light industrial building. The entire place is music themed including the bar. Live music is a big part of what they do as well and the bands were excellent the night I was there. Hopefully, they can continue to attract great bands to keep people coming in. I got to try two beers that night and both were really good; I'll need to stop back in to try more of their beer as well as food. read more

Great beers and food. A must stop if I'm the area. Hoping to see a band next time in.

We came here early one weekend. It wasn't too packed, which was a plus for us (we brought along our toddler)! The brisket was incredible and paired nicely with the local flavors. Highly recommend! Hoping to see them come to Hamilton (that's the rumor!) read more

Liked both of the beers that I had, the coffee jazz and the 'Nati Dread (released on Jan. 18th). I enjoyed both of these and they were reasonably priced. The 'Nati was smokey and had strong hints of chocolate, definitely reminded me of the Maverick at Taft's Ale House, just with a smokey element. The band was also good, 10 piece jazz band. If you plan on going here to talk, try to keep it to the intermission as it is a loud venue, just an FYI. read more

Checked out this spot finally last weekend. Needless to say, the place was packed, which is great for them. We had to park about 3 businesses over, madness. Even though they were super busy, we didn't wait too long to get a drink. Although I would have liked to sample flight of their beers, they were just way too busy to even think about about ordering that. Needless to say, we only stayed for one beer, but I for sure want to go back and revisit. Great to have live music and a brewery out this way. read more

We had a large group that was in town for a youth baseball tournament. The staff at Fretboard was so kind and accommodating to our large group. The food and the drinks were great! I was also really impressed at how the restaurant was set up to properly adhere to safety guidelines due to COVID. If you're anywhere near Hamilton I would highly recommend supporting this local business! read more

The beer, was 4.5 stars, the food was three stars, the friendliness of the staff was 4.5 stars. So why only a 2 star ranking? Because I mistakenly left my credit card there (as they keep your credit card to keep your tan open) and left without closing out my tab and to get my credit card back. Someone at Fretboard closed out my tab and added on a 20% (of the total bill including tax) tip. I understand having to close out the tab for the evening, but then giving themselves a 20% tip when I had to go and get my drinks myself (no table service). I hope this was the choice of the "drink getter" as you can't really call them servers, and not the policy of rhe management. read more

Nice Brewery. There was a band playing here. Good food. Had the fries with pork. Very good. Good beer. Staff very nice. read more

Fretboard Brewing - Breweries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Awesome new brewery in Greater Cincinnati! While Fretboard only opened a few months back, it has a similar feel to a large version of the original Madtree. Large, garage-style warehouse with a walk-up window restaurant, exposed brewery, and excellent beers. I was truly impressed by the variety and quality of their beers as such a young brewery; my favorite were the Drummer Boy (winter warmer) and El Jefe (Hefeweizen). There were at least 10 others as well. Beers typically cost $6, with slight upcharge for high ABV beers and $8 for a flight of 4. Be sure to check the Facebook page for events, including great live music, but note that this place gets REALLY loud with a full house plus music. Not a good choice if you're looking to catch up with a friend. Great option for a birthday party or night out on the town. read more

My favorite brewery EVER! This place checks all the boxes. Nice size, great friendly service, nice stage with talented live bands, great house sound, casual industrial, cornhole, pool table. Not to mention, GREAT beers with a Phish nod and cool t shirts. Adding to the cool factor, it's off the beaten path in an industrial area with minimal signage. It's like they read my mind! Perfect. read more

This place is a lot of fun! I've been there both when there is and isn't live music (I prefer the live music). There's also a pool table and cornhole for activities. The space is large with many tables and is definitely a lot more quiet when there isn't music. I follow their Instagram page to keep up with events, pitcher deals, trivia nights, etc. I have liked all of the beers I tried. They have a wide selection from pilsners, ipas and stouts there is something for everyone. The fugee was awesome and tastes like pancakes but isn't overwhelming. I also had the Vlad which was easy to drink but flavorful. There is a place you can get barbecue food brought to your table but I would recommend eating before you come here. read more

It was packed on a Wednesday evening. It seems like they have a good after work crowd. It started to thin out after 6 and we were able to grab a table. I tried the Trey and the Fugee. The Fugee was my favorite out of the two. You could definitely taste the maple syrup flavor. I want to try the Reba and the Coffee Shop Jazz next time I'm in. They have live music through the week and a full BBQ menu also. I got an order of seasoned fries which were pretty good. I'll be back to try their other beers! read more

In my opinion Fretboard is middle of the pack when it comes to Cincinnati area craft breweries. They make a few good beers, but in general their beers aren't as noteworthy or as consistently good as other breweries in the area. One of the positives of Fretboard is that on weekday evenings it is fairly quiet and uncrowded until trivia (6pm Tuesday) or occasionally live music starts, which makes it a nice spot for an after-work happy hour. read more

Fretboard was a great surprise to stumble upon while visiting the area. We even bought some Reba to take home.....delicious!

Fretboard has a few beers we enjoyed. The Fugee was a favorite. They have live music and it seems like a cool spot. Staff was really friendly. Food is great and pairs well with the beers. read more

First visit. Flight of El Jefe (hefeweizen), Vlad (Czech Pilsner), Trey (Amber ale), Rider (Blonde Ale). The El Jefe is like many Hefeweizens I've had. It is light taste, somewhat wheat-y, all around delicious. My top pick at Fretboard. Vlad-i don't know much about pilsners. My husband says they're lagers, which means they were stored a long time before serving (whatever). It tastes like a lighter version of the El Jefe. I didn't care much for the Rider-too hoppy for me. But not as bad as some beers I've had. Trey was my husband's choice. Mild, but not my thing. My husband got a pint of the Jazz (american stout). I did have a taste of it-not bad for a stout. I am not much of a stout fan, so i wouldn't be getting a pint of it. If you like coffee stouts, you want to try the Coffee Shop Jazz, with Seven Hills coffee added. Definitely has a coffee flavor and noticeably different from the "normal" Jazz. Again, not one of my favorite styles, but still tasty. Fretboard also serves food from its Smoked Out kitchen. Loved the wings and fries. Fretboard definitely deserves a second visit. read more

Shimmy shimmy cocoa puff is in my top 5 favorite beers. I love the atmosphere and you can really tell the owners love for music and beer. My only suggestion is maybe lower the band music when they are playing since sometimes it is just a little too loud. But to finally have a great brewery with live music, I'm not sure you could ask for anything better in blue ash! read more

Never Fret, you wont be bored here! This place is a fantastic find for northern Cincinnati. The big open room offers a wide assortment of games including pool tables, Foosball, corn hole and plenty of TV's to keep you entertained. They offer live music on the weekends with a nice stage setup. The place has a built in BBQ joint that frankly smelled delicious. I didn't get to try it but that is going to happen soon! Now the beers....mm mmmm good stuff there. They have a good assortment of styles and flavors for everyone. The beers are reasonably priced and the wait staff was very friendly. I will be going back here again to check out the food and maybe some music but you must get up there and try that BEER! read more

Great spot for food or drink. I came for the beer and a bite for lunch. Had a very nice pulled chicken bbq Sammy, but the Jazz ~ American Porter was dynamite! Great hall like atmosphere to spend a while out of the summer heat. read more

Very cool local brewery with a chill atmosphere. Live music is an added bonus! The whole place has a music theme which is awesome. The beers are great whether it's an ipa or a stout or any other in between. While I didn't try food - a local bbq joint - it smelled + looked delicious! Definitely check out this hidden gem if you're in the Blue Ash area! read more

Always a great space to get together with friends! And Fugee is the bees knees!

Great beers and cool atmosphere. Staff was overly friendly. Hefeweizen and the amber is delicious. Will be back for sure.

Best beer in town! A brewery opened for the right reason, the beer is great! Great selection of beers, plenty of room and music, music, music! I love this place and the staff. Support local hopolgists! read more

Fretboard Brewing - Breweries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Cool, fun place...beer only which is fine. Food choices were not great...very heavy, fried choices. Trivia night was so loud it was tough to have a conversation. All self-service, no wait staff. It was ok, but I would not go back....sorry. read more

Love love love this place. We live in Northern Kentucky, but have still made the trip up several times. Every one of their beers is solid, and the atmosphere is great! Definitely make sure to grab some of the fries from the little restaurant inside too, they are a delicious way to soak up all that beer! read more

Love this place....great beer and yummy food offerings. Have also really enjoyed the music..... Would highly recommend trying this place out!! read more

Where do I start? First of all (most importantly) great beer. Second the live music was awesome and third the food really good. Bar tenders & staff very friendly- we'll definitely be back! read more

Just average in terms of beer. Great music venue though. Wouldn't eat the food again.

Nice brewery with great beers. They have great libe music also. The night I was there , Keven Hart was playing. Keven Hart rocked the place!!!!!!! read more

Checked out Fretboard today -- really cool space! Stage for live music (really good line up with Cincy Brass and Ernie from Detroit the next two Saturday's), pool table, corn hole, bar looks like a fretboad, kitchen that serves bbq and then of course the beer (which I wish was a little better). We are really enjoying the live music this afternoon. read more