Last call at Dogfish Head

Dogfish Head fans and employees came together May 7 to mark the end of an era.

Founders Sam and Mariah Calagione took the stage to raise a toast, say thanks and ask the bartenders to ring the bell for one final last call before the old brewpub on Rehoboth Avenue closes down and operations are shifted to the new Dogfish restaurant next door.

It was a night of reverie, fun and memories for one last time in the old building. The Calagiones shook hands and shared a word with everyone in the massive crowd, a group Sam referred to as Dogfish Head evangelists.

“I never dreamed we would get as big as we are today. But when we wrote the business plan, the goal was to sell beer coast-to-coast. The biggest reasons we were able to grow the way we are, are still in this building.  The people. Our coworkers, the hardcore evangelists, the customers, the locals of Delaware that helped spread the word. It couldn’t be a more fitting and beautiful end to this chapter of our story,” Sam said.

Mariah Calagione said the couple had their wedding rehearsal dinner and kids’ birthday parties at the brewpub, so while it is bittersweet to see the place go, the company is looking forward opening the new building.

“It’s more sweet than bitter,” Sam Calagione said.

The Calagiones founded Dogfish Head Brewings and Eats on Rehoboth Avenue in 1995. At the time, Sam said, he was using a two-keg brewing system and was the smallest brewer in the country.

His idea, he said, was to use a restaurant to inspire beer-making; he recalled the nights he spent sleeping on a mattress in the restaurant’s cellar so he could get up in the morning and start brewing beer.

“We rented a house in Bethany back then, and some nights I would ride my bike back to Bethany, but some nights I would stay here in the cellar. It was like, ‘Time to make the doughnuts,” Sam said.

Mariah recalled painting the walls. “My mom painted one of the bathrooms. His sister painted one of the ones downstairs. Patti Shreeve painted a mural downstairs,” Mariah said.

It was slow going at first. Sam said the upstairs dining room was seldom used in the early days, but it saw plenty of action for employee ping-pong tournaments.

“We were so small, we didn’t need this upstairs,” he said.

There were also a number of close calls in the old brewpub, when the sophisticated brewing equipment nearly blew up the building on several occasions.

“Our building almost blew up more times than Spinal Tap drummers,” Sam said.

Over the past 22 years, Dogfish has diversified its holdings, which now include its brewery in Milton, the Dogfish Inn in Lewes and Chesapeake and Maine, a restaurant next to the brewpub. For Calagione, in addition to marking the year the new brewpub opens, 2017 is also the year he received a James Beard Award as the country's most Outstanding Wine, Beer, or Spirits Professional, an honor for which he had been nominated for seven consecutive years.

Dogfish’s influence can be seen all over the craft beer world, particularly in Delaware where craft breweries have sprouted up all over the state. One of those brewers is Mispillion River Brewing in Milford, and owners Eric Williams and Ryan Maloney came to the closing party to celebrate Dogfish; the two met at the Dogfish brewpub.

“I decided to become a brewer because of Dogfish,” Maloney said. “I was actually looking to try to get a job at Dogfish when I met Eric, and things kind of worked out.”

Maloney and Williams said Dogfish has always been supportive of their efforts, whether it was reading Sam’s books or exchanging ingredients.

“This place is pretty special,” Williams said. “Dogfish has always been there. The vibe that he’s made for his company permeates to all of the breweries around the state.”

“He’s definitely set the standard. He set the bar, and the rest of us have to live up to Dogfish’s expectations,” Maloney said.

Jon March, a four-year Dogfish employee said, “It’s kind of sad. The best memory I have is all the friends and family that I’ve made here at Dogfish. It’s just one big family. I couldn’t be more proud of Sam and Mariah and what they’ve done.”

Andrew Greeley, innkeeper of the Dogfish Inn, said, “Dogfish has been a big part of my time in Rehoboth for over 12, 15 years. My wife, Joan, she was born and raised in the area, and actually, our first date was here, downstairs, about 12 years ago. My daughter, she’s about 11; the first words she read were off the pub menu.”

Greeley is excited about the new pub, but he said, “I think all the stories and presence that this place has is powerful. A lot of great memories in here.”

Attorney and Dogfish enthusiast John Paradee said, “I still don’t believe that it’s coming to an end. It’s nostalgia. Feeling like you are a part of something really interesting. It’s a tribute to Sam and Mariah that they have always treated all of their customers in a very special way.”

One thing the staff of Dogfish is really looking forward to at the new brewpub is the new concert stage. Live music has always been part of the Dogfish ethos - as Sam Calagione put it: “Original beer, original food, original music.” Closing party attendees reminisced about their favorite shows at the old brewpub.

Paradee said, “When I saw Southern Culture on the Skids at the Dogfish brewpub, it was life-changing. Great beer, great friends. That’s the kind of stuff that happens here.”

Mariah recalled the early days, when Dogfish had a folk series. “It would be so stressful because we would have to walk around telling people not to talk,” she said.

“Maybe drinking strong beers and listening to folk music creates challenges for the audience,” Sam added.

Mariah said her favorite concert at the venue was the Los Angeles-based band Wild Colonials.

“I think I was the most excited person in the whole building,” she said.

Sam said his favorites include The Strokes, Built To Spill and Jonathan Richman.

Unlike the tiny stage in the old building, Sam said the new brewpub has been designed from the stage outward.

“This building, while rustic and homey, is not as world class as our other locations. So to be able to build something as world class as our other locations feels like closure because every single one of our locations will be world class,” Sam Calagione said.

The biggest question for the Calagiones was, “What is your favorite beer brewed at Dogfish?”

Sam and Mariah agreed their favorite was Namaste, Dogfish’s wheat beer, because they both had a hand in its creation. Mariah came up with the name and the idea of using lemongrass, Sam said, noting it’s now one of Dogfish’s fastest-growing beers

The new Dogfish brewpub opens Friday, May 19, featuring a horseshoe-shaped bar that will feature 24 taps. The first concert on its 220-square-foot stage will be a performance by Richard Lloyd, guitarist and founding member of the legendary punk band Television, at 10 p.m., Friday, June 2.