Derive Brewing, Columbus OH

26 March 2023

I’m in Columbus for a long “mental health” weekend and this was the first place I’ve visited on this trip that I haven’t been to before. I found them through a Google search of brewpubs near me, and I’m glad I did! It was especially nice because I was there earlier and had a nice chat with the bartender before other people began to arrive.

Derive has a little spot on the end of a tiny strip mall near a grocery store (behind me as I’m standing to take the outside photo). As you can see, it’s an interesting interior, sort of a cross between homey and industrial.

They specialize in IPAs plus all sorts of unusual beer styles, as will be seen by my descriptions! From left to right, this flight is:

Not Making Centz – a 5.2% Saison brewed with Rye and Wheat and hopped with NZ Nelson Sauvin. If there hadn’t been so much else to try, I would have greatly enjoyed a pint of this one – it would be a great session beer with a delightful but not overpowering flavor.

Lost Leatherman – a 4.2% English Dark Mild. I hadn’t even heard of this style before last year when I saw a recipe and made a batch of it, and I was pleased to find that my batch tasted very much like this one. It’s not one that I’d want a lot of, but the taste was enjoyable.

Routeburn – a 6.8% “American IPA with New Zealand flare.” Brewed and double dry hopped with Nelson, Nelson Cryo, Waimea, and Nectaron hops. It was good, but was probably my least favorite of the four. The others were just so much more interesting; this one was too “normal” by comparison.

Scratchy Green Sweaters – an 8.0% Double Dry Hopped Oat Cream Double IPA, brewed in collaboration with Sixth Sense Brewing of Jackson OH. What a winner!! If it hadn’t been 8%, I would have wanted a full pint of this one for sure. Wow!

Derive has a small but interesting food menu, not surprising given their unusual beers. I went with a somewhat normal lunch, a Smashburger (very tasty and surprisingly filling for just a 1/3 pound burger).

Then it was time to think about wrapping things up, so I decided on a pint of something that looked just amazing:

This is their Heavy Snuggz and I’m just going to quote verbatim from their description as this is just all sorts of crazy:

“Oatmeal Blonde Ale 6.0%. A collaboration with our good friends at Forbidden Root (Columbus) and made an oatmeal blonde ale and hit it with the ultimate Valentines Day treatment, full of raspberry, cocoa nibs, and marshmallow for a delicious treat for you and your significant other.”

Well, there was a lot of raspberry and sweetness going on in this one, for sure! I didn’t dislike it, but maybe a pint was a bit too much of a good thing …

And finally, another beautiful specimen, but just 6oz this time:

Once again, quoting from their description: “Thunderkiss Morning Froth, Coffee Cream Ale 5.0% – a Coffee Cream Ale brewed with lactose and conditioned on Thunderkiss Bourbon Finished Ethiopia Sidama Coffee, Saigon Cinnamon, and vanilla.”

It’s amazing how much coffee kick one gets from an ale of this color! That part was very enjoyable. I’m not such a huge fan of cinnamon and vanilla in beer, though; fortunately, the vanilla was a very light touch … the cinnamon was just a wee bit too much for my taste.

All in all, I really enjoyed the visit and the chance to try such unusual and well-made beers.