Brewery Profile

HiJinx Brewing Co

In Allentown’s beer scene, HiJinx Brewing Co. represents a small production brewery with deep local ties rather than a newcomer built around a theme. Founder Curt Keck is an Allentown native whose brewing background includes time as an assistant brewer at the former Old Lehigh Brewing Co. and later work at Weyerbacher Brewing Company until 1999. After a period in IT, he launched HiJinx in 2006, though the brewery did not sell its first commercial beer until 2012. Visitors are encountering a working brewery that has grown inside the Bridgeworks Enterprise Center, a local small-business incubator, from a one-barrel system in 400 square feet to a 10-barrel system in a 4,000-square-foot space.

Travelers exploring breweries in eastern Pennsylvania often look for places that show the range of the region’s craft beer development: older brewing towns, industrial spaces reused by small producers, and taprooms where the lineup may differ from what is found in stores or bars. HiJinx fits that route as a stop tied to both professional brewing experience and homebrewing roots. Keck is also an award-winning homebrewer, with a gold medal from the Masters Championship of Amateur Brewing. Since no specific current beer list is provided here, visitors should treat the brewery as a place to check the day’s available pours rather than arrive expecting a particular flagship or style.

For practical planning, the taproom is the place to confirm the current draft list, packaged beer availability, hours, and any on-site service details, since those amenities are not specified in the available information. Distribution of HiJinx beer is concentrated in Eastern Pennsylvania, with expansion into New Jersey beginning in the summer after the brewery scaled production, so travelers may also encounter its beer elsewhere in the region. Still, visiting the Allentown site gives the clearest view of the brewery’s scale and setting. The Bridgeworks Enterprise Center location places it within a small-business environment, and its history is closely connected to gradual growth rather than rapid rollout.

Curt Keck, an Allentown native, founded HiJinx Brewing Company after a lengthy background in both professional and amateur brewing. Keck's initial experience included work as an assistant brewer at the former Old Lehigh Brewing Co. and a subsequent brewing role at Weyerbacher Brewing Company until 1999. Following a period working in IT, Keck launched HiJinx in 2006, though the brewery did not sell its first commercial beer until 2012. Keck is also an award-winning homebrewer, having secured a gold medal at the Masters Championship of Amateur Brewing. HiJinx currently operates within the Bridgeworks Enterprise Center, a local small-business incubator in Allentown. The operation has scaled significantly since its inception, moving from a one-barrel system housed in a 400-square-foot facility to a 10-barrel system within a 4,000-square-foot space. Distribution of HiJinx beers is concentrated throughout Eastern Pennsylvania, with expansion into New Jersey beginning in the summer following the scaling of production.

Website available

905 Harrison St, Allentown, Pennsylvania, 18103-3188

Website: https://www.keystoneedge.com/2015/11/06/founder-profile-curt-keck-of-hijinx-brewing-company/