Although the craft beer movement started out on the West Coast, it has had a long history on the East Coast as well. Founded in 1985, Dock Street Brewing Company was the first craft brewery in Philadelphia following Prohibition. After its founding, many other breweries began to sprout up all over the region. This trend intensified over the years, although one piece of the craft beer supply chain was missing in this area: local ingredients.
Until recently, it was very difficult if not impossible to find local hops and malts. Hop farms have slowly begun to sprout up around the area just as the craft breweries did before, but malthouses have taken a bit longer to arrive. That said, recently Pennsylvania has seen the addition of Double Eagle Malt in Huntingdon Valley and Deer Creek Malt in Glen Mills. Now the area’s craft brewers and craft distillers are able to create fully locally sourced products.
I recently visited Double Eagle Malt’s malthouse to speak with the owner and business manager, Alan Gladish, and the owner and malthouse manager, Gary Snyder, to learn more about Double Eagle Malt.
Quality Malts
Double Eagle Malt has been creating high-quality base and specialty malts since 2014 and has already gained the attention of many of the region’s craft brewers and craft distillers. Double Eagle Malt creates high-quality, specialized malt and has a focus on creating unique malts that are tailored to each client’s needs. They source all of their grains from small farms within 100 miles of their facility.
Double Eagle Malt does not mix single-origin varieties and batches and can provide an analysis of every batch they malt. They work with the Center for Craft Food and Beverage at Hartwick College to analyze each batch of malt. They produce typical base malts, but they also produce a lot of specialty malts including crystal, caramel chocolate, high-kilned munich and vienna.
One of their more unique malts is Black Magic Wheat, a dark-roasted wheat that is so dark it appears to be almost black. It does not have the bitterness of typical dark-roasted barley, so I would love to try Black Magic Wheat on my next batch of homebrew stout!
Inside the Malthouse
Double Eagle Malt utilizes the pneumatic malting method in which the grain is malted in a semi-automated malting machine. This cuts down on the physical labor and gives them more accuracy on the germination process. Their current equipment is capable of malting 1200 pounds per batch. This lends well to making custom batches for each customer, but they are in the process of expanding their capacity.
On my visit, Alan showed me their new malting equipment including a massive malting machine that will allow them to malt 10,000 pounds per batch. It is currently under construction, but will drastically increase their production in the near future. With this increased production, Double Eagle Malt will be able to distribute to even more customers and hopefully to local homebrew shops as well. With their current system, the only homebrew store they distribute to is Philly Homebrew Outlet.
Double Eagle’s Customers
There is a good chance you have already tried a beer or spirit brewed with malt from Double Eagle Malt. Their malt has been featured in the beer and spirits of Sly Fox Beer, Stoudts Brewing Company, Old Forge Brewing Company, Vault Brewing Company, Wyndridge Farm, Red Brick Craft Distillery, W.P. Palmer Distilling Co. and more. Double Eagle Malt also produces malt for Mason Dixon Distillery, Great Barn Brewery and Screamin’ Hill Brewery. These breweries and distillery actually maintain their own farms and grow their own grains. They provide Double Eagle Malt with their harvest and Double Eagle Malt does the malting for them. Double Eagle also partnered with Sly Fox Beer and Two Particular Acres farm for a sustainable program called Circle of Progress. Circle of Progress starts with barley grown at Two Particular Acres’ farm in Royersford, PA. The barley is delivered to Double Eagle Malt where it is malted and kilned to Sly Fox Beer’s specifications. The brewers then create a beer for their Circle of Progress series. Since its inception, Sly Fox Beer has created a pale ale, a brown ale and a wet hop IPA. To finish off the circle, Sly Fox Beer then returns the spent grains that are left from the brewing process to Two Particular Acres where it is composted to make sustainable fertilizer.
Double Eagle Malt’s high-quality malt has grown in popularity so fast they cannot keep up with demand. Once their new malting system is up and running, they will be able to supply their malt to more local craft breweries and craft distilleries. Hopefully they will also be able to provide malts to more homebrew shops as well. Keep your eyes peeled for more delicious high-quality beers and spirits brewed using Double Eagle Malts.
Find Double Eagle Malt at 1975 Pioneer Rd., Huntingdon Valley; (215) 806-1619.
- Photos: Arne Morin
One Comment