A LEGACY LEADER IN CRAFT BEER-DOGFISH HEAD

By Andy Crouch
Founded in 1995 by husband-and-wife team Sam and Mariah Calagione, the Dogfish Head Brewery grew from a tiny nano operation into one of the biggest names in American craft beer. Embracing an ethos of experimental brewing and eccentric marketing, the pair pushed boundaries in brewing, with focuses on hop-forward and high-alcohol beers, and direct to consumer marketing. From rigged up continuous hopping devices to Randall, a flavor packed infusion device, Dogfish’s constant evolution helped define the brand during the age of Extreme Beer.

As with many other larger craft breweries, Dogfish has faced several challenges as the craft beer industry evolved. Nano-breweries and tap rooms helped the number of breweries skyrocket to nearly 10,000 and the market became saturated with new breweries and brands. These changes left larger legacy craft breweries in an unusual position, looking at the party as elders often from the outside.

In 2019, Dogfish Head merged with the Boston Beer Company, the maker of Samuel Adams, and Sam Calagione joined the latter company’s board. While retaining creative independence, Dogfish continues to explore ways to define its role as a leader in the craft beer space. Let’s look at some staples in the brewery’s portfolio, starting with its All IPA Variety Pack.

30 MINUTE LIGHT IPA alcohol by volume 4%
Dogfish Head has long loved naming its India Pale Ales with this hourly moniker and the 30 Minute Light IPA is the new name for the former Slightly Mighty. It is Dogfish’s entrant into the low calorie, lower carb session beer category. With 95 calories and 3.6g carbs per 12oz serving, this continually hopped beer attempts to retain the character of a fuller flavored IPA in a skinnier package. It pours with a bright, golden to straw hue and a slight haze, topped by a frothy white head that leaves delicate lacing as it recedes. The aroma is invitingly tropical, filled with hints of pineapple, mango, and coconut. The flavor blends the fruit notes, giving off juicy pineapple and ripe tropical fruit, with a very mild malt base and some brighter flavors. The beer offers an unsurprisingly light body and mild carbonation, is well integrated and sessionable, and remains clean throughout.

60 MINUTE IPA alcohol by volume 6%
First released in 2003, the 60 Minute IPA has long been a defining beer for Dogfish Head. It was inspired by its continually hopped brethren, 90 Minute IPA, released two years earlier, and became the brewery’s leading brand. The beer is continuously hopped for 60 minutes during the boil, resulting in an even-handed and consistent hop experience. 60 Minute pours with a clear, deep golden color with a frothy white head that lingers, leaving sticky lacing on the glass. In a time of hazy IPAs, the aroma can be a bit of a throwback to a different era in beer, with citrusy grapefruit and lemon zest notes filled in by piney, resinous, and herbal hits. A light caramel malt backbone lingers in the background alerting you that this beer will have some sweetness and body. The flavor contains layers of well-rounded bitterness without overwhelming the palate with bitter notes. The hop character is bright and citrusy at times mixed with grassy, piney notes and touch of earthiness. The malt presence from the aroma is mild but provides a balance of sufficient sweetness to counterpunch the hops, leading to a smooth and consistent flavor and an even, medium mouthfeel.

75 MINUTE IPA alcohol by volume 7.5%
75 Minute IPA has always been a bit of an odd duck in Dogfish Head’s IPA lineup, wedged in-between its two much better known and appreciated brothers. First released in 2011 as a cask-conditioned offering at the brewery’s Rehoboth brewpub, it grew a cult following but struggled to find a place in the year-round lineup. The beer has now returned as part of Dogfish Head’s All IPA Variety pack and on draft. It is brewed with maple syrup and continually hopped throughout the boil for, of course, 75 minutes. This IPA is then dry hopped with Cascade hops. It delivers a hazy orangish amber color with a creamy, off-white head that laces well. The aroma possesses a blend of citrusy hops and sweeter malts, offering notes of grapefruit, orange peel, and a resiny pine note, balanced by bits of biscuit, toast, caramel, and a subtle maple sweetness. The first sip delivers an interesting and complex profile of flavors, with layers of bright, citrusy hop character, light touches of pine, all over a bigger malt backbone of sweet, toasted notes. Full-bodied but not overwhelming on the palate, the flavors play well together in an intriguing take on the IPA style.

90 MINUTE IPA alcohol by volume 9%
Promoted as “the only Imperial IPA inspired by a bowl of soup and a thrift store football game,” 90 Minute IPA is a defining release for Dogfish and the American craft beer industry. First set into the wild in 2001, 90 Minute came in a ridiculous 750ml bottle and a hand attached label of a circus freak hammering a nail directly into his brain through his nasal cavity. Nearly 25 years later, the label leaves a lasting impression. So does the beer.
When I had it in 2001, I wrote of the beer: “A huge, masterful mix of alcohol, malt and hops, this beer almost completely satisfies me as a drinker. Great hop bitterness and flavor throughout, and of course, incredibly well-balanced. The sign of a true master brewer.” The 90 Minute label of today is much more family friendly and so is the beer. It pours with a deep amber-orange color and a thick, off-white dollop of foam that laces nicely in the glass. The aroma remains rich and complex, dominated by bold hop notes of resiny pine, citrus zest, and a substantial, style defining malty backbone of caramel and toasted bread. In the glass, 90 Minute IPA delivers an assertive yet smooth hop bitterness, with layers of grapefruit, lemon, and orange, melding well with pine and herbal notes. The malt character is a substantial player, especially at 9-percent, with sweet caramel notes throughout. Warming but not overwhelming, the full-bodied 90 Minute remains a satisfying beer.

DOGFISH HEAD CRAFT BREWERY
Milton, DE
www.dogfish.com