March First Brewing
7885 E Kemper Rd, Sycamore Township
10 Fountain Sq Plz (Fountain Square), Cincinnati
March First Brewing opened in Sycamore Township in May 2017 after pouring its first beer on – of course – March 1st. They bill themselves as “Ohio’s most drinkable craft beer,” which I don’t think is provable, but it’s a pretty fun tagline nonetheless. It seems like there are more and more breweries that are doing so much more than just beer, and March First is definitely in that boat. In addition to hoppy goodness, they also offer their own cider, whisky, schnapps, vodka, rum, and hard seltzer. They opened up a large, expanded 4,000 square foot taproom in 2019, with their original taproom now an event space.
March First also expanded outside of its own doors in 2019, purchasing Middletown’s FigLeaf Brewing Co to add to their existing portfolio. In 2020, they purchased Woodburn Brewing in East Walnut Hills. In December 2022 the brewery opened a restaurant and taproom for its distillery brand, Cincinnati Distilling (formerly Sycamore Distilling), in Milford.
March First Fountain Square
In 2023, March First moved into the former Rock Bottom Brewery location on Fountain Square that closed in 2020. March First is took over the 10,000 square foot space, which opened in August 2023. The space features all of March First’s brands, including a Cincinnati Distilling bourbon bar. The location also features an extensive lunch and dinner menu with a garage-like door that opens up to Fountain Square during the warmer months.
Must-try beer: Astra Red Cream Hard Soda Seltzer – No, it’s not really a beer, but people go crazy for March First’s Astra hard seltzer brand, and in particular the red cream soda version.
Other great beers: Ohio Pilsner, Craft Lager
Major Awards
US Open Beer Championship
- Dubbel Chin (Belgian Dubbel) – Silver Medal – 2020