Powell Breweries and Winery

 Hello Everyone! 

    Spring is almost here and I am ready for it. I am a March baby and it is a difficult time to plan anything because the weather can go either way. This year, we celebrated my birthday on a bitter cold day. The high was in the 20s midday. Every indoor activity we could think of (TopGolf, bowling, arcades, etc...) was jam packed with people and wait times upwards of 2-4 hours. We didn't want to keep wandering all over Columbus and hitting dead-ends, so we decided to just explore some local breweries. My brother was here to celebrate and he really enjoys the small uptown vibe of Powell, so we looked up some options and headed that way. 

    Our first stop was my choice: Nocterra. I pass this brewery next to the railroad tracks every time I head to the Columbus Zoo. This place always looks busy inside and outside when the weather is nice. They are a drinks-only brewery with a local food truck and live music on certain days. I wish it hadn't been so cold that day because I loved the feel of the outdoor part of the bar. It gave me barefoot blue jean summer date vibes. The decor inside and outside is outdoorsy with a touch of whimsical. It was my favorite atmosphere out of all the bars we visited that day. Each beer has its own piece of artwork inside the building and it was fun to look at them. The inside was big and open, but I'm sure when it's busy it echos and gets really loud (we went mid-afternoon and it wasn't super busy). The food truck outside was a Ray Ray's Hog Pit truck from one our Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives posts! That was exciting to see and it smelled amazing. 

    We got a flight of different beers to try, along with the Phase 2 IPA , a seasonal cherry sour, and a Terra Misu porter. **Disclaimer** My brother's girlfriend used to work at a brewery and they have become very difficult to please in the beer and wine biz. 😉  We were a bit disappointed in the flight. There wasn't enough of a difference in flavors between the beers. There was no real stand out. My brother thought the IPA wasn't "hoppy" enough. We thought the cherry sour was a bit too tart, but it was nice and light. I LOVED my Terra Misu porter. It was so smooth and dangerous. I could easily sit outside listening to music drinking three of those without batting an eye before it sneaks up on me. 

    The next location was my brother's choice: The Daily Growler. It's located at the end of a small shopping strip. It's another drinks-only location with food trucks on certain days. The menu has a large variety of beers from all over Ohio and a few other states. I had an Irish Red Ale from Kentucky, which I thought was okay. Not a stand out by any means. We didn't spend a lot of time here. It wasn't busy at all. There were maybe 4 other people there. I thought the vibe was a bit awkward and I was distracted because it wasn't particularly clean. There were dirty corners, dirt by the front door, and my brother's beer glass was cracked. To my suprise, he actually really liked this place. He liked that it wasn't crowded and he preferred the larger selection of beer.

    Next up was the Ill-Mannered Brewing Company. The name already had my attention. They recently moved to a bigger location next door to their old one, but it still seems too small. There were no inside seats left when we got there. Everyone was packed in and standing. They had a nice outdoor patio area, but the wind chill was too cold even with the fire going. This is another drink-only with food trucks location. I tried their irish ale-O'Shag Henessy. I sincerely hope it's named after the Key and Peele "Substitute Teacher" skit because that makes it even more amazing. THIS was the irish ale I was waiting for. First of all, it was green. Second of all, it was the best tasting beer I had all day. We also tried a flight of their different beers and we honestly liked them all. I could've taken a six-pack home of at least 4 of them. There was a great flavor variety and one of our favorites was Mad Moon which tasted like Sweet Tarts. I honestly wish there was more seating because I would've loved to stay longer. 

    Our last stop was the Powell Village Winery. We have been here before. It is one of our favorites. There's a small patio outside and the inside has a bar with the wines all around the room that you can buy. There are a few table varieties ranging from a few high-top, some smaller dining tables and a couple options for bigger parties. It's not a big place but it's decorated beautifully and it's cozy. They have wine flights and they give you a paper on your table to choose which wines you'd like to try. There is a bakery next door that they use for snack foods to have with your wine like flatbreads, cheese plates, breads and dipping oils, etc...It's so good. We've enjoyed all the food we've gotten. I could easily settle in for the day with some snacks and glasses of wine. Kick me out at closing. 

    It was a fun day to spend with my favorite people. Even though it wasn't our original plan, we do love hanging out in Powell. I'm not one to typically brewery or winery hop, but I would definitely do it again. Each one of us had a different favorite location so there was no general consensus on what the best place was. It really depends on if you're into the vibe, the drinks, the location, etc...I was bummed at how cold it was that day and would like to go back to these places to try out their patios when it is warmer. All of these locations were within a 5 mile radius of each other, so that was super convenient. Had it been a warm day, we could've easily parked in one spot and walked to each place. Do you have a favorite of these locations or did we miss one that we should've tried? Let me know in the comments!