This past weekend took Russ and me down to Ohio to participate in the Summit Brew Path finisher’s party. We decided to stop at some of the breweries that we have not yet had a chance to visit on Friday. The first spot we stopped at was Garrett’s Mill & Brewery in Garrettsville, Ohio.

We arrived shortly before 3:00 and were greeted with a smile by the beertender Beth who was super friendly and knowledgable. We were invited to sit where ever we wanted, so we decided to take a seat at the bar area. This place is AWESOME! The building is an old mill that was built back in 1804, and you can see many of the original beams and architecture from it’s original construction. In addition to the main dining area, there is also a back event space with big windows, bench seating, and scenic views of the Garrettsville Falls on Eagle Creek. There are three separate decks that are attached to the water side of the brewery, but we chose to pass checking those out this visit due to the brisk winds. ( I am admittedly a cold weather weenie…)

Main dining room/bar area where we enjoyed fresh homemade pretzels with beer cheese and spinach and artichoike dip appetizers with our flights.

Not a bad beer in the whole list! We especially loved the White Hurricane and brought home a growler of it to share. It was named for the deadliest storm to hit the Great Lakes in 1913, paralyzing the state of Ohio with 22 inches of snow and wind gusts of 79 miles per hour!

Gorgeous event space with a cool table made from an original water wheel!

Scenic view from the cozy window benches

We had the chance to chat with one of the owners, Shelli Buchanan, about the history of the building and how it came to be a brewery. It was constructed by Col. John Garrett III and once operated as a water-driven flour mill.

A fun fact is that the last public enemy of the Prohibition was caught after a train heist in Garrettsville! Alvin “Old Creepy” Karpis, a member of the Karpis-Barker gang pulled off the last successful train robbery on November 7, 1935 in Garrettsville, escaping with over $45,000! After he was caught, Karpis spent 25 years in Alcatraz, some of it alongside Al Capone.

There was also a fire at the mill, yet miraculously it survived. You can see some of the charring on some of the larger beams above the bar area (that have of course since been reinforced for safety).

We would have loved to have stayed longer to visit and enjoy more delicious food and brews, but we had somewhat of a schedule to follow for the afternoon and evening. We will DEFINITELY be returning later this year – perhaps during a collector crawl of sorts…

Cheers and thanks to Shelli and everyone at Garrett’s Mill & Brewery!