Brew Review: Moving Through Development — Troegs Brewing

Lollihop is a new IPA that worked its way through the development process of Troegs’ Scratch Series. The in-house experimental lineup has seen more than 360 beers created.
Lollihop started as Scratch 327 and worked through four iterations before being released.
The ‘Scratch Team’ consists of two full-time brewers who are always testing ingredients and the right ways to use them. Along with Troegs’ brewmaster, brewing manager, production manager, and brewing project coordinator, the group meets weekly to plan recipes, review Scratch releases, look at lab tests, and read feedback from the brewing team.
“We knew we were onto something with Scratch No. 327,” said Marketing/Communications Coordinator Jeff Herb. “That’s when the combination of Citra and Mosaic jumped out at us. The aroma was really fruity, with big notes of grapefruit, peach and melon.
“That was an “aha” moment. We also loved the addition of Rustic Pale Malt from a local Pennsylvania farm. It’s a great platform to build on and can support all the hop-forward notes. We dug the wheat and oats for a silky smooth body and a bit of haze.”
From there, the Troegs staff started experimenting with different malt combinations, yeast strains and the timing and temperature of hop additions.
“In the end, we found that more [hops] is not always better, but precision certainly can be,” Herb said. “When we added the hops — and at what temperature — it really made all the difference.
“For 344, we also brought in Liberty Ale yeast to amplify the pineapple notes with fruity esters.”

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