My wife says that I use the term no-frills to often when describing craft breweries, but I’m not sure if there’s a better way to describe Lockland’s Cincy Brewing Co.
Cincy Brewing Co. was born out of the ashes of the original Rivertown Brewing Company location, which was closed after they built a large brewpub in Monroe. In stepped a new team, including Rob Rosen and Brian Ross, and the new brewery opened in fall 2019.
The new space has much of the same “charm” that the old Rivertown had, including a simple wood-topped metal bar, and a large cold storage in the middle of an open industrial warehouse space. There are also some low- and high-top tables that were salvaged from the closed Tap & Screw Brewery.
The original brewery opened before taprooms were legal in Ohio, so there’s not as much polish here as you’d expect in a more modern craft brewery.
And honestly, that’s part of the fun. There’s nothing like a sweaty, bare-bones place to enjoy a nice cold beer. It’s a definite change from what you see most often these days.
There’s also a small game room and patio outside, and pizza if you’re hungry.
At least two of the owners are military veterans, and there aren’t a ton of offerings in terms of beer. In fact, there were only four house beers on tap when we visited, as well as a gluten-free guest tap from Rolling Mill Brewing Company. They included Mad Anthony Red IPA, a malty version of an IPA and lower ABV at just 5.0%. There was also 4 Locks Lager, as well as a Branch Hill Bender, a solid coffee stout that came in at 8.3%.
If you want a throwback to what most taprooms were a decade ago in an industrial space, Cincy Brewing Co. is the space for you.