The Brewery

Get ready to experience the exceptional brews crafted

by the legendary master brewer, Robert Hopkins.

About us

HOPKINS & HOPKINS

BOW ST BREWERY

Owned and operated by brothers and veterans of the beer industry, we have been responsible for all brewing operations at 1-2 Burgh Quay, now J.R. Mahon’s, since 2009.

In late 2021, we commissioned our own brewery a tour Bow St premises, up river in Smithfield, Dublin7, and in early 2022 began brewing beer there.

The first litres of beer produced here marked the return of alcohol production to Bow St. since the closure of the nearby distillery in 1971.

We produce lagers, ales and stouts, sold in keg, cask and bottle.

Draught beers are sold to local pubs in Dublin and bottles to independent off licences, restaurants and bars.

All beers are brewed and packaged on site, with minimum automation.

Our philosophy and approach to beer making is simple; classic styles, traditional methods, well made.

Brewing process

There are three stages to the production process at Hopkins & Hopkins:

The Brewhouse

Where the bulk ingredients of malt, un-malted barley and water are combined in the mash tun to produce a sweet fermentable liquid (“wort”). The extracted liquid is boiled in the kettle, hops are added for bitterness and aroma and the boiled wort is then chilled and transferred to a fermenter.

Fermentation

At the end of brew day, the wort is transferred to the fermentation tanks where yeast is added (“pitched”).

The length of fermentation will depend on the style of beer; for lagers, fermentation is cold and slow, for ales/stouts, it is warmer and faster.

Note: ale yeast is top fermenting while lager yeast is bottom fermenting. Yeast has a major influence on the character of the beer produced.

Conditioning / Racking

When fermentation is complete, the beer is transferred to conditioning tanks (or directly to casks) where it is allowed to condition and mature over time.

The final stage of production is racking the beer into kegs, casksandin to bottles.

Production step by step

Slide to the right and discover each of the 10 steps.

1. Recipe
is sourced and

a recipe is formulated

2. Milling
the malt is crushed and collected in a grain silo before being fed to the mash tun in the brewhouse below.

3. The Mash
the crushed malt (or “grist”) is mixed with hot water and allowed to rest. This allows for starches to be broken down into sugars by natural enzymes (these sugars will later interact with the yeast).

4. Lautering
the sweet liquid (or “wort”) drawn from the mash is separated from the spent grain and then pumped to the kettle.

5. The Boil
the wort is then boiled for about 90 minutes (depending on the beer) which concentrates, sterilises, clarifies and develops colour. Hops are added at different stages of the boil for bitterness, flavour and aroma.

6. Cooling
the hopped wort is chilled rapidly using a plate heat-exchanger.

7. Fermentation
yeast is ‘pitched’ and after a short ‘lag-phase’ (in which the yeast cell number remains relatively constant prior to rapid growth), the fermentation begins; sugars are converted to alcohol and CO2.

8. Conditioning
after primary fermentation, the “green” (i.e. young) beer is chilled and allowed to condition.

9. Filtration
we filter our lagers for clarity and stability.

10. Packaging
the finished beer is “racked” into kegs and casks or packaged in to bottles.

Beers we produce

at Hopkins & Hopkins

LOW

MEDIUM

HIGH

J.R. MAHON’S
IRISH RED ALE

Ireland’s uniquestyle of ale

4.2% abv

A well-balanced, medium bodied, mild and easy drinking ale with smooth malty sweetness, fruit and hints of caramel. Toasty. Ireland’s only unique style of ale.

J.R. MAHON’S
IRISH DRY STOUT

Dublin in a glass

4.2% abv

100% Irish Malt and Roasted Barley. Smooth and creamy with a well-balanced hop character. More body and flavour than alternatives, this is an aromatic session stout brewed by Dubliner’s in the heart of Dublin.

J.R. MAHON’S
PALE ALE

Dry Hopped Irish Pale Ale

4.4% abv

Dry Hopped Irish Pale Ale.

American style Pale Ale made with a blend of pale and colored malts but this beer is all about the hops. Pacific coast cascade hops give an unmistakable piney, citrussy grapefruit flavor and aroma

HOPBURGH
HELLES

Traditional Munich Style Lager bottle

4.7% abv

Irish lager and Vienna malt, German and North American hops. Our “Helles” (meaning “bright”) is cold fermented and undergoes long, cold conditioning. White fluffy head on pouring, lemon citrus and floral aroma, honey and bread to taste with resinous, spicy notes. The natural carbonation through lageringbegets a softer mouthfeel.A clean, crisp, aromatic Helles lager for all palates.

The Brewery

About us

Brewing process

Production step by step

By Master Brewer Robert Hopkins

By Master Brewer
Robert Hopkins