Fairmount bled blue and gold on April 23 as patrons of Bar Hygge partook in a unique fundraiser benefiting Drexel University’s Department of Food and Hospitality Management: for one night only, Dragon Tears, a small-batch India Pale Ale grown on campus and brewed steps from the bar, was on tap. A cut of the profits from its sale went towards the Drexel program.
The Drexel provenance of the beer is undeniable: Dragon Tears was brewed with hops grown in the Summer/Winter Community Garden beside the first-year residence halls, in a garden plot run by the Food and Hospitality Management program’s Culinary Lab for its kitchen garden courses.
The brewing itself took place just blocks from campus on Fairmount Avenue, where Brewery Techne is co-located with Bar Hygge. Techne is a ten-barrel craft brewery that produces several of the drafts sold on premises. There, the garden Cascade hops were fermented with wheat, malt, yogurt (making this a kettle sour) and 40 pounds of blackberries. Towards the end of fermentation, a further 40 pounds of pureed dragonfruit were added to infuse the beer with its signature flavor.
All this was made possible by the efforts of Chef Chuck Ziccardi, kitchen garden head; professor Jonathan Deutsch, food lab director; Department of Health Sciences chair Jodie Haak, PhD; and graduate students Thea Bertneski and Matthew Schaffner, per DrexelNEWS. At Brewery Teche, Tom Baker oversaw the brewing process.
While mascot Mario was nowhere to be seen, it was a busy Wednesday night at the bar, with Drexel students, professors and alumni turning out to sample the unique IPA and support the program. Food and Hospitality Management, under the College of Nursing and Health Professions, may be best known around campus for offering beer- and wine-tasting courses. However, its focus is on the hospitality and food service industries, epitomized by the student-run Academic Bistro.
The program maintains its own garden plot in service of its kitchen garden courses, which emphasize sustainable “farm-to-table” cuisine. According to Chef Ziccardi, the hops had been growing in the garden for two decades before being used in brewing. With the kitchen garden and Food and Hospitality Management taking home a ten percent cut on Dragon Tear sales, the hops have now paid dividends.
Surprisingly enough, Dragon Tears is not the first Drexel-themed craft beer: Flying Fish Brewing Co. crafted a special limited-edition amber ale to celebrate the university’s 125th anniversary in 2016.
SUBJECTIVE BEER REVIEW
Dragon Tears – Brewery Techne, Philadelphia, PA
5.8% ABV
Kettle sour with dragonfruit and blackberry
This IPA came straight from the tap with a tall, golden head, a striking red-amber body, just-visible carbonation and a fruity aroma. It fires on all cylinders: at first impression, it is sweet and sour up front, courtesy of the dragonfruit. That is followed by the Cascade hops, which add more fruitiness and a balance of bitterness. In the end, however, the blackberries’ tartness and freshness are what linger on the tongue. The fruity, berry flavors are bold enough to make you check for seeds.
Overall, it is fruity, sour, refreshing and at times sweet enough to call cider to mind. A non-beer drinker could definitely enjoy this. 8.7/10.