Perhaps you are thinking about taking an afternoon excursion to enjoy the fall foliage, and maybe a fine craft beer while you’re at it. Or, you might need to pick off a few more breweries on the Columbus Ale Trail. Then, take a nice 40-minute trip to Lancaster and visit three breweries along the way.
First stop along the way is the two-year old Outerbelt Brewing, just off Route 33 in Carroll Ohio. This former Lowe’s store features an unusually large taproom and a lovely covered patio with total seating for well over 300. You can belly up to the bar, join your friends at a large picnic table, or sit back and relax on a sofa. If you’re feeling frisky, shoot some pool or try your hand at the classic Skee-Ball games while you enjoy one of the 16 beers on tap. The tap list leans heavily on IPA’s, but most recently also included a pumpkin beer, a Schwartzbier, a nice Hefeweizen, a Berliner Weisse, and an Oatmeal Stout on Nitro. Beer-to-go is a specialty at Outerbelt with 6-packs of more than a dozen of their best beers in the cooler just beyond the main bar.
Food is available as well with a menu that includes tacos, panini’s, subs, pizzas, and even some selections for the kids. As you enter the taproom, you will notice a large number of bourbon and wine barrels gently aging a selection of Stouts and Wee Heavies. It won’t be long until these hit the tap list.
Outerbelt Brewing is located at 3560 Dolson Court in Carroll.
Hop back into the car for a six-minute drive to Rockmill Brewing. If you haven’t been to Rockmill in the last two years, you likely will not recognize it. The longtime farm house/taproom is still there, but is now strictly an event space. I have to say, I always loved finding a quiet space in the house to sip a nice Cask Aged Tripel. That being said, the new taproom is lovely with light, bright wood ceiling and walls, and a beautiful stone fireplace. The taproom seats 50, with a shady patio that seats several dozen more. The tap list has evolved as well. Of course, you will still find the expected Belgian favorites including their Dubbel and Tripel, but also a West Coast IPA, their highly regarded Petite Saison, plus seltzers, sour ales, and a Witbier. Wine is available as well. If you’re hungry, there are some light snacks (including a duck-infused popcorn), cheese and charcuterie, sandwiches, wood fired pizzas, and some light desserts.
Rockmill is located northwest of Lancaster at 5705 Lithopolis Road.
The last leg is just a 7-mile drive to Lancaster proper, the home of Double Edge Brewing. The bar seating and abundant tables offer seating for 70, plus a small patio. Their 10-bbl brewing system turns out a nice range of beers with the current list including no less than five IPA’s, a series of three Golden Ales, plus a Porter, a Hefeweizen, a Pumpkin Ale, an Oktoberfest, a Berliner Weisse, a Tangerine Wheat, and a Dunkelweizen. The beers are poured in half pints or full pints, which gives you some nice options if you like to try a number of different styles. Mad Moon cider and several wines are available as well. Light bar snacks are on hand, with food trucks coming in for the weekends. The walls are festooned with some interesting art for sale by local Lancaster artist, Jeremy Hedges.
Double Edge Brewing is located 158 W. Chestnut Street in Lancaster.
And now that you have visited these three breweries, you are also half way done with the Route 33 Brew Trail. Visit Combustion, BrewDog, and Brewery 33 to claim you Anchor Hocking Route 33 Brew Trail pint glass.
