Dogfish Head Brewpub In Rehoboth Beach

WFMU's Beer Hear! with Bob W. and B.R. from 9/20/2011

We've been the DFH brewpub many, many times over the years. We've been to the brewery in Milton, DE. We've even been to one of the satellite DFH pub -- the one in Gaithersburg, VA (across the road from the NIST). We've taken the tours. We've bought the t-shirts. And we've put away a pint or two, as well. But on this trip, we took the time to talk to one of the brewpub brewers, Matt.

B.R., Matt and Bob in the tiny brewpub brewhouse.

The brewpub operates separately from the main brewery. The beers brewed at the pub aren't bottled or kegged for off-site consumption. And there is a separate brewhouse staff for both facilities.

Matt told us that the Rehoboth brewpub is kind of a research and development lab, of sorts, for the main brewery, which brews the DFH beer that flows around the globe. Most of the pub's beers are brewed at the main brewery in Milton, but there are always some special pub-only brews on offer on Rehoboth Ave.

Sherwood hockey stick/measurement device.

Rather than filling up this post with lots of information and history that you probably already know, and if you didn't know but wanted to know, but you could better be informed by Wikipedia or the DFH website, we'll let the podcast do the talking. And as for why we return to DFH every year, there's an entirely other post. So...

Half of the menu at DFH brewpub.

Why are you still reading this? Check out the podcast, which will give you some interesting insight, and will inform you as to what a nice guy Matt was for taking the time to indulge a pair of hopeless "nerds de bière" on semi-vacation asking dumb questions. We learned some stuff -- you might, too!

We drank a LOT of different DFH beers on the trip, as expected, including some that we've never had before. I don't think that I've had the PANEAGA before, but found it to be refreshing and unique in its subtleties -- "subtle" not always being a term used to describe the beers of DFH!

So, we posted two BONUS podcasts, describing some of the brewpub-exclusives. Interested in hearing about their SORGUM BEER called TWEASON, or REPOTERROIR, or LIMB & LIFE?
  Beer Review

How about the 75 MINUTE IPA ON CASK with MAPLE SYRUP, or the 10.5% abv minted stout "with a serious fruit problem" BLACK & RED?
Beer Review 2

O.K. -- with the description above of Repoterroir clearly somebody is taking a shot at some other brewery's "beechwood aging". And I think that that's fine. I was once told by an employee of A-B that their "beechwood aging" consisted of passing the beer through a tube of beechwood chips on its way to the fermentation tanks. Whooo.....hoooo. Aging.

The other half.

Rehoboth Beach, DE -- More Than Just Dogfish Head

Since 2006 we've made an annual pilgrimage to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware -- at first, solely to pay our respects to one of the most interesting breweries in the world, DOGFISH HEAD. DFH started in this beach resort town in 1995, in the back of a restaurant, with a 5-gallon system, and has since grown into a craft beer giant, cranking out over 150,000 barrels annually (according to our tour guide). The main brewery is located about 17 miles from the brewpub, in Milton, DE. We highly recommend a trip and tour there!

Though we've taken the big-brewery tour several times and gone there to see our pal Sam, we've discovered that there's more to Rehoboth than Dogfish Head. Of course, there's the beach, and we love us some sand, waves and warm end-of-summer salty water. And if the beach downtown is too crowded for your taste, the state beach south on Rt. 1 is a short bike ride down the coast, and offers a lot more room to stretch out -- same gorgeous water and pure sand.

On the Rehoboth Beach boardwalk there's Thresher's Fries. They rank in my top 5 fries of all time, and that includes fries in Brussels. There's Grotto Pizza -- not worthy of comparison to NYC pies, but damn good for a non-NYC slice. There are loads of beachy shops, ready and willing for some haggling. (I got a $30 beach umbrella for $20 with some simple post-season negotiating!) And all the typical beach resort stuff -- frozen custard, salt water taffy, arcades, skee ball, and so forth.

We also discovered everyday happy-hour $1 local oysters at FIN'S!!! Fin's has one of the best beer menus (and oyster menus) on the eastern seaboard. Their tap list is often great, but it's always been at the very least very good. And what they offer in the bottle -- very impressive, shockingly good -- really superb for a small town on the beach that probably sees Coors Light outselling Weston's Cider 10,000-to-1... (but if I was in the mood for something that wasn't beer, I'd pick Weston's over Coors all day long). And, yes, they do carry Weston's Cider, to their credit -- in fact we had it on draft for the first time ever last year at Fin's.

And their staff seems genuinely concerned about taking care of you (maybe too concerned!). The bottom line:  very good beer, addictive (and free) oyster crackers, delicious and well-priced bi-valves, and friendly service. Oh, and their regular dining menu boasts boatloads of fresh local fish.

We also rented beach cruiser bicycles, $20 each for 24-hours. There aren't many miles of off-road trails, but we made the most of what was available, and it was grand. We biked a few miles off-road on former railroad beds to Lewes. There, we didn't find much better than Paulaner and Yuengling Octoberfest at Irish Eyes, on the canal. But... we did travel through a gated community where the speed limit was 21.

21? 21 feet per second? 21 what?!? and 21?!? Not 20 or 25? Perhaps the sign was supposed to be for the drinking age? Anyway, we moved along before B.R. was towed away. (As you can see, she was in a tow-away zone -- and in a town with a speed limit of 21, you know that they tow bicycles.)

Not that one would be bored of the DFH brewpub in 3 or 4 days, but it's always nice to have another option. This is another option.

At Fin's, one of the surprising offerings was HIGH AND MIGHTY Purity of Essence from Central Mass. In the photo above B.R. is in a more of a Brig. Gen. Jack Ripper moment.

And then more like Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake. Unfortunately, the beer we love fresh in Central Mass was a bit oxidized in DE. But we soldiered on. Or piloted on, whatever the case. No atomic bombs were dropped, which is the important thing.

The moon does also rise in Rehoboth.

Going after Labor Day assures you of greater availability of rooms, a cheaper room rate and far less other visitors to get in your way. Five years ago when we went to Rehoboth Beach for the first time, it was a ghost town after Labor Day. This year, while still far from crowded, there were a lot more people, and not just the retiree set and young couples with infants. We always stay at the Cross Winds motel, which is clean, comfortable, friendly, inexpensive and, most importantly, 20 feet from the Dogfish Head brewpub! They'll give you a discount if you tell them that you're there from the brewpub, too.

And rise red, at that.

OK, couples photo with the rising moon.

Lifeguards... so bossy.

The sun sets in the west, as the moon rises in the east.

FACT: Rehoboth is reputed to be one of the most gay-friendly small towns in America.

There's also a sun rise, where the moon rise was just hours earlier.

We're going for breakfast now, right?

People in France are just an hour away from their 3-hour government mandated lunch "hour".

Add your own new age comment here.