The city’s brewing scene picks up a new entrant with Feb. 16’s opening of Second District Brewing Co., a South Philadelphia brew pub run by Curt Decker, former owner of Center City’s late Nodding Head, with backing from developer John Longacre, whose holdings include South Philadelphia Tap Room and American Sardine Bar.

The 7-bbl brew house is upstairs and is visible from the old-fashioned brew pub, made from reclaimed materials, on street level behind roll-up doors.

Brewer Ben Potts, whose resume includes Dock Street, Dogfish Head, and Tired Hands, will have about eight beers on tap from the start. See a partial list here. The house beers will be offered with Pennsylvania wines and cocktails made with Pennsylvania spirits.

Potts’ creative varieties include an IPA brewed with tea sourced from Premium Steap, and a Vietnamese coffee stout.

Chef Doreen DeMarco, doing double duty at American Sardine Bar, has devised a menu of simple, scratch-made food, including snacks, house-made charcuterie (a beer brat), pickles, and sandwiches. “Things you want to eat with beer,” DeMarco said. She also makes a vegan Italian sausage as well as vegan pork rinds.

February 15, 2017 | Philly.com