Best source for a non-LA PC-playable minotaur?

[Dannyalcatraz]

Pretty much, I hoped to give a minotaur's player (were any of my players to choose it) the ability to take any PC class as far as they could like any other PC race.

Which is one reason I prefer Monte Cook's take on monstrous PC races in AU/AE. Essentially, it's the same as in Savage Species except:

1) You get some base racial benefits, and only take as many racial levels as you so desire. IOW, your Minotaur could take all, some, or none of his racial class levels.

2) They are full-fledged class levels, with BAB and save adjustments, etc., and don't count towards multiclassing XP penalties or against non-multiclassing restrictions (such as for Monks & Paladins).

I think I could swap out Large for the 3.5 goliath's powerful build.

I think that is eminently reasonable.

 

[Jackinthegreen]

There's a variation of LA systems in Unearthed Arcana. Basically it says that a character with LA can trade in a level's worth of experience to reduce or negate the LA. In the case of a +1, the character can get to level 3 and trade in the experience for fourth level to instead negate the LA.

You mentioned you didn't want to use a race with LA, but this variant allows for a bit more flexibility. The full page is at Reducing Level Adjustments :: d20srd.org