In northwest Pennsylvania you’ll find an ale trail with a circuit of 10 microbreweries, including three within blocks of each other in Erie. Not officially a trail member but nearby is Southern Tier Brewing Company in Lakewood, New York, offering a bonus for dog and cat lovers: Southern Tier is pet-friendly.
Southern Tier also is opening a second microbrewery on the North Shore of Pittsburgh, a city with its own beer heritage. If you can only visit one brewery here, make it The Church Brew Works. When the Diocese of Pittsburgh downsized in the 1990s, it decommissioned and sold off several church buildings, including one that now houses the brewery.
In West Virginia, Morgantown is home to the Chestnut Brew Works and the Morgantown and Mountain State Brewing Companies. Drive northwest for 90 minutes and you’ll find the Wheeling Brewing Co. in its namesake city.
Kentucky is known for its bourbon, but it’s home to microbreweries as well. In fact, one can be seen from Cincinnati: The Hofbrauhaus in Newport, Ky. (There are also Hofbrauhaus locations in Cleveland, Columbus and Pittsburgh.)
The most notable brewery in Indiana probably is 3 Floyds Brewing Co. in Munster, near the Illinois line. The brewery has been operating for 20 years and distributes its beers in Ohio. Closer to the Buckeye State is Lafayette Brewing Co. in Lafayette, and Mad Anthony Brewing Company in Fort Wayne. The Detroit area is another hotbed of brewing, including the Detroit Beer Company (within steps of the entertainment district) and its sister company, The Royal Oak Brewery.
We love our Ohio brews – but if you’re looking for a weekend beer getaway, adjacent states offer plenty of opportunities.
