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| - Woo! A brewery finally opened up in the South Hills! Rejoice in the fact that you can take the T to a local beer joint!
We decided to hit up Hitchhiker Brewing Company for their Grand Opening on Saturday May 10th. I have to give it to the local Pittsburgh craft beer scene in that the place was absolutely packed. Everywhere from the Post-Gazette to the social media sphere had hyped their opening and spread the news. Given the sheer amount of people that showed up at once, I'm ignoring any of the opening day hiccups that had to deal with (i.e. waiting 15-20 minutes for a beer and there being a queue to cash out with credit on the single register).
Relative to the taproom, Hitchhiker spruced up a rather scant space. A simple tap setup, standard L shaped bar, and some standing/bar stool ledges around the room, nothing necessarily stood out here. On a positive note, the space shares a back deck with the neighboring restaurant, so when there isn't a torrential downpour (like there was opening day) I'd imagine that will be the most coveted space for regulars.
Relative to the beer, Hitchhiker seemed to go with the standard moderate ABV and flavor affair. We tried the saison, the IPA, the oatmeal brown, the porter and the ginger ale (wanted to try the black IPA but it kicked early). Out of all the offerings, honestly the ginger ale seemed best executed (great balance between spicy and sweet), but out of the beer, the brown ended up being our favorite. Malty, sweet and very session-able. The others I wouldn't be able to distinguish from any other joint.
They did have some food, though we decided to pass. Hotdogs w/ bagged kettle chips, soft pretzels w/ mustard and spiced beer nuts. Standard bar food though definitely not anything substantive enough that you'd head here for a meal.
Hopefully once they get the cogs moving they'll release some more memorable brews. While we'll probably head here occasionally simply due to the convenience, I can't find myself specifically seeking out their brews.
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