All of the beers brewed at Hops start with domestically grown milled grain. At Hops we use six types of malted barley for the four core beers that we brew. The first step of the brewing process is to pour the carefully measured grain in to the mash lauter tun, one of the large copper vessels inside the brewery. The Brewmaster continuously stirs the grain as 170-degree water is pumped in from the brew kettle. The water and grain are mixed together to form an oatmeal like consistency. The mash will then sit for 45 minutes at a temperature between 145-160 degrees to allow the starch to convert into sugar. The steam generator is used to heat the hot liquor and wort in the brew kettle.

Once the kettle is full it is boiled for 90 minutes. This boiling process helps to coagulate proteins and sterilizes the wort. During the boil, hops are added at the beginning for bitterness and during the last fifteen minutes for aroma and flavor. After the ninety-minute boil, the kettle is whirl pooled and allowed to settle for twenty minutes. The whirlpool allows any solid materials such as hops and coagulated proteins, to gather at the bottom of the kettle.

The Brewmaster then draws the relatively clear wort through a heat exchanger. The heat exchanger allows the wort, at temperatures near 212 degrees, to pass between separate plates that contain very cold water. This exchange drastically reduces the temperature of the wort to create a living environment for the yeast. The wort is then passed to the fermentation vessels.

Once the wort has reached the fermentation tanks, the Brewmaster adds the high quality liquid yeast. The yeast begins to convert sugars to alcohol and carbon dioxide. The gasses created are vented from the vessel. For the following four to five days the yeast is left to consume the sugars inside the fermentation vessel at a temperature of 68 degrees. The by-products given off by the yeast during this stage add the alcohol to the beer. Once the yeast runs out of sugars to consume it becomes dormant and settles to the cone shaped bottom of the tank. The temperature is dropped close to freezing and is cold-conditioned for another ten days.

The next step of the Hops brewing process is to pass the newly brewed, cold beer through a series of natural paper filters to remove any yeast in suspension. The beer passes into 220 gallon, chilled serving vessels. Once inside the vessel carbon dioxide is added using a carbonation stone, which allows the beer to absorb the carbon dioxide. After this step is measured and approved by the Brewmaster, the beer is ready to be delivered through insulated lines to the taps located in the bar.