Barrel House Brewing Pub

No Longer In Business

Visited this place (actually, their brewery which is located in another location than the 12th Street brewpub was located) on a Thursday morning before hitting a Reds game. There was only one guy working, but he was a very nice guy who treated us well. The building itself was an old meat plant, but it looked to be a nice fit for the brewery. They weren’t able to give us samplers, but he did sell us some bombers. Probably not worth stopping at, as they don’t have samples to give out, but I was happy I stopped there.

Parking near this place is an exercise in bravery! The brewpub is nice, however- I counted 13 beers on tap, which is pretty impressive for a small brewpub. Some of these selections were undoubtedly questionable (&quo;Low Carb Cicada Cream Ale?&quo;), but a variety of styles were represented. Typical brewpub food- pizzas and sandwiches. I enjoyed my Mediterranean pizza. The Belgian Winter Ale was surprisingly good. Atmosphere was typical no-frills brewpub, perhaps a bit dark. Local bands play at least once a week. Worth a revisit.

Located in downtown Cincy in a kind of seedy area. There is limited street parking and a couple pay lots nearby.

The interior is dark with an the bar located in the front and along the side of the establishment.

I visited the BarrelHouse over the weekend in order to take part in their 2002 Microbrew Festival. I was very impressed with the selection of micros at the festival, and the beers served by the BarrelHouse were all very good.

Pizza, German-style sausage and other finger-foods were provided during the event and all were very good brewpub fare. A bluegrass band was brought in which enhanced the festive atmosphere. All in all it was well worth the trip to attend the event, although I would like to return sometime to just sit down and eat their food with a full glass of one of their beers.

I really cannot comment much on the service based on the atmosphere the time I visited but when I did go to the bar to order a Barrel House beer I was treated well enough.

This is the largest microbrewery in Cincinnati. They brew mostly ales, but each year they will brew a Oktoberfest, and a helles bock. Frequently they will have their Dortmunder on tap also. Many bars and restaurants locally carry BarrelHouse beer under their own name such as Do drop in Ale, etc. Their beers are brewed to style and well done, nothing experimental or unusual. They only sell their own beer but have a wide selection of liquors. Entertainment on weekends. They host a few beer events each year. And now for the down side, the place smells worst than a frat house from spilled beer which they mop up with water/ammonia mixture. Drab inside and located in a seeded neighborhood of Over-the-Rhine. The food is to style pub grub too!