Latest reviews from Boardman

“Holy crap what an amazing store! This is a world-class stop even by RateBeer standards. Other than the traffic hell that is getting here, not the store's fault, I have literally nothing bad to say about the experience. This will be a VERY high rating. As other have mentioned... three rooms. The middle room is the beer. As I walked into this room the shopkeeper instantly asked me where I was from, gave me a tour of the store and asked me if I needed any help. I declined at the time, but later I asked for his feedback on a few beers and he dropped what he was doing to help. As he was leaving for the day, he was happy to stick around a few minutes to talk about Asheville beer. In the third room, the larger bar, the bartender was very friendly and gave me a small sample without hesitation. Even the guy behind the counter in the wine room who rang up my purchases was friendly. The selection is amazing. Draft... lots of seasonals and some rarities, with on premise and to go options. The bottles... hundreds of options, including a wide variety of foreign, US, regional, and local. Rarities. And 99% of the beer is singled out already. All organized by brewery, which is nice. Some shelf temp, a large selection chilled. And prices... they're great! One of the most affordable stores I've seen. No case discounts, but you get a $5 gift card if you buy a case of mixed singles. Parking on draft beers was reasonable. Parking was easy but with a couple of other restaurants in the place might get tricky. Food smelled good, but I didn't eat. Overall, this is a place worth going well out of your way for, and I will be back without a doubt. I haven't put in the numbers yet, but I can't think of a thing they could reasonably do to improve. This will probably be my first perfect place score.“

Drake 1956 days ago

“Brand new place right next to the Boardman Mall. Stopped in on a saturday at lunch after visiting 2 of my favorite bottle shops; vintage estate and chalet premier, both only a minute away. Not too many people here but they just opened at 11 am. Easy access and plenty of parking. Inside its the typical contemporary warehouse atmosphere, but tastefully done. Really big bar with at least 50 taps. 10 of thse taps were BJ beer and the others were a variety of local craft and imports. They even had a few taps of macros. Service was quick and there was plenty of eye candy. Good overall beer tasting experience. The prices were very affordable, they had fights of 4 for $7. This place is much better than the BJs I was at in florida. Yes, although they didn't have any rare craft beers, they did have at least 6 BJs brews I never tasted and it was just a very pleasant experience and IMHO a good place to sample a variety of decent craft brews. All the beers I had here were pretty good, including the cider.“

cheap 2359 days ago

“What a find. Thanks Rate beer. Great selection of taps, great bottles and bar food. Service excellent and friendly.“

kassner 2605 days ago

“Large free dedicated parking lot. Pretty close to Vintage Estate. Applebees style atmosphere with slightly bigger bar. Beer selection was good and beer menu seemed up to date with online list. Service was good. Pricing seemed reasonable. I did not eat here. If they had something good on tap or it were meal time I would stop by.“

weihenweizen 2635 days ago

“Visited here in late September ’16 while in the area for business, Suburban location, large bar area, plenty of non-bar seating available as well. Very large selection of regional brewers on tap along with several from across Ohio and Pennsylvania and some rare entries from some nationwide brewers such a Stone. Monday nights happened to be half priced of all draft which was great bargain and allowed me to sample some of the $8.00 12 ozers’s they had for a reasonable down to earth price. Full food menu, I had a bar-b-q chicken breast and it was pretty solid. Plenty of TVs for sports watching and quick, friendly, knowledgeable service.“

PorterPounder 2784 days ago

“Visited here in late September ’16 while in the area for business. Tucked away in a suburban strip mall, this place packs a punch. Part liquor store, part growler station and part bar, this place has it all. Only in town for a short stay so only picking up a a half dozen or so and decided to focus on Ohio regionals. Was not disappointed. Besides the cooler door full of Ohio and Pennsylvania beers, there there wee several aisles of singles, sixers and bombers. If I was here a longer time, I would have had several dozen. Slightly small, but they make the best use of the space. Have a small bar with a growler station and off to the side there is a full fledged bar. Will be back when in the area again“

PorterPounder 2785 days ago

“Mixed feelings about this place. They did have a lot of beers but the server just didn’t seem to care much. She didn’t really want to talk about the selection and when I ordered a bottled beer she didn’t bring a glass. She seemed so put out that I just went to the bar to get my own glass. Some of the food was good and some of it wasn’t. The fries were flat out inedible. The atmosphere comes across as a bit of a dive bar. They seem to cater to several different crowds as they had shades of craft, shades of a sports bar and even a wine section (I think). They had a guy out back that absolutely butchered several classic rock songs on his acoustic guitar. Growler and crowler beers here so that’s nice.“

fiveacestx 2806 days ago

“Just in a strip mall, but tons of everything, not a huge space but stuffed to the gills. Dates looked to be universally quite fresh and virtually everything was pre-broken into singles (save, say, the occasional mixed 12-pack from a brewery) that all rang up perfectly at the register, and I was happy with the prices. I do have a few stores of this selection (1000+ brands) as comparison points, including my beloved State Line, and this is by far the cleanest and most orderly of the tier; there is a little something lost without the adventure of the treasure hunt, but I much prefer not having to wipe the cobwebs from an amber ale. Great friendly and knowledgeable service from fully three employees, which is reason enough for me to come back. Got a little kickback for the large order in the form of a gift card. Didn’t peruse the wine section but found the mead shelves to impress, and there are two separate bars with good tap lists! If you’re in Cleveland or Pittsburgh it is absolutely worth the trip, and I can easily see myself changing course to swing through from farther afield. [2016.07.31: 100]

Wendy is just the best! Surprised at just how much rotation they get, and it’s clear that they’re a known destination when they sold out of the bigger Prairies between posting their arrival on Facebook and my own visit. A real destination. [2017.05.25: 100]“

ganache 2842 days ago

“First visit. Impressive! Four sections, Wines, Beers, Bar w/ food, and fireplace room plus outdoor patio. Great selection of beers and fairly well organized. Helpful and knowledgeable staff. Decent prices. Various flight options for wine, beer, and meads. ex. 6 beers for $12.99 +. Flat breads are very good with a wide selection. I found many items I haven’t seen before. Will definitely go back again.“

jsporrer 2982 days ago

“Typical food selection, burgers and an ungodly number of pretzel dishes. Better food to match the beer would be nice. Usually several good beer selections but the also carry Coors so beware.“

EBROVIAK 3387 days ago

“Great little place. Limited food selection is the major drawback along with limited seating. I’ve pulled through the parking lot and left due to no room. “

EBROVIAK 3387 days ago

“Plenty of dedicated parking right in front. Bottle shop, bar, and restaurant. Saw somebody with a pizza, looked good. Huge selection of beer, mead, cider, and perry. Bought several bottles. Had a guy help out a lot and really good selection. Good prices. My favorite bottle shop in OH.“

weihenweizen 3471 days ago

“So, I put off visiting this place because i am the mayor of vintage estate. However, I was pleasantly surpised by the atmosphere and the help. The bartender knew all about craft beer, local and otherwise. Gave me some hints about a local micro brew that was starting up. Also, said he was very familiar with what goes on over at vintage. Good selection; I had at lesat 8 beers I’ve never tasted berfore and that is after 3500! Overall really good beer drinken experience. 2 separate bars; belgdy and other wise. Make sure you check out both bars for whats on tap! Did not have any food this tiime. I had a flight of 6 0f any of 30 beers for $10 and the servings were near 6 oz! NICE!“

cheap 3697 days ago

“This place is a goldmine for any local beer enthusiast. Almost overwhelming variety (a good thing) in both shelved and refrigerated selections. 3 or 4 different rooms, including a tasting room/mini bar with beers on tap. An outside deck to enjoy your selected taste on a nice day, and even glassware for sale. Great atmosphere that maintains the "feel" that you are in a beer store with a tasting room (good), as opposed to a bar with a beer store. I only have two complaints. 1) The beers are not displayed in an intuitive, obvious way of determining whats what, and where you would find things. Sure, it makes sense to the ones that sock the shelves, because, well.. they stocked the shelves. But for a new customer, you really have to have someone take time to explain their setup, which still needs labeled or revised regardless. This leads me to the next complaint: 2) When I did ask for an explanation, personal beer recommendations, and so on, I felt as if I was putting them out. I had to ask 3 different times for help, each resulting in short, almost "stop-bothering-me", type answers, before a nice young lady from the tasting bar noticed that I was there and could use a little help. This place needs to be organized, or at least labeled a little better, and their staff needs to be trained on customer service and sales a bit more. Other than that, a craft beer lovers heaven.“

Haze76 3851 days ago

“(random note: this review is over a year old) First off, this is a cigar shop that sells bottles of beer you can consume on premise. If you want a place to smoke cigars and drink inside, I would highly recommend this place There is no draught selection, but they have a decent bottle selection (100+ bottles). They are probably a $1 - $2 more expensive than other beer joints in the area. The staff seemed knowledgeable enough for the beer they had.“

tapthis 3884 days ago

“while great selection of beer and good food. the service started out slow but picked up (it was a busy night). they had live music when i was there“

tapthis 3886 days ago

“This place is amazing. I knew it was good but I wasn’t sure what to expect. I managed to purchase 9 beers, all of which were originally on my WL. That and you can’t beat the prices. I can’t wait to go back.“

Art 3972 days ago

“(Visited 04/2013): Stopped at Magic Tree before the Big Tap In for lunch. It is located on South Ave in Boardman off 224 not too far from the 680. There is a good-sized parking lot.

The interior opens into a seating area on the left and a bar on the right. There is a large board next to the bar listing the beers, TVs and lots of windows.

As for the beers, there are around 30 taps with breweries like Great Lakes, Ommegang, Stone, Kona and Cellar Rats represented. There are also well over 100 bottles options from brewers like Rust Belt, Great Lakes, Bells, DFH and Rogue represented.

Service on a weekend lunch at the bar and in the banquet room was good.

My lunch consisted of buffet food due to the Big Tap In. It was pretty good for what it was.

All in all this is a decent spot to hit right up the street from Vintage Estate.“

Dogbrick 3976 days ago

“Stopped in here late on a Monday evening, around 8:30. Parking is available right in front of the store. Walked in and was greeted by a huge selection of wine and directly to the left, was beer as far as the eye could see. All the beer was sold individually. Through the doorway to the beer I found coolers down the right wall and aisles of shelving loaded up with beer. Everything was sort of organized by brewery. There were some that had multiple locations throughout the store, but for the most part, if you find the brewery you’re looking for, all they have from that brewery is in that general vicinity. All the enormous bottles are grouped together regardless of brewery. I’m talking everything bigger than 750 ml, which they had a good many to choose from. The largest selection of these I’ve seen to date. The guys walking around offering help keep to themselves unless you look distraught or ask for help, I like this. I bought two cases of beer, and upon checking out, the guy ringing me up made sure to tell me that I had bought two vintages of Hoppin Frog BA Frosted Frog. The only way to tell is the color of the cap. This guy knew his shit. After checking out, I loaded the bottles into the car and came back in for some mead and beer and a quick bite to eat. I was able to get a sampler of 6 or 12 meads of my choosing. I ordered the 6 mead sampler, which was more than enough for one person, and very reasonable priced at $12. The meditterranean flat bread I ordered was quite delicious and came out quickly. Will I be back to this place? You can bet your ass I will. This place rules!“

JStax 4169 days ago

“Worth checking out if you are in the area. But if you really love beer you will have to go to House of 1000 Beers Pittsburgh, PA.“

midwestbeerguy 4194 days ago

“Amibiance, is not really anything special, but gave it a 5 based on the very good way everything is seperated and organized. Service has always been excellent, with workers always asking if I need help or if im looking for anything specific. Selection is excellent, from Bruery, to 3 Floyds, to hard to find belgian stuff. Value is pretty great for someone from Pittsburgh, as prices are at least a dollar less on basically everything. Overall a must stopp if driving between PA and OH on the turnpike.“

Beerman6686 4206 days ago

“stopped by to check the place out. no time to eat. extraordinary selection. a little pricey but all in all excellent spot to try a wide variety of beer.the place isn’t easy to find but once discovered a delight.“

tazz 4227 days ago

“Great place all around. Bar to the back is great, as is the growler station. Very good bottle selection with some nice import finds. Good stuff on the draft menu as well. Very friendly and helpful staff. Love the glassware case, too. Food is pretty good. Good prices. Great place.“

Thorpe429 4274 days ago

“Wonderful place, friendly people, wonderful service, outstanding selection of beers, meads, wines. Tasty menu to match. Great events to show case their selections.“

rudy55 4334 days ago

“i love this place, the only thing is that you really need to shop around and only buy the things you know you cant get anyplace else, because the prices are high. I know at least 2 other places where i can get a 750ml. bottle of Chimay grand reserve 2 dollars cheaper as one example. That said they have soo many things you cant get anyplace else in the area .“

Lloyd_Braun 4453 days ago

“I have been coming here for nearly two years. And I have to say I love this place. I know the owner and managers, and all of them are great/knowledgeable (including the staff) people. The flat breads are great (though bit on the pricey side). The only thing that could make this place is adding more space because this place can get packed (though this place is by no means small).“

tapthis 4469 days ago

“Wow, what a great place. We went there this past Saturday, they had a wine tasting going on, entertainment, free cheese and crackers. But, what brings us to this place, is an excellent beer selection. Some hard to get brews, mostly the micros and imports that are expected, but again a nice a great selection. Two places for drafts, prices for drafts are high, but bottle prices are cheaper than any other place here in PA. A great wine selection as well. Good food, again, prices too high for this type of food. Plenty of parking, worth the trip from PA.“

nike 4590 days ago

“Unusual for a store that features wine and beer is that beer takes precedent. The first room features their room. The next room has retail beer for sale along the walls arraigned by country and brewer. It appears that most of what they have on the wall they also have in the fridges. For a fee of $1.50 you can take anything out of the fridge and drink it at the bar. The middle of the room has barstools and tables and there’s a bar at the far end that has about a dozen taps. The third room is an out and out bar with another dozen taps. They have both wait staff working the tables along with clerks offering assistance for their bottle shop. Service was pretty good. Voluminous selection that had a big numbers of local, California, and Belgian beers. The taps were fairly solid although there were a couple if duds. All in all it seems like a nice place and would rate among the best beer stores in Cleveland and Columbus.“

DiarmaidBHK 4593 days ago

“A very knowlegable staff in a caring enviroment where virtually any beer is available to sample or purchase.“

tramp55555 4607 days ago

“Not as big of a selection as the Niles location, but equally amazing.“

iamcassieg 4617 days ago

“Not sure about the previous ratings. Went out of my way to try this place because it was listed on the RB map. This place is mostly a geek hangout for tobaco and coffee. Beers seem to be an add on. If you are a rich beer taster, with unlimited funds, and looking soley for some atmosphere, regardless of cost, this may be your spot. Well, me? I like to know what I’m paying for. Beers are not priced so beware, and they are 25-50% more than they should be for ohio. Service also had a mild arrogance to it. I asked about why they didn’t price their beers and the guy who I guess was the owner said ’I don’t have time to put prices on beers’!! Make a six pack of unkown priced singles and get the big over the top high dollar surprize at the cash register after its rang up, made me crestfallen! You are not allowed to know the price of a beer till you ask. Help seems to be knowledgable about beer but often the price quoted was not the price at the register. Overall, if I wanted to pay PA LCB prices, I’ll go to the local pgh beer stores. I can get the same treatment there, but at least I have an idea what its going to cost me. Found some beers there I never tasted so I was glad about that but later I found the same beers down the road at 50% off. I did like the fact there was lots of smokers in there, being a smoker myself. It was fun and cool to have a pretty gal serve me while smoking a c’rette! The apex of my visit was the nice ’deals’ dollar store right next door in the strip mall! Got some cool things there.“

cheap 4649 days ago

“I love Havana“

stranglehold 4664 days ago

“Just visited over the memorial day weekend. My buddy goes to this place ALOT so I had to check it out while I was in town. They have two tap rooms with twelve taps each. I guess the no crap on tap mean no bud or miller? I personally thought the list was average (and a lil pricey) at best. Their bottle selection was awesome! They also have hand streched flat breads which were good, but again pricey for what they are. Service can be a little slow at times it seemed, but they may have been busy. Worth the stop, yes. But to say they are the #1 beer store in the world? I just got informed of something. Vintage was #1 beer retailer 2009 and 2010. Not 2011. They are currently #15 for 2011.“

BiggBrewMan 4725 days ago

“The place is a little small, but that makes it quaint. Either way, considering how small the place is, they have quite the variety of beers available. All the food I’ve had has been really good (except the beer cheese - not worth the price). The people there, from my experience, are mostly friendly, though I’ve not had to ask for too much from them yet. They may be a little pricey, but I don’t mind at all. I’d gladly pay higher prices for more places like this. I’ve driven 45 minutes to get there and it’s always worth it. Highly recommended if you can make it.“

beerchugger 4779 days ago

“Visted on KBS tapping party I really enjoied the party. Their flatbreads are very good and the service we had in the bar area was great. Phil and Bob were great and extremely helpful. I wish I could say the same for two of the woman working there. They were rude and not willing to help me find a beer that they had in their inventory. Maybe it’s hard to find good help that shares the passion for micro brew and it’s community!“

bittermestupid 4806 days ago

“Worth the drive from PA where the beer laws and taxes cripple any good beer stores. This is a place that rightly should have ratings just shy of perfect. No, they don’t have every seasonal, every one-off, or the anniversary brew from every nanobrewery in the country. But they do have the best selection for miles around. They do have friendly and knowledgeable folks who will help you find stuff. And they do have reasonable prices on so many craft beers that if you live nearby you would be a happy drinker.“

N0AH 4885 days ago

“VE is Youngstown’s premier location to enjoy beer for everything that it is. No tvs, no distractions, just good friends and good brew. Oh and the pizzas are great!“

kal8080 4918 days ago

“Havana House in Niles’ Little brother, this store has an awesome selection for just recently getting their coolers. 20% off all Singles, and 10% off all bombers!!!“

bellatts 4946 days ago

“I really have to say that I love this place and wish it was in my own backyard in Pennsylvania. The thing that this place has going for them is the location, nice area, and ambiance*, and food. However, I must say that the beer selection is very good, but I would not consider it exceptional. Additionally, I agree with the review below that the beers on tap are generally on the lame side. I think most people would prefer a staple full of fine Belgiums, and rotating top-notch seasonals, as opposed to the obscure, lower rated ones. Most people I talk to who love beer, actually struggle with choices on tap. I guess money talks and BS walks. Last but not least, I believe not having at least one televisioin takes away from the ambiance. I know, I know its supposed to be about conversation. But some background TV or music would definitely liven this place up. Close to home, we have a place called House of 1000 Beers. The selection is better for both draft and bottle. They have TV’s. If only they have the location. The beer should be the top priority, and I’m not sure that this occurs at Vintage as far as the drafts. Other than that, a great place that I will always visit when in Ohio.“

stunman 4979 days ago

“Just about 30 minute drive from my home in New Castle. Definitely worth the trip. Great atmosphere, free wifi and the bar right there was pretty awesome. The selection is one of the best I’ve seen. Definitely will make a trip everytime I’m back in Pa.“

auderale 5017 days ago

“We recently made a trip to VE and stayed for hours from neighboring Pennsylvania. The beer selection is phenomenal. The wine selection is also highly admirable. The prices were much better than those seen in PA. On the beer selection, VE boasted over 800 bottled craft beers. I was looking for some big name beers, particularly those from the Russian River Brewing company. Unfortunately, they did not carry them. I also was looking for some beers from the Founder’s Brewing company. They had a decent selection, but not all, and understandably none of the seasonal offerings. This was a tad disappointing, but not totally unexpected. We spent many hours at the bar sampling virtually every beer on tap. The kegs are rotated and changed when one is kicked. VE boasts, “no crap on tap”, most likely in reference to not having any of the watered down, corn-based big name American brews on tap. However, I must say that I did not particularly fall in love with any of the dozen or so varieties that I tried. Some of them were very gimmicky type beers flavored with lemon. When asked what the best beer on a tap was, the General Manager replied, “Kentucky Bourbon Ale”, apparently their signature beer that is one of the few staple beers. Unfortunately this was an awful tasting beer which made me question his credibility. To each his own, but I’ve been around long enough to know that this is just not a highly regarded beer, plain and simple. The atmosphere was fun and festive, and the flatbread pizzas were to die for - absolutely outstanding. This place is place is worth additional visits and we will no doubt hang out here again and again. Objectively though I question the highest international rating and the quality of beers that are on tap as very few were good as they reminded me of Anheuser-Busch knock-offs of Blue Moon (Shock Top), Corona (Bud Light Lime) and Guinness (Bare Knuckle Stout), just from small breweries as opposed to the big names. Overall rating = B/B+“

akfoodman 5080 days ago

“This is the place to go in the area for craft beer. I do feel it is a bit overrated, and I do not think it’s worthy of its "#1 Beer Retailer" status, but it is still great nonetheless. I’ve not sat down for a drink in the tasting room, but they always seem to have a great selection and variety. The staff is very friendly and helpful, and you can really tell they love beer. Love this place.“

NickRWB 5086 days ago

“VE Has great people working there that typically know their stuff. The owner is really nice and they have very good prices. I consistently make the trip from Pittsburgh to VE for my hauls. They tend to have all of the more rare beers that are distributed and will reserve them if you are a frequent patron.“

cpetrone84 5126 days ago

“Drove up from Pittsburgh with a friend of mine yesterday. Got there at about 445 on a Friday, not overly crowded (yet), staff were all very welcoming, knowledgeable, and quick to answer any questions. Bottle variety was extensive but did not match the list that they had on their website by any means. There really wasn’t any kind of organization of the beers so it was hard to locate certain ones I was looking for. Had a real nice lambic and belgian section which was what mattered the most to me and there were so many that I had never even heard of. After shopping we went into the "tasting room" aka bar, and had a flatbread and a few beers. The flatbreads were delicious and relatively cheap (~$5) and plenty filling. The beer on tap at happy hour prices however was way overpriced. I think they averaged about $6 a glass and none were anything I couldn’t get at home. I was however impressed by the fact that I could get a mead selection at the bar which is definitely unique. All in all, the trip was totally worth it and I’m sure I’ll be back. Bottle prices and selection good, but tap prices way high.“

roder60 5167 days ago

“Great selection, great service, and great pricing. Well worth the trip from Pittsburgh, let alone here in Indiana, PA. Easy to find, nice new bar. Friendly staff that knows their stuff and the staff is always looking at how to better the place. Recommended highly.“

dpjuart 5246 days ago

“Good selection, knowledgeable staff, good prices and a great source for things I can’t get at home in Pittsburgh. I try to hit here at least twice a year, well worth the drive.“

sirpsycho 5261 days ago

“Great tight selection, lots of rareties including some hard-to-find vintages. All the expected offerings from Stone, Bell’s, Rogue, and others. The staff is helpful but the layout’s a bit cluttered (not sure if they were doing inventory or if it was just the normal clutter there). A good shop that’s worth visiting if you’re in the area but I’m not sure how it got to #2 on the best retailers list: many of the other top 50 locales have far superior selections and settings.“

pellegjr 5279 days ago

“great place, especially with new tasting bar. constantly revolving taps, and great prices“

bellatts 5320 days ago