Love Craft Beer? Never heard of Dogfish Head? If you’re not from the East Coast of the U.S., specifically, the Mid-Atlantic states, you might not have heard of Dogfish Head beer. But for those of you who do know it, you also know that the craft beer has a cult-like following. Check out the brewery tour I took and that everyone should take!
Where is it?
Dogfish Head Brewery is in Milton, Delaware, located in a converted produce packing plant.
What’s a Dogfish anyway?
A dogfish is a type of small shark and it’s also the name of the road/beach where the founder’s family used to vacation when he was a kid. And, it's also the beer's logo. No, the brewery's not in Delaware, but rather, near Southport Maine.
So.... if the brewery is named after a place in Maine, why is it in Delaware?
The founder’s wife is from Delaware.....
What else is there to know?
The company was founded in 1995 as the Delaware’s first brewpub.
Dogfish Head was the smallest commercial brewery in America at the time.
Today, it’s the 12th or 13th largest craft brewery in the U.S. (depending on who’s reporting that stat)
The company now includes not only the brewery, but also a distillery, eateries and even a hotel!
Breaking News....
In May 2019, Boston Beer Company (the same company that owns Sam Adams beer) acquired Dogfish Head. Some are unhappy about the acquisition, claiming it’s the end of craft brewing in the U.S.
Back to the beer.....
Pick your tour
There are three tours to choose from at Dogfish Head, so check the website for tours and times.
First, there’s the Quick Sip tour, which is FREE! It’s exactly what it says – a brief 25 minute tour with a free beer sample during the tour. And, at the end of the tour, you get a card for four free samples! Yay! More free beer!
The Off-Centered Tour is an hour long tour that includes a more detailed tour of the brewery and its operations as well as more free beer and a free glass. How can you beat that for the $10 admission?
*What’s with “off centered”? It’s part of the company’s slogan, “Off-centered ales for off-centered people.”
And of course, you can always arrange a private tour. How cool would that be for a special occasion!
We rolled up just in time to catch the Quick Sip Tour and it was perfect! There were probably about 15 people on the tour, but it didn’t feel crowded. It was also just the right amount of time and the right amount of beer!
What were our fave beers?
Both Hubby and I decided that the Brewer’s 60 minute IPA was our fave.
Have you tried Dogfish Head beer? Have you taken the brewery tour? Stayed at the hotel? Tell me about it on Facebook or in Traveleidoscope’s comment section!
This post was originally published on October 5, 2019.
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It's been awhile. Hope all is well. Would agree that their 60 minute IPA is best. The 90 minute is killer, too hoppy. Hail to the brew masters!