Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Tour

DFH's $30,001 Steampunk Treehouse

Last week, I had the pleasure of visiting Dogfish Head Craft Brewery in Milton, Delaware. My wife and I, along with our dog, made the trip down to the Delaware beaches. Incidentally, if you're looking for a good place to stay in Lewes, we highly recommend the Lazy L at Willow Creek, a very dog-friendly bed & breakfast.

Before I talk about my experience at the Dogfish Head (DFH) facility, I should tell you about my preconceived notions. I have always viewed DFH as a tree-hugging, peace-loving, far-out-there kind of brewery. Their slogan proves my prejudicial bent: "Off-centered stuff for off-centered people". Also, the names of some of their beers are pretty inaccessible: Raison D'Etre, Palo Santo Marron, Burton Baton, Festina Peche, Chateau Jiahu, Namaste, Sah'Tea, and Ta Henket, to name a few. I am not against things that are "different", and I certainly don't mind creativity. Yet, DFH just didn't seem to be up my alley.

Of course, none of this would keep me from taking a brewery tour! I always find it fascinating to hear about the history of a brewery, see the operations, watch the bottles go clinking down the line, and of course, sample the wares. And I have to admit that by the end of the tour, I realized that DFH was not as inaccessible as I had once thought.

Sam Calagione: the man, the myth, the legend. (Nice looking beer!)

Sam Calagione, founder and President of DFH, was an English major (like yours truly!) and, according to the DFH website, is the "brainchild behind all the wacky things that happen at Dogfish Head" [1]. The tour guide said that Sam decided to open DFH in Delaware because 1) his wife grew up there and 2) at that time, there were no DE breweries [2], so he could help to shape the beer laws. Sam must have done a pretty good job shaping the DE beer laws, because I'm happy to report that I was able to pick up some beers tax-free and in stores that sell wine, spirits, and beer all in one place [3].

Some of the original beer-making equipment

One of the stories our tour guide told us was about payday beer. As with all production ventures, things inevitably go wrong sometimes. So there are some batches of beer that just aren't, let's say, optimal. But it's still beer, so why let it go to waste, right? That's what the DFH employees thought too! So they would go in search of the "bad" beer and take it home with them. This became such a popular pastime that Sam implemented the payday beer. Now, employees are afforded the opportunity to specify which one of a few beers they would like to have, and it is delivered to them along with their paycheck every other week. I can imagine that DFH employees have a lot of friends wanting to visit every couple of weeks. Also, just think of how many disgruntled employees would change their tune if they got payday beer (hint to corporate America).

Another story that our tour guide told us was about the treehouse in front of the DFH brewery (pictured at the top). The Steampunk Treehouse was first exhibited at the 2007 Burning Man festival in Nevada and now permanently resides at DFH. (Read more here.) Sam bought it at an auction for $1, but it cost another $30,000 to ship and install. So the deal was a bit more than Sam "bargained" for (insert canned laughter here), but it yields a sweet first impression for DFH visitors.

"Where's the tap on this thing?"

The namesake of one of DFH's brews, Palo Santo, is actually a type of wood that only grows in one place on earth: Paraguay. Palo Santo, meaning holy wood, is used to condition DFH's brown ale and gives it a caramel vanilla flavor (mmm!). Interestingly, this wood is so tough that even a bullet doesn't damage it. As a matter of fact, the large tank pictured above is made of Palo Santo wood, and the craftsmen went through  seventeen diamond-tipped saw blades to make it. I cannot imagine enduring such a painstaking effort. But at least the beer is good!

A note about the 60 Minute, 90 Minute, and 120 Minute IPAs that DFH makes. Hops are added for flavor and are typically introduced to the beer at the beginning and end of the brewing process. Our tour guide told us that, one day, Sam was watching a cooking show. The chef was adding pepper to the recipe all throughout the cooking process because adding it all at one time would ruin the flavor. This "aha!" moment led to Sam's "Sir Hops Alot" contraption. Basically, he rigged a vibrating base to shake hops down into a bucket with holes in it. As "Sir Hops Alot" continued its vibrating endeavors, the hops would find their way out of the bucket and into the brew. (They have since refined the machinery, but this basic innovation got the job done!) This led to a continuous hopping process, thereby exponentially increasing the robust flavor of the beer. The 90 Minute, for example, is continuously hopped in this manner for 90 minutes. Genius!

From DFH's Rehobeth brewpub

And now for the sampling! During the tour, DFH was licensed to provide 12 ounces of beer to visitors for free. DFH decided to split that 12 ounces into four 3-ounce samples. I was privileged to try Festina Peche (peach-flavored, not a favorite of mine), 60 Minute IPA (an excellent IPA), Burton Baton (wow! amazing imperial IPA!), and Palo Santo Marron (a wonderful brown ale). Later on, we also visited DFH's brewpub in Rehobeth. There I sampled five brews:

1. Sah' Tea -- Wow, spices galore! It's like Chai tea in a beer. I think you would have to be in the right mindset to drink this and maybe only one at a time. Very unique. I'm impressed.
2. Indian Brown Ale -- Hits the style on the nose! Has a little extra spice, hence the "Indian", I suppose.
3. Aprihop -- Lighter than I expected. A good apricot flavor. Easy to drink and refreshing at the same time.
4. Midas Touch -- From the taste, this is what I would call a "normal" beer. However, it is slightly differentiated by the higher alcohol content (9%) and extra "bite".
5. Tweason'ale -- Pretty good. I couldn't identify what "extra" flavor I was picking up on in this beer, but after reading  the notes on BeerAdvocate, I believe it was the sorghum and molasses.

I walked away with a four-pack of Burton Baton, one 750-ml bottle of Urkontinent (the DFH-Google(!) collaboration brew), and two pints of the extremely-hard-to-come-by 120 Minute (I paid $9 per pint, but it's not unheard of to pay $13 or more for a pint!).

If you are planning on taking a DFH brewery tour (and you should), make sure you reserve a spot in advance. You can do so on DFH's website.

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Footnotes:
[1] One of Sam's "wacky" ideas was to brew a naturally-green beer using Spirulina (seaweed) in an attempt to thwart the obviously-evil plot to cheapen his beer by using green dye for St. Paddy's day. (Read DFH's take on it, and check it out on BeerAdvocate.)
[2] According to BeerMe.com, there are still only eleven DE breweries currently in operation with one in the works.
[3] Don't even get me started on the odd setup we have in Pennsylvania! But please feel free to visit Lew Bryson's blog "Why the PLCB should be abolished" at http://noplcb.blogspot.com/.

Live from Tröegs Brewing

Mural in Entrance (File Photo*)

Thought it was time for another "live" post, so I'm coming to you today from Tröegs Brewing's new facility (fondly known as T2) in Hershey, PA. I'm hanging out with some other craft brew lovers and Justin's Brew Review readers -- good times, good people, great beer. In true Tröegs pride fashion, I'm wearing my HopBack Amber Ale t-shirt. While this is not the first time I've been to T2, it is the first I've had a chance to write about it. Let me say that if you have not been here yet, you should really take the time to do so. There's no time like the present - come on out!

Currently, Tröegs is only offering self-guided tours, but their website tells us of plans on offering a low-cost, taste-as-you-go, guided version coming in late February of this year. If I understand correctly, you'll even get a souvenir pint glass out of the deal -- not too shabby! Back to the self-guided tour: when you come in the front door, keep going straight through the doors and you'll enter the tasting room. There are multiple barkeeps at the impressively long bar, which includes a growler fill-up station (actually, they have an automated machine that is fun to watch as it fills the growler).

The Impressively Long Bar

After you grab a brewski at the bar, take it with you as you hang a right and enter the self-guided tour area. (Don't worry - you can come back for more later.) It's a nice setup -- they have signs that describe each step of the brewing and bottling process. It's not nearly as intimate (read small) as their old Harrisburg brewery (read about the tour I took there just over a year ago), but it's definitely impressive, modern, and a bit more touristy (makes sense - it's only right down the road from Hershey Park). At the end of the line on the tour, you enter the gift shop area where you can pick up Tröegs paraphernalia and/or (probably "and") some cases to go.

Growler Filling Station

Alright, gotta go tend to my Pale Ale. Hopefully, you can make the trip to Hershey and visit this great new facility that Tröegs has crafted--like their beer--for the pleasure of all. Prost!

Thankfully, this sign was not on the entrance doors.

* The photo I used of the 2-story mural in the brewery entrance is a file photo because it is not currently there. I asked the Trogner brothers what happened, and they said that they are repairing multiple cracks in the wall. Never fear - they assure me that "it will return".

Terrific Tour of Tröegs (Truly!)

So the tour at Tröegs was pretty sweet. I have to admit that I felt a bit out of my element when I first walked in - everyone there appeared to have been there before and was very comfortable with the whole experience. Since it was my first time there, I wasn't quite sure what to do first, but I adapted quickly. There were three main areas: the Gift Shop, the Tasting Room with seating to sit and sample, and the Growler Bar. First, I headed toward the Gift Shop, since that's where I was supposed to check in for the tour. I also walked away with a new Tröegs pint glass.

Next, I headed toward the Tasting Room where they had just about every beer Tröegs produces available to try. On the way in, I had passed about 5 people that were leaving, and each one of them was walking out with a case of Nugget Nectar. Considering its apparent popularity, I was a bit curious what it tasted like. So I asked the people in the Tasting Room to try some Nugget Nectar, and they handed me a sampling glass with some in it! I thought I was ordering a pint to try - I had no idea they actually let you sample it before you buy it. It was decidedly sweet - a bit sweeter than I'd like a beer to be, but I wouldn't have said "no" to a pint. However, I really wanted to try the JavaHead Stout, since I'm an avid coffee-drinker. So I got a sampling glass with the JavaHead in it, and I was hooked! I immediately ordered a pint of the dark brew. I was impressed with how tasty it was - you could taste the coffee flavoring along with a hint of chocolate. It was not nearly as bitter or "dark"-tasting as I thought it would be, considering its black coloring. I would definitely recommend this one.

JavaHead Stout

After the tasting experience, the tour began. I was impressed by the fact that tour was given by Chris Trogner himself. Chris and John Trogner are the two brothers who conceptualized and started Tröegs.

I think it's amazing that they both give tours each and every week. The brewery itself is not huge, but it gets the job done. I enjoyed Chris' presentation of the brewing process. He didn't use lingo or jargon - he gave an informative talk that anyone could understand. He actually passed samples of barley and hops through the tour group and invited us to taste the barley - he said he didn't recommend tasting the hops, as you would then taste it for the rest of the day. There were three different types of barley in the samples - a light, a medium, and a dark. He recommended we start with the light and proceed to the dark, making note of the different, progressively bolder flavor of each one. He said that the barley flavor very directly translates into the final flavor of the beer. They also talked about the importance of yeast and how it plays a major role in the beer's final flavor as well.

Yeast Tanks

One of the great things about Tröegs is that they are a craft brewery, so they focus on making a limited amount of great beer. To that end, they are also constantly experimenting with new and innovative techniques and ingredients. Hence, their "Scratch Beer Series". Right now, they are on Scratch #39 and # 40. Additionally, they are experimenting with the use of barrels and the different types of woods or previous contents (such as whiskey). They call this their "Splinter Series".

Barrels Used to Make the Limited "Splinter Series" Beers

Tröegs has more information about the brewing process on their website. If you live anywhere near Harrisburg, PA, I definitely recommend taking a half-hour of your Saturday to visit Tröegs. Even my wife, who does not like beer, enjoyed the tour. You need to make reservations for the tour, but they make it very easy by allowing you to sign up online, which is what I did. I'm sure you won't want to leave without picking up a case, too - I chose the Anthology 2, which includes a mixture of HopBack Amber Ale, DreamWeaver Wheat Ale, Pale Ale, and JavaHead. Zum Wohl!