What Makes Ei8ht Ball Special?

If you haven’t been to Newport’s Party source in a while…it’s time you go.  For beer drinkers, wine drinkers, whiskey fans or any connoisseur of booze, it’s a playground for adults.  But situated in a back corner of the store is a space unlike anything else in Cincinnati… Ei8ht Ball Brewing.  There are other places amongst our breweries here in and around the city that feature guest taps, but Ei8ht Ball doesn’t just feature a couple taps of some local stuff, they feature some of the rarest, and most interesting guest taps anywhere around.

And they have their own beer too… delicious beer.

So…if one thing were to be said about what sets Ei8ht Ball apart from every one else…it’s the desire to push the palates of their customers, and to provide something that the beer geek in all of us is clamoring for… variety. This along with weekly rare beer tappings, and a bacon night that usually creates a nice crowd has turned Ei8ht Ball into something very special to it’s regulars and first timers alike.

The Space

There is a couple things I think they have done very well at Ei8ht Ball… they have taken a space in the corner of a liquor store, and made it into a beer destination.  The taproom itself has lots of stainless steel, dark wood and a massive window looking out into the brew space.  The taproom isn’t the biggest in the city, but that’s part of what makes it what it is.  This is a taproom that was designed around educating people, and getting people to try new things.

They have a big tv on one wall that isn’t for watching the weekly sporting events…it’s for tastings.  They designed the television to provide virtual tastings with brewmasters that might live across the country, and only be able to appear via Skype.  Brilliant.

My favorite feature of the taproom, though?  The porch swing that sits next to the bar…providing a unique way to sit and enjoy your beer…

The Beers

Talking of their own beers, Ei8ht Ball Brewing makes a range of styles that can only be described together as “eclectic”.  They do take their beer very seriously at Ei8ht Ball, which should be evident when you step into the space.  They have won a bronze medal at the Great American Beer Festival for their Reintarnation, which is a barrel aged version of their Tarnished Golden Ale….and rest assured…it won’t be the last medal that you see coming from this brewery.