The Travel Chica

Live Simple. Consume Less. Experience More.

Elevator Brewery Tour in Columbus, Ohio

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I told you previously what I was looking forward to about coming home, which included catching up with friends and drinking a good IPA.

Years ago at one of my previous consulting assignments, we used to have happy hours at Elevator Brewery & Draught House.  When I found out the same crew would be getting together there while I was visiting home, I decided to surprise everyone.

It was so fun to see the surprised looks as people walked in.

The Restaurant

I have always loved happy hours at the restaurant because you get excellent beer at half price.  They have pool tables in the back.  And if you want to stick around for dinner, the food is great.

The building itself is really cool. It was originally built in 1897 and was restored close to the original after prohibition. There is a long, beautiful mahogany bar. And I love the stained glass and the decorative ceiling.

Photo inside restaurant

Photo of beer and pool tables

The Brewery

I have always wanted to tour the brewery because I really enjoy the beer.  The brewery is only a few blocks from the restaurant, so my friend arranged for me to visit while I was in Columbus.

First Impressions

I got to watch, learn, smell, and taste while they brewed my favorite type of beer, the IPA.

The first thing I noticed when I walked in was the sweet smell.

Next I tasted the barley.  Pretty good.  I could pour some milk over it and eat this for breakfast.
Photo of barley

The Process

Mash Tun

The barley goes in the crusher and gets piped into the Mash Tun and mixed with water.  The hot water activates the enzymes and converts the starches to sugars.  The liquid recycles through the Mash Tun from the bottom back into the top.

Photo inside mash tun

Brew Kettle

Next the mixture gets pumped over to the brew kettle where it is brought to a boil, and all of the good stuff is added.

Hops!  Hops!  Hops!
Photo inside brew kettle

Brewing takes about 5-6 hours per batch.  Then it is pumped into one of nine fermenters where the yeast is added.

Pay the Taxes

Of course, the government has to take its cut with the federal excise tax.  It happens before it even goes out the door using the Tax Determination Tank.

Photo of tax determination tank

Bottling

At the Elevator, they can bottle 6 at a time, which is about 6 cases a minute.

Photo of bottling

Distribution

The Elevator self-distributes their beer.  They are up to about 3000 barrels a year (2 kegs per barrel).

The Beer

Three Frogs IPA

While I watched the IPA brewing, I sampled a freshly bottled one.  Delicious!

Photo of bottled beers

‘Tis the Season

An Oktoberfest freshly poured from the fermenter.

Photo of IPA freshly poured

Don’t forget to get the Oktoberfest (one of my favorites) while it’s available.

Photo of Oktoberfest bottles

My other favorites are the Mogabi Imperial IPA and the Buckeye Red.

Special thanks to Vic, Mark, and Wynn for showing me around.

The good news is that if you live in Ohio, Elevator Brewing is expanding their distribution within the state.

The bad news is that they have not expanded outside of the state yet (but I’m hoping they’ll get there soon).  So if you pass through Ohio, be sure to sample some Elevator handcrafted beers.

For a tour or locations where you pick up a 6-pack, go to the bottom of their brewery page.

 

Years ago at one of my previous IT consulting assignments, we used to have happy hours at Elevator Brewery & Draught House.When I found out the same crew would be getting together there while I was visiting home, I decided to surprise everyone.

It was so fun to see the surprised looks and hear, “Holy shit!” as people walked in.

The Restaurant

I have always loved happy hours at the restaurant because you get excellent beer at half price.They have an area in the back to accommodate large groups and pool tables.And if you want to stick around for dinner, the food is excellent.

The building itself is really cool.It was originally built in 1897 and was restored close to the original after prohibition.There is a long, beautiful mahogany bar.And I love the stained glass and the decorative ceiling.

INSERT PHOTOS

The Brewery

I have always wanted to tour the brewery because I really enjoy the beer.It is only a few blocks away, so my friend arranged for me to visit while I was in Columbus.

INSERT PHOTOS

First Impressions

I got to watch, learn, smell, and taste while they brewed my favorite type of beer, the IPA.

The first thing I noticed when I walked in was the sweet smell.

Next I tasted the barley.Pretty tasty.I could eat this for breakfast.

INSERT PHOTO

The Process

Mashtub

The barley goes in the crusher and gets piped into the mashtub and mixed with water.The hot water activates the enzymes and converts the starches to sugars.The liquid recycles through the mashtub from the bottom back into the top.

INSERT PHOTO

Brew Kettle

Next the mixture gets pumped over to the brew kettle where it is brought to a boil, and all of the good stuff is added (Hops!Hops!Hops!).

INSERT PHOTO
Brewing takes about 5-6 hours per batch.Then it is pumped into one of nine fermenters where the yeast is added.

Pay the Taxes

Of course, the government has to take its cut with the federal excise tax.It happens before it even goes out the door using the Tax Determination Tank.

INSERT PHOTO

Bottling

At the Elevator, they can bottle 6 at a time, which is about 6 cases a minute.

INSERT PHOTO

Distribution

The Elevator self-distributes their beer.They are up to about 3000 barrels a year (2 kegs per barrel).

Random Interesting Fact

Water is the most important part of brewing a beer.Elevator Brewing actually uses plain old City of Columbus water.The quality is high enough that it can be used for brewing handcrafted beers.This surprised me, but then the guys pointed out that Anheiser Busch is located in Columbus.Perhaps, that’s why the quality of the city water is so good.

The Beer

Three Frogs IPA

While I watched the IPA brewing, I sampled a freshly bottled one.Delicious!

Oktoberfest

Fresh pour from the fermenter.

INSERT PHOTO

My other favorites are the Mogabi Imperial IPA and the Buckeye Red.

Special thanks to Vic Schlitz and ??? for showing me around.

The good news is that if you live in Ohio, they are expanding their distribution within the state.The bad news is that they have not expanded outside of the state yet.So if you pass through Ohio, be sure to sample some Elevator handcrafted beers.For a tour or locations where you pick up a 6-pack, go to the bottom of their brewery page. http://www.elevatorbrewing.com/the-brewery.php

Comments

  9. I think one of the things I like it here in American is the variety of beers and alcohol we have. When my cousin was visiting here during summer from Asia, she was sooooo happy to try different kinds of beer.

    mmm, cannot wait till they start selling those in other parts of America!! I have never been on a brewery tour so this is very interesting to me. =)
    Annie recently posted..Japan(9)Omotesando-Shinjuku Part 4: Japanese Hamburger Steak!

  12. Steph-Would you consider (periodically) letting your blogers know what camera/lens/settings you use for your pictures? They are really great!! Wish I could have seen more of you while you were here!

  13. Dear Stephanie, Guess you are back in So. Am. Praying for a greater Exploring of the places you missed and are now there to do them. While in Ports. we went down to “The Brewery” to eat. I guess you have been there. They still brew their Beer. I “hate” the taste of Beer even when I did imbibe a number of years ago. Love their Chicken Wings. We used to have “Hops” at the Fairfield Mall. It was a great Rest. but went out of business. They brewed Beer also. People said it was great.Enjoy the rest of your stay. Love Grandma

  15. It’s great to see that you’re a brewery lover. You have to come to Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and check out all our breweries. You’ll love them. From the big mass market Carlton and United Breweries through to the many small boutique brewers, I think you’d love it here. If you’re into wine too we have some of the best wine going around in the world. Something to think about in case you’re ever considering a trip to Australia.

  17. I have a friend traveling to Columbus for business either this week or next, so I sent him a link to this blog as well as 3 others about the glories of foods & desserts of Columbus.

    Unfortunately I didn’t know that another one of my friends was just this this past weekend and probably would have run through a keg or two at this Draft House if he had known about it. He was complimentary of the beer in Columbus as well as the fact that he could find: Rogue, Two-Hearts, and Stone IPA on tap at the airport.

    Viva la cultura de cerveza en Columbus!!
    Chance Miller recently posted..Private tours vs Bus tours in Buenos Aires

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