The Brews Traveler series focuses on the continuing craft beer adventures of the Liberty Brew Tours crew as they explore breweries across the world.
Overview
While visiting Dayton, Ohio over the holidays, I asked some local beer experts where I could find the most interesting brews. They almost universally pointed me to the same spot – Branch and Bone, a small brewery on the edge of downtown Dayton.
Branch and Bone is a true craft beer destination. They have no standard tap list, but rotate through new recipes continuously. Once a beer is gone, it’s probably gone forever ( although not always ). During my visit, B&B didn’t have any lagers, pilseners, or belgians. The tap list (pictured below) was an eclectic mix of sours, offbeat IPAs, and darker brews with unusual adjuncts. This is definitely my style. I greatly prefer weird beers that are hard to categorize. The tap room itself is a relatively small, but comfortable area with bar and table seating. The Bartenders were particularly informative and gracious in dealing with my usual barrage of questions concerning both the location and beers.
The Beer !
I was able to sample a number of beers, with two major standouts, both sours:
Seasonal Friend 2019 is a unique combo of Christmas/fall spicing and fruity sour. The aroma is distinctly spicy, dominated by cinnamon and nutmeg. But the flavor is all sour, with tons of fruit and moderate tartness.
Bramble Blast is a monstrously tarty, raspberry red sour. Massive amounts of fruit flavor, and one of my two favorite beers of the Ohio trip.
Almost all the beers available on tap are also canned, bottled, or available via growler purchase.
This brewery is an absolute must for serious beer drinkers when visiting Dayton. I included some photos below, but no exterior shots. Dayton was a miserable and freezing 30 degrees and raining during this particular trip, so it’s all inside pictures for this round.
— Jeff, brews traveler extraordinaire
Brewery Info:
Website: Branch and Bone Artisan Ales
