That tension between brewing to a superior level of quality and artistry, and wanting to meet demand he never anticipated, pushed not the just production of Tired Hand’s beer, but Jean’s tolerance for scale and complexity. “If I could do it better I wanted to. So that’s when we began looking for more space. It’s a stated intent in my business plan to keep eight beers on tap at all times, so I set that bar and wanted to maintain that bar, at least for my own sanity and, I guess, pride."

Jean didn’t underestimate foot traffic, or the slice of the market that craft would take in his region. He’s a smart enough guy to make strong, conservative estimates on the business side. What surprised him is how much of a cultural chord his brewery, and his beers, were going to strike — even far beyond the Philadelphia region. The internet has fundamentally changed craft brewing, maybe especially for those brewers on the smallest of scales like Tired Hands. If word gets out about a special product, or a special brewery, the country knows about it overnight. And the next morning, locals are lining up to get their hands on the beer, and a large percentage of their buy is getting shipped to curious drinkers all over the map. But that kind of demand is impossible to plan for, and even harder to keep up with.

"We put growler restrictions in place within the first year,” explains Jean. "I never would deny the psychology of rarity, and perhaps that’s what we’re talking about here — factors that went into us needing more room pretty quickly."