With so many craft breweries opening, the beer, taproom and service have to be high quality from day one. There’s very little room for error. So can a neighborhood brewery opening up in Milford, Ohio keep up with these expectations? Let’s check out what Little Miami Brewing has to offer.
For those not familiar, Milford is located Northeast of Cincinnati, Ohio. It’s an area that some may look past but Little Miami Brewing has the potential to attract new visitors.
Origin Story
Brother-in-laws, Dan Lynch and Joe Brenner, decided that they wanted to have fun as they grew older and what could be more fun than owning a brewery. Both had successfully operated their own businesses for over 25 years so it seemed like the right time to venture into something new.
They had a clear vision of what they wanted, a neighborhood brewery. This means they wanted to focus on taproom sales only and weren’t interested in a large production brewery.
But they didn’t know where, so they looked into many different parts of Cincinnati before deciding that Milford was the area that fit their vision. Milford needed a brewery and already had a strong small business culture.
They knocked down an old car dealer and built a brand new building to house their brewery. The building sits along the Little Miami River and is convenient to Terrace Park, Indian Hill and Milford as well as many other areas on the east side of Cincinnati.
These guys knew quality was a top priority so they went out and got a Head Brewer with 23 years experience.
Jim Strelau grew up just minutes from where Little Miami Brewing sits in an area called Madeira. He left Cincinnati and pursued a career in brewing and is thrilled to return.
He’s worked for Main Street Brewing, Watson Brothers Brewing, Backcountry Brewing, and Oak Creek Brewing over the past two decades. During that time he has won many awards including 9 at GABF. So it’s safe to say he knows what he’s doing. He lives by the motto “Live to brew, brew to live!”
What To Expect
Little Miami Brewing is unique because their building was built to be a brewery. That’s kind of rare as many breweries opt to renovate an existing building.
As you approach the brewery, you’ll notice the large, red malt silo and the ample (free) parking.
Having a building designed specifically to be a brewery means the layout is hard to beat. The taproom is the entire front half of the building and can hold 90 people.
The large bar stretches across the majority of the space. Across from that are tables that provide most of the seating options.
On either end of the taproom are large garage doors that will provide a breeze during nice weather months of the year. In addition, the windows across the front of the building look like tiny garage doors and roll up as well. The ceilings are tall which means the noise level should never be much of an issue.
There’s also a large patio area which can hold 60 people. This looks out over the Little Miami River and will be a popular spot. There are TVs throughout the taproom and patio.
The space is outfitted with barn siding and metal appointments making it warm but also polished. You’ll find plenty of branding throughout the space as well as a large canoe high above the bar.
Related Post: Building Community At The Neighborhood Brewery
The Brewery
Behind the bar, you’ll find the brewery. As a neighborhood brewery, they aim to produce enough beer to meet the needs of their taproom. So a huge brewhouse wasn’t necessary.
And while it isn’t a large system, it is a very nice one made by Portland Kettle Works. Here’s what they are working with:
- 7 bbl Brewhouse
- Two 7 bbl Fermenters
- Two 15 bbl Fermenters
- 4 Brite Tanks
- Outdoor Silo Holds 25,000 LBS Of Malt
This set up allows them to produce more than enough beer for their taproom and gives them a lot of flexibility to make lots of different styles of craft beer.
The Beer
Having a Head Brewer with so many years of experience, they have the ability to produce high quality beer that will fit the taste of just about any customer. All 16 tap handles will be utilized by late winter 2018.
During my first visit, I was able to try a handful of beers and I was really pleased. They will have at least these on tap when the open:
- Amarillo Hazy Single Hop Ale
- Bike Path Bohemian Pilsner
- Earth Cookie Brown Ale
- Buzz Saw Pale Ale
- Ruby In The Dust Imperial Red IPA
During my first visit, I was able to try the Amarillo, Earth Cookie, Buzz Saw and Ruby In The Dust.
The Earth Cookie was probably my favorite but there wasn’t a bad beer in the group. All were very clean, well executed craft beers. I truly look forward to my next visit.
As they move forward, they plan on having 4 disctinct series of beers.
- The Classic Series – clean, session, easy drinking
- The Lupulin Series – celebrating hop forward beers
- The Experimental Series – pushing boundaries and providing new flavors
- The Seasonal Series – made with fresh, local season real fruit . . . no extracts!
Also, it is worth noting that Little Miami Brewing offers Full Pours (16oz) and Half Pours (8oz). They do not offer flights. But they do offer small samples so you can make sure you like a beer before ordering. This was an intentional decision to provide the best overall experience for all customers.
Flights slow down the speed of service at the bar. They want all customers to get quick service and flights prevent that. In addition, many believe that the 4oz pours of a flight do not allow an accurate representation of the taste of the beer.
Check Out More About Their Beer Here
Related Article: Pint Or A Flight?
What To Eat When You Visit
I am a huge fan of having food options in the taproom. Eating a meal while visiting allows me to spend more time in the taproom as well as consider bringing my kids along with me.
Little Miami Brewing agrees. After some consideration, they decided that pizza was the perfect option. And much like their beer, the wanted to ensure it was a high quality offering.
To do this, they consulted with pizza brewery experts in Colorado to come up with the right ingredients.
The result is a brick oven pizza experience. The dough is made fresh daily from imported Italian flour. They use freshly grated cheeses and the brick oven does the rest.
They offer a few other options including chili and salads.
Check out their full menu here.
So make sure you come hungry as they will be ready to serve up some hot, fresh brick oven pizza.
Location
208 Mill Street, Milford, Ohio 45150
(513) 713-1121
Hours
Monday 3 pm – 10 pm Tuesday 3 pm – 10 pm
Wednesday 3 pm – 10 pm Thursday 3 pm – 10 pm
Friday 11 am – 12 am Saturday 11 am – 12 am Sunday 11 am – 9 pm
Connect With Little Miami Brewing
Website Facebook Twitter Instagram Untappd
Final Thoughts
Cincinnati is closing in on 50 breweries. That’s a ton of options so it’s important that every new brewery has a defined identity.
Little Miami Brewing has done a great job picking a location that needs a craft brewery. In addition, their business model isn’t dependent on being a production brewery. Instead, they will meet the needs of their local community by serving beer and pizza in their taproom.
While I live on the other side of town, I think I’ll find my way out to their taproom on a regular basis. It’s hard to pass up the chance to enjoy great beer and great pizza in a great taproom.
Have You Made Plans To Check Out Little Miami Brewing?
3 thoughts on “Brewery Spotlight: Little Miami Brewing”
Can’t wait to come in and try everything!
I’d love to hear what you think once you get a chance to stop in. And let them know that you read about them on my site; cheers!