Philly Food And Brews

New England IPA’s are all the rage nowadays, but few breweries utilize double dry-hopping when brewing. “DDH” consists of adding double the hops at separate times, once during the brew and again post-fermentation. This causes the beer to absorb twice the hop flavor while remaining smooth. On the other hand, boiling extracts more bitterness than adding them cool (post-fermentation). Beer nerds and hop heads alike love double dry hopped beer, so why is it so hard to find?

The answer is simple. It’s twice as expensive to use twice the hops. I contacted multiple local breweries and a handful who distribute to the Philadelphia region about double dry-hopping. Most said it’s too expensive, and one said breweries minimize expenses to maximize profits. They still profit off double-dry hopped beer, but the profit margins decrease tremendously, so they just won’t do it.

Stickman Brews is Royersford, PA has recently been brewing a DDH IPA every month or so. This is phenomenal since other area breweries only brew one every 6 months. You can follow Stickman here to see what they’ve been brewing lately! They recently opened a kitchen with a food menu, too. The delicious food pairs well with the great beers.

This past weekend I went to Stickman Brews for their release of DDH Double Deuce, a double dry-hopped version of their most popular Double Deuce DIPA. It’s juicy with a strong hop flavor that drinks very smoothly. It was served in a Snifter glass at the brewery. Beer connoisseurs use it for stronger beers, such as Double Deuce (10%). This glass captures the aromas of strong ales, but it brings out the bitterness of the hops. A teku glass (below) brings out a creamier texture with a less abrasive hop flavor. The teku allows for all of the hop flavors without the bitterness of the hops. Here is a full guide on how the shape of glasses brings out different flavors in a beer.