Trip to Cincy

The Party Source in Bellevue, KY is a must visit. It is just across the river from the stadium. That's the huge place across the river you are thinking of. They have a decent brewery inside called ei8ht ball as well, all the way in the back so its easy to overlook.

There are a lot of good food options close to downtown. I love German beer so I'm a fan of the Hofbrauhaus in Newport, which is right down the road from the Party Source. There is also a Scottish themed pub in downtown Cincy called Nicholson's that has a good UK beer list and Scotch whisky list and has very good food.

 

Rhinegeist, Party Source/Ei8htball, Old Kentucky Bourbon Bar.

 

As I am from Pittsburgh as well and currently live in KY, you'll find lots of against the grain. The Bellevue party source has some good stuff but they hold the one offs for their members which can suck. I would say head to Lexington if you wanted some other choices of stuff but you should be fine up there.

 

Check out Moerlein Lager House for a decent tap list and great food. It's right across the street from the ballpark.

 

They had a lot of 3F stuff the last few times I was there (but one of them I opened was pretty skunky, so it might sit around for a while there), but otherwise probably not rare stuff, just a huge selection (including lots of Against the Grain).

The real gem there is Ei8htball in the back. They can have some pretty amazing tap lists at times. http://ei8htballbrewing.com/visit-us/

 

And be prepared to pay thru the teeth for them. Most overpriced taproom I have even been to.

 

DEP's Fine Wine in Fort Thomas (<10min from The Party Source) has 24 taps on their growler station.
http://depsfinewine.com/beer/

 

If you are only going to be downtown, I would recommend Taft's Ale House for good beer and food, and Liberty's Bar and Bottle for a good beer bar.

For food, there are a lot of great places, including the Eagle, Taste of Belgium, and Arnold's. Those places generally have some good beer as well (particularly Arnold's).

 

MadTree is a solid 15 minutes or so north of downtown, along I-71. If you're already making a foray to the northern 'burbs for them, there's the Cappy's bottle shop in Loveland a bit further on past them. Always has 30-40 taps going for pints while you shop, usually with some good and rare stuff, and the bottle selection is superb. They're on BeerMenus (taps and full bottle list), so give them a scan when you head for MadTree and see if it's worth your while!

Party Source is a definite requirement, especially since you're already staying in Covington, so it's a short hop away in Newport. Ei8ht Ball Brewing on site has ~40 taps, usually with really good stuff on (BA Tweak was there recently, for example), and their bottle selection doesn't suffer from the dreaded Ohio 12% cap. Ei8ht Ball's taplist is also on BeerMenus, for perusal ere visit.

I second the mention of Taft's Ale House - great food, cool venue (old church completely restored), and good beer across a variety of styles.

Also, if you're up for a little bit of a drive, hit up a Jungle Jim's - the Eastgate one may be your best bet. They're a giant grocery store, and they get in pretty much any and every beer distributed in Ohio, both imports and US breweries.

With one day in town, you may not get to hit all of those, but none of them should disappoint!

 

For a great selection of some good one offs and what not is Dutch's Bar and Bottle Shop. I was able to get a lot of good Revolution barrel aged beers there and some of the Rhinegeist Barrel Aged stuff. Also able to score a couple Maine Beer Company beers. A great place to stop and grab some stuff. They do sell singles too.

 

Pretty much everything UrbanCaveman said, I also really like Blank Slate in addition to other things people have already mentioned.

 

jungle jims for bottles on way in or out and Fifty west! brewpub style spot that was my favorite of the trip that wasnt production facility!

 

50 West makes some killer beers. Party Source/Jungle Jim's are your best bets for anything bottle wise.

Cheers!

 

Liberty's is the best bar if you are staying downtown/OTR area. Best taplist in the city besides Dutch's in Hyde Park.

 

Since you're in Covington, might as well walk a few blocks to Braxton around 7th for a beer, but otherwise, I'd venture onto the Cincy side for more options. There's also enough within walking distance where you are for just that day that I wouldn't mess with bothering to drive anywhere. Between an enjoyable walk from Braxton in Covington to Rhinegeist in Over the Rhine around 19th and Elm, you'll find some pleasant sights and great beer options. Rhinegeist has the neatest tap room in a 90,000 sq ft facility that was originally a Christian Moerlein bottling plant. Speaking of, Moerlein's Malt House (tap room) at Moore and Liberty is also a pretty neat place with plenty of games (cornhole, darts, foosball, jenga, pool, etc.) to keep you occupied. As already mentioned, Liberty Bar and Bottle around Main and 14th is the best beer bar in the Central Business District / Over the Rhine. Hell though, you may struggle with much more beyond the game with all the great local craft options available in Great American Ball Park. Make sure to find the Brewery District bar on the lower level down the third base line (even better than the newer bar area down the first base line). Enjoy!

 

If you do go to Braxton, hit up Kung Food Chu's Amerasia around the corner for lunch; great Chinese food as well as a damn good tap/bottle list.

 

You can also walk to Uncorked and Liquor City from your hotel in Convington. Both usually have ATG and Country Boy, among others.