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The 22nd Annual Rehoboth Jazz Festival will present its opening night Wednesday, Oct. 12 at the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center with The Rippingtons featuring Russ Freeman.
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Rehoboth jazz fest to
open with benefit concert
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Freeman, Rippingtons to headline
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The 22nd Annual Rehoboth Beach Jazz Festival will present its opening night Wednesday, Oct. 12, at the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center with The Rippingtons featuring Russ Freeman. The concert is a benefit for the inaugural Beebe Medical Center Music for a Cure fundraiser to benefit cancer and heart health initiatives.
“We’re excited to not only open jazz fest with such stellar acts, but to give back to the community by addressing cancer and heart health,” said Denny Santangini, president of the Rehoboth Beach Jazz Festival.
Over the past 20 years, Freeman and The Rippingtons have taken the stage thousands of times.
Complementing his own trademark mix of fiery electric and romantic classical guitars, Freeman's guest list is a smooth jazz fan's dream: saxophonists Jeff Kashiwa, Paul Taylor, Kirk Whalum, Dave Koz and Eric Marienthal; keyboardist Bill Heller; bassist Kim Stone; vocalists Patti Austin and Jeffrey Osborne; drummer Dave Karasony; and special guest Brian McKnight, who wrote, produced and sings lead vocals on the lush romance “Anything.”
Tickets are $99, $69, $59 and $49, and are available by visiting rehobothjazz.com.
The concert begins at 8 p.m. with opening act Jazz Gets the Blues featuring Brian Simpson, Nick Colionne, Steve Cole, Jeff Golub and Matt Marshak.
Master of Ceremonies Dr. Dred “Perky” Scott is a well-known jazz vocalist and musician who has been part of the festival since its inception. The show is sponsored by Beebe Medical Center, Atlantic Liquors, Cape Gazette and Beach Paper.
The 2011 Rehoboth Jazz Festival is presented by Smooth Jazz Cruises.
Shows this year will be held on three stages - the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center, the Rehoboth Beach Theatre of the Arts and Epworth United Methodist Church.
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NICK ROTH PHOTO
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16 Mile's four core brews (l-r) Amber Sun Ale, Old Court Ale, Blues Golden Ale and Inlet Indian Pale Ale are now available in 12-ounce bottles.
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16 Mile Brewing Company
begins major overhaul
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12-ounce bottles debut, new facility in works
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Georgetown's little brewery is about to get much bigger.
16 Mile Brewing Company debuted new 12-ounce bottles Sept. 6 to kick off a major expansion that will more than double the size of its current facility. Since its inception in July 2009, the brewery has always distributed its beer in 22-ounce aluminum bottles or kegs.
The breweries four core brews – Amber Sun Ale, Blues Golden Ale, Old Court Ale and Inlet IPA – are each available in six packs throughout Delaware.
“I think a whole new customer base is going to find us,” said Claus Hagelman, 16 Mile's sales and marketing director. “We really don't know what is going to take off. For us, it's really exciting. We're going to make equal amounts of each of the beers, and the market is going to let us know what people love and take a hold of.”
In the coming months, 16 Mile will break ground on a 4,300-square-foot expansion that will allow the brewery to increase production and add a pub and retail space. The bigger facility is expected to be up and running by April, Hagelman said.
Further expansion is also in the works.
“You come here four years from now, and it's going to be a beautiful facility,” Hagelman said. “We're dependent on our customers falling in love with hopefully great beer.”
With more than double the space, production is expected to jump from 2,500 barrels annually to more than 20,000 in the next three years. Beyond that, Hagelman said, 16 Mile will cap its production at 30,000 barrels per year.
“We don't want to grow bigger than that,” he said. “We just want to be a nice small- to medium-size brewery that supplies Delaware and the states that touch Delaware. The goal is to take care of Delaware and build the brand in Delaware.”
But the expansion isn't without blood, sweat and possibly tears. Only four employees work at 16 Mile, including the owners, which makes for a very hectic schedule. There is little to no automation in the small facility, meaning everything from building boxes, tending bar and bottling the beer falls on the shoulders of the four employees.
The bottling operation itself takes all four men to operate. They can produce 70 to 75 cases an hour, Hagelman said.
16 Mile was founded by Chad Campbell and Brett McCrea with a vision of finding a happy medium between the brews of craft and mainstream breweries. Their aim was to make a sessionable beer, meaning multiple bottles can be enjoyed in one sitting.
“To me, [16 Mile] uses all the good ingredients of the craft industry, but still has the sessionable, drinkable beer the national brands were able to put forward,” McCrea said. “I really enjoy and like the sessionable beers, and we wanted something you can enjoy multiples of.”
Hagelman said he believes the move to 12-ounce bottles will expose 16 Mile to a new group of beer lovers. It's up to the fans to keep the brewery growing, he said.
“Where this brewery grows to over the next 24 months is going to be up to our friends and our family and fans in the marketplace that gravitate to it, find it and help us write the next level.”
16 Mile's core brews
Amber Sun Ale is a 6.1 percent alcohol by volume English-style amber ale with roasty finishing malts balanced with just enough bitterness.
The appearance is dark red, but it's not heavy on the palate. The brew is named after the sunsets found at the Breakwater Lighthouse off Lewes Beach.
Blues Golden Ale is a 5.9 percent alcohol by volume golden-style ale with balanced layers of flavor that makes it a good complement for any meal. The brew is named for The Delaware Blues, who fought in almost every battle of the Revolutionary War.
Old Court Ale is a 6.1 percent alcohol by volume dark pale ale that's lighter in body, but provides a citrusy hop aroma and caramel finish. The brew is named after Sussex County's original courthouse in Georgetown.
Inlet IPA is a 6.1 alcohol by volume English-style India pale ale with aromatic hops with flavors of citrus.
The brew is named after Indian River Inlet, between Bethany Beach and Dewey Beach. It is the newest of 16 Mile's offerings.
For more information go to www.16milebrewery.com or call 302-253-8816.
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DAREN CRISWELL PHOTO
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Located in downtown Delmar, EVO brewery is definitely off the beaten path.
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Sip in evolution at Delmar’s EVO Brewery
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By Billie Criswell
Special to the Beach Paper
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You have probably seen EVO’s craft beers in our local stores and restaurants, but did you know that it is brewed right here, in Sussex County, Delaware?! EVO Brewery is my third and final stop on my tour of Sussex County breweries, and as I walked into the homey little brewery, I was both excited and a little bit sad. I was excited because this brewery looked like a lot of fun, but I was sad because it was my last stop on the beer train.
Located in downtown Delmar, EVO brewery is definitely off the beaten path, but it’s certainly worth the drive. The brewery was laid back and welcoming with a great view from the barstools. Behind the bar is a long, glass window through which you can garner a peek of their inner workings: fermenting tanks, hoses, pipes, etc. It was really cool to sit back and enjoy this unique view.
I had a chance to speak with Randy Mills, who is an assistant brewer (or cellar man) at EVO where there are also 4 main brewers. This particular day he was working the bar and greeting customers as they came in. My husband and I sat down to enjoy a tasting of the various EVO beers, which costs a mere $5. For that $5, you get five—I know, five!—of their beers and it builds as the tasting goes on, flavor wise. We started with Summer Session, a light summer beer that was just right for the hottest day in creation... the mercury was nearly at 100 degrees that day!
As we sipped our beers, we also learned a little more about the brewery. Opened in 2009, EVO is the creation of a pair of brothers, Tommy and Johnny Knorr. The brothers have a slew of restaurants, and wanted to pair beers with some of their food creations. This was essentially how the EVO philosophy was born.
As Mills explains, their philosophy is two-fold; First, they wanted to create clean, approachable beers that pair well with food (check!) and secondly, they wanted to offer a unique twist on the barrels that the beer in brewed in (say huh?!) It was then my attention was drawn to the various barrels sitting just behind me and across the bar.
Throughout the year, EVO works to create seasonal beers in barrels that are generally used to ferment other types of alcohol. This fall, they will unveil their Belgian ale which is aged in chardonnay barrels. For their winter beer, it’s aged in the bourbon barrels, and for spring? Rum barrels. It’s this air of innovation that has kept EVO cranking out the beer.
In fact, they have been so popular in the two years since they opened that they have reached capacity at their current location. I see why as I sip my next beer: Primal Ale, which is a little hoppier than the summer ale, and it hit a great note on my palette. Miller explains that they are scouting in an effort to expand their brewing operation. Last year, the brewery hammered out 3,000 barrels of delicious beer. This year they are likely to get out about 3,500-4,000 barrels.
As they expand they are likely to incorporate more states into their delivery routes, too. For the time, though, they are in four states—Delaware, of course, but also Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Northern Virginia. To keep up with their demand, they brew twice a day five days a week and have a 10 barrel brew house. They bottle some of their beer and they also sell by the keg, but most of their seasonal beers have yet to make it to the bottles because they are just so popular and sell out quickly.
At the brewery, you can try their fabulously priced tastings for a mere $5, like I did, or if you want some beer “to go” pick up one of their growlers, which they will fill for you on site for a ridiculously cheap price. They also have great merchandise—t-shirts, hats, stickers, and a variety of glasses. If you want to take a tour of the brewery, you have to make a reservation ahead of time by visiting their website: www.evolutioncraftbrewing.com. The brewery is open Tuesday through Saturday. And, if you catch them on a nice day, you can even hang outside on their deck and take in a game of cornhole while you suck down your beer!
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Local Nightlife »
BETHANY BEACH
• The Cottage Café Restaurant & Pub: Route 1. Friday, Sept. 30 – Monkee Paw. 302-539-8710.
• DiFebo’s: 789 Garfield Parkway. Tuesdays - Pub Party Trivia with DJ Bump. Wednesdays - Karaoke with cash prizes. Saturdays - Live jazz. Sundays - Backyard BBQ with live music. 302-539-4550.
• Magnolia’s Seafood Bar & Grill: 30415 Cedar Neck Road. Saturdays – Karaoke at 9 p.m. 302-539-5671.
• Mango’s: Garfield Parkway and the Boardwalk. Fridays and Saturdays – Live entertainment. 302-537-6621.
DEWEY BEACH
• Lighthouse Raw Bar: 124 Dickinson Ave. Taco Toss every Sunday. 227-6444.
• Northbeach: 125 McKinley Ave. and the bay. Tuesdays – Table Ten, 9 p.m. Fridays – Sunset Funset with Jefe, 5 p.m.; Saturdays – DJ BIS and Marty, 9 p.m.; Sundays – Billy and Chris, 3 p.m. 226-8673.
• Port: 1205 Highway One. Thursdays - Thai’d Up Thursdays with Paul Cullen acoustic, 6 to 9 p.m. 227-0669.
• Rusty Rudder: Dickinson Ave. and the bay. Mondays – Wailing Waters, 9 p.m.; Thursdays – Love Seed Mama Jump, 9 p.m.; Sundays – Burnt Sienna, 9 p.m. Sept. 30-Oct. 1 - Elvis Festival; Friday, Oct. 7 - Love Seed Mama Jump; Saturday, Oct. 8 - American Giant. 227-3888.
• The Starboard: 2009 Highway One. Thursday, September 29 – A Hardy Party with DJ Legend John Hardy, 9 p.m.; Friday, September 30 – DJ Red Dog, 9 p.m.; Saturday, October 1 – DJ Red Dog, 9 p.m., 227-4600.
• Venus on the Half Shell: Dagsworthy Ave. and the bay. Mondays and Fridays – Live music with Aaron Culver, 6 to 9 p.m. 227-9292.
FENWICK ISLAND
• Harpoon Hanna’s: Route 54 and the bay. Sundays – Kevin Poole, 5-9 p.m. Mondays – Dave Hawkins, 6-10 p.m. Tuesdays – Karaoke at 9 p.m. and Kevin Poole, 6-10 p.m. Wednesdays – Bobby Burns Senior Deck Party, 3-6 p.m., Dave Sherman, 6 p.m. and DJ Bump, 10 p.m. Thursdays – Karaoke in the Tiki Bar, 9 p.m. and Time Police, 5-9 p.m. Fridays – John Lamere, 3-7 p.m., Dave Hawkins, 7-11 p.m. and DJ Bump, 10 p.m. Saturdays – Dave Sherman, 6-10 p.m. and DJ Bump, 10 p.m. 302-539-3095.
• Slainte Pub & Restaurant: 31225 Americana Parkway. Thursdays – Dave Sherman. Friday, Sept. 30 – Steve Morris & Connor Malone. 302-436-1916.
• Smitty McGee’s Raw Bar & Restaurant: Route 54. Tuesdays – Team Trivia at 7 p.m. Thursdays – Randy Lee Ashcraft, 8 p.m. to midnight. Fridays – Randy Lee Ashcraft & the Saltwater Cowboys, 8 p.m. to midnight. 302-436-4716.
LEWES
• Béseme: Second and Market streets. Saturdays – Shore Jazz, 7-10 p.m. 645-8108.
• Bethany Blues: 18385 Coastal Highway. Friday, Sept. 30 – Davina and The Vagabonds; Friday, Oct. 14 – Patrick Alban and Noche Latina; Saturday, Oct. 15 – Deanna Bogart Band with special guest Gaye Adegbalola; Sunday, Oct. 16 – Sydney’s Music Revival. 644-2500.
• Gray Hare Tavern: Route 24. Sundays – Karaoke with Nancy, 6 p.m.; Mondays - Resort Poker, 7 p.m.; Tuesdays - DJ Mikey, 9 p.m. and pool tournament, 8 p.m.; Wednesdays - Freshly Squeezed, 10 p.m.; Thursdays - Too Much Fun Band, 9 p.m.; Fridays - Billy (acoustic), 6 p.m. and DJ Porky, 9 p.m.; Saturdays - DJ Porky, 9 p.m. 645-9911.
• Irish Eyes at Anglers: Anglers Road. Thursdays – Fabulous Shockley Brothers and friends, 9:30 p.m. Fridays – DJ Jammin’ Jeff, 9:30 p.m. 645-6888.
• 1776 Steakhouse: Midway Shopping Center. Fridays and Saturdays - Bernard Sweetney, 7-10 p.m. 645-9355.
LONG NECK
• Sand Bar: Long Neck Road. Wednesdays – Karaoke. Thursdays – DJ Rox. 945-4001.
MILTON
• Irish Eyes Pub and Restaurant: 105 Union St. Fridays – Let’s Do Trivia, 8:30 p.m., and karaoke. Saturdays – Club 684, 9:30 p.m. 684-8889.
REHOBOTH BEACH
• Arena’s: 149 Rehoboth Ave., in the Village by the Sea Mall. Wednesdays - Open-mike night, 10 p.m.; Sundays – Karaoke. 227-1272.
• Back Porch Café: 59 Rehoboth Ave. Fridays – Paul Cullen, 8-11 p.m. 227-3674.
• Cloud 9: 234 Rehoboth Ave. Every Friday and Saturday DJ Vixx; every Sunday Ms. Peaches & the Cloud 9 Angels; every Monday karaoke. 226-1999.
• Cultured Pearl: 302 Rehoboth Ave. Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays – Fingerstyle guitarist Shaun Hopper, 10 p.m. Thursdays – Jodi Lynn Cohee of Conjunction Funktion, 10:30 p.m. 227-8493.
• Dogfish Head Brewings & Eats: 320 Rehoboth Ave. Friday, Sept. 30 – Lust2Love; Saturday, Oct. 1 – Parallax Project; Friday, Oct. 7 – Tom Larsen Band; Saturday, Oct. 8 – Pawnshop Roses; Thursday, Oct. 13 – Bob Margolin; Friday, Oct. 14 – Nothin But Trouble; Saturday, Oct. 15 – Josh Komorwski and the Midnights. 226-BREW.
• Frogg Pond: South First Street. Sundays – Lower Case Blues. Mondays – Pete Wiedmann. Thursdays – Trivia Night. Fridays – DJ Sharon Messina. 227-2234.
• Jake’s Seafood: Friday, Sept. 30 – Bryan Clark; Friday, Oct. 7 – Sol Knopf; Friday, Oct. 21 – Kevin Poole. 644-7711.
• Nicola Pizza on the Avenue: 71 Rehoboth Ave. Friday, Sept. 16 - The Love Gods. 227-6211.
• Purple Parrot: 134 Rehoboth Ave. Every Sunday Tisha Towers’ Birdcage Bad Girls; Friday and Saturday karaoke. 226-1139.
• Rehoboth Ale House: 15 Wilmington Ave. Wednesdays – Euro Dance Party. 227-2337.
• Seafood Shack: 42 1/2 Baltimore Ave. Thursdays – Cathy Gorman, 7 to 10 p.m. 227-5881.
• Summer House: 228 Rehoboth Ave. Tuesdays – DJ JY; Fridays and Saturdays – DJ JY. 227-3895.
• Timothy’s: 19598 Highway One. Thursdays – Misspel Komedy Knight, 9:30 p.m. Mondays – DJ Woody. 227-3435.
• Victoria’s Restaurant: Boardwalk Plaza, Olive Ave. Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays – Jeff Irwin, 6-9 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays – Jeff Irwin, 6-10 p.m. 227-0615.
• Zogg’s: 1 Wilmington Ave. Wednesdays – DJ Wood, 10 p.m. Fridays – Live acoustic music, 10 p.m. Saturdays – DJ Fatty, 10 p.m. 227-7660.
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DAREN CRISWELL PHOTO
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Dogfish Head restaurant is where you can sink your teeth into some great music, tasty foods, and of course, the off-centered staff that keeps the whole place rolling at a steady pace.
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Top 10 reasons why
I heart Dogfish Head
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By Billie Criswell
Special to the Beach Paper
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Dogfish Head brewery is an amazing place to tour, drink beer, and buy a gamut of merchandise, but on the avenue in Rehoboth at the Dogfish Head restaurant is where you can sink your teeth into some great music, tasty foods, and of course, the off-centered staff that keeps the whole place rolling at a steady pace.
Dogfish Head’s restaurant in Rehoboth is a great place to hang out year-round, not just in the summer months. It’s surely a place that attracts vacationers, but it’s also a place where locals hang out and let their hair down, which is likely part of its appeal. Here’s my list of the top 10 reasons why I just love Dogfish Head’s restaurant in Rehoboth Beach:
No. 10 - It has all the charm of the brewery, but on the beach. Of course many know that the restaurant was where all the wonderful beer brewing began, and maybe that is why it just feels so charming!
No. 9 - The cozy, wooden feel of the place. Atmosphere is important to me, and boy does this place have it. The wooden finish was constructed of antique barn wood, and it really gives a certain something special.
No. 8 - Happy hour during the weekdays! I am a happy hour junkie because, let’s face it, there is nothing better than a discount! On weekdays they feature discounts on drinks and appetizers and that makes my wallet AND my tummy very happy.
No. 7 - Being local is being green. Did you know that Dogfish Head gets produce and dairy locally, and that makes me feel good. It also saves on precious resources and stimulates the local economy.
No. 6 - “Stuff to go.” I can drink, eat and shop all in one place. All I have to say on that is “Yes, please!”
No. 5 - I really like that they bring in an eclectic crowd. Nothing is better than watching a diverse crowd all enjoying the same thing!
No. 4 - Dogfish Head’s liquors. Distilled right on site in Rehoboth Beach, it keeps the original production spirit alive... in spirits! Vodka, rum, and gin served cold in the summer and hot in winter - YUM!
No. 3 - No cover. Going out can be so expensive, and budgets are tight these days, why spend your money on cover when you can spend it on beer? I guess the people at Dogfish Head seem to agree because they don’t charge a cover, which is pretty cool!
No. 2 - They really seem to have the formula down to a science: Off centered ales + great music acts = a great time had by all. I just love their intuitive sense of booking bands that keeps people coming back!
No. 1 - It’s like the Willy Wonka factory, only of BEER! I love that I go there and sample batches that are experimental, and/or not as widely available. It makes me feel like I am getting an everlasting gobstopper, only in beer form!
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DAREN CRISWELL PHOTO
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Safety first! Goggles are required to take a tour of the brewery.
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Dogfish: Much more
than ‘off-centered ale’
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By Billie Criswell
Special to the Beach Paper
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On a cloudy Tuesday when a friend suggested a tour of the Dogfish Head Brewery in Milton, Delaware, my response should have been, “Oh yeah- I’ve taken the tour [x] amount of times and would love to do it again!” The truth was, I had never been. Sure, I’ve enjoyed Dogfish Head beer on many an occasion, but I hadn’t had the pleasure of taking their tour. Lucky for me, my friend had reserved us spots for the tour, and so off we went.
IF YOU GO:
Tours run Tuesday-Saturday
Children are allowed to take the tour, but they can’t drink beer
Wear closed toed shoes, (or you’ll get stuck with the crocs)
Call ahead or go to dogfish.com to sign up for the tour
The tour (and beer) is free
There is a ton of great merchandise, so bring some money
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I figured I knew what to expect ... I had watched the television show on Discovery Channel; boy was I wrong! I was in for a lesson in beer that would blow my little beer drinking mind. But at Dogfish Head, first things first - safety! I had to change into a pair of Crocs and slap on some safety googles, and then I was ready to go.
Our group entered into warehouse-like room where grain was being loaded off a giant forklift. Looking around as our tour guide gave us some quick history, I saw enormous bags of ingredients laying about: 50 pounds of organic brown sugar, 60 pounds of Dutch gold orange blossom, big boxes of natural pumpkin, and huge sacks of amber malt. The smell of barley was rich in the air.
One of the best facts that we learned in the first portion of the tour? The owner, Sam Calagione had to not only build his business from the ground up, but from the legislature up! At the time Calagione opened the original Dogfish Head in Rehoboth, he knew that he was opening a brewery in a state that didn’t already have one (that was his intention), but he had no idea that there was no law that condoned his beer brewing! Calagione is nearly single-handedly responsible for the permissions of beer brewing in our state ... how cool is that?!
It was easy to see, as the guide told us, that Calagione had grown his small craft brewery into a large scale operation with great success. And what about craft beer, you ask? What makes a craft beer such? There are four primary ingredients that must be present in order for a brewery such as Dogfish Head to consider themselves a craft brewery. Those ingredients are water, barley, yeast, and hops. Craft breweries must also adhere to a barrel limit per year which is set at (an astounding) 6 million barrels per year.
Dogfish Head will put out a projected 140,000 barrels this year, which is quite a lot of beer any way you think about it. As for their purity, this beer is the creme de la creme of natural. They stand by a motto of great beer, which means that they add no rice and/or corn to their beer like other bigger distributers, and so their beer just tastes better.
As we were ushered from the one larger warehouse room into the fermenting cellar, the smell literally made me thirsty. There we stood, amongst huge metal holding tanks and a series of metal pipes that were overwhelmingly intricate. From this room, the beer goes to the bottling line, which we weren’t allowed to see (for safety purposes). But just to give us an idea of how much beer gets cranked through the plant they told us this:
When Calagione first started making beer for Dogfish Head, he got something like two cases of beer in several hours. When the plant first opened its doors in 2002, they did about 100 cases in 10 hours. Now, the plant puts out 500 cases in just 1 hour! Holy cow!
We also got to see the custom made oak barrels which are the largest tanks of their kind, and can only be found at the Dogfish Head Brewery. If I thought that those were impressive, I was blown away by the other wooden barrel in the room: the Palo Santo holding tank.
Palo Santo Marron brew is made in the barrel, and is lovingly referred to by employees as “Guinness on steroids.” It’s made in the Palo Santo wood barrel, and 12 percent alcohol by volume. What makes the Palo Santo wood special is that it is one of the strongest types of wood on earth - so strong, in fact, that it actually sinks in water. It took 17 diamond-tipped blades to cut the tree the barrel is constructed of.
What sets Dogfish Head ahead of the crowd, you see, is nearly everything. “Off centered beer for off centered people,” is really only the start of the revolution in beer that they have helped foster. With Calagione at the helm of the operation, this brewery exudes a quality of contagious fun.
If our tour guide felt at all like he was working, he never once showed it, and this was an amazingly fun tour to take - and it was educational too!
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DAREN CRISWELL PHOTO
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Chad Campbell, owner of 16 Mile Brewery in Georgetown: “When it’s not fun, we won’t do it.”
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16 Mile: Sussex County brewery has cool beer, laid-back atmosphere
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By Billie Criswell
Special to the Beach Paper
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Here’s a piece of Sussex County history you may or may not know: Back in “the day” when the county was founding a seat, they named Lewes as such. But people, who had to travel by means slower than today’s high speed vehicles, complained that it was too far from other points in the county. The solution? The state bought the real estate from George P. Mitchell and named it Georgetown.
Then, they concluded, no more complaining - Georgetown is 16 miles from everywhere.
This is how the owner/operator team, Brett McCrea and Chad Campbell, of 16 Mile brewery in Georgetown came up with their name. Campbell was a science teacher with a degree in chemistry and McCrea a former federal employee...together, they were two self-taught brewers who brewed five gallons at a time until they got the formula right. From there, 16 Mile was born a mere two years ago, and it is growing in stride with its success.
16 Mile is a microbrewery, which is just a fancy way to say a little bit smaller than a craft brewery [like Dogfish Head]. As a microbrewery, they adhere to the same ingredient standards as the craft brewery. That is, they use four main ingredients: water, yeast, hops, and barley. Their beer is also currently available in four states: Delaware, of course, but also Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. Brewing about 1400 barrels of beer per year, they are making their way into beer history by being the first brewery in Georgetown’s history.
From my time spent at the brewery, it’s clear to see that the community has embraced the new hang out. I feel like a welcomed member of a chosen space to hang in the bar that sits in the corner of the brewery. From business suits to board shorts, there are all kinds of people passing through to share a beer, laugh together, and sit on the homemade keg stools (which - allow me to add - are just my size).
Campbell gave us a personal tour of his brewery, and it was easy to see that he’s proud of what he’s built, and he has fun doing it. “When it’s not fun,” he said, “we won’t do it.”
While we’re there, we sample the Amber Sun Ale, just one of the 6 ales that are made in the brewery and it’s dark and yummy. It’s a departure from my usual type of beer, but it’s a welcomed [and delicious] change.
Even with only two years under their brewing belts, 16 Mile brewery is really making a name for themselves. They have a lot of cool touches that make their brewery not just a great place to buy beer, but a great place to enjoy their beer in a laid back atmosphere. They sell their beer on premises for prices so reasonable, it’s unreal. They have small personal kegs, what they call the “party pigs” (and hold a case of beer) for $30. For a 1/6 keg it’s only $55, and full keg for your blow out this summer? Just $140.
Every Friday, like the Friday we were there, they have a happy hour band called 15 String Band. They play everything from The Beatles to CCR and other classic rock jams - on bluegrass style instruments. It’s the perfect atmosphere for kicking back and enjoying a beer where the beers are always $3 a pint.
As for what there is choose from, well, there is a lot. They have 5 beers year round, and one beer exclusively in the fall months. Their seasonal beer, Harvest Ale, is a southern English brown ale and is rich and smooth with chocolate and coffee tones to it. That beer comes around just once a year in the fall, and Campbell says the release is much anticipated. Until then, you can enjoy one of their other ales, from a light-bodied Responder’s Ale to the darker Inlet India Pale Ale (which is an IPA). All of the beers, with the exception of the Responder’s Ale, are about 6 percent alcohol by volume, and the Responder’s is about 4 percent.
You can find 16 Miles beers locally at Atlantic Liquors in Rehoboth, or at Bank’s Liquors in Bethany Beach. They are also on tap at both Bethany Blue’s locations as well as the Green Turtle in Rehoboth area. For the tours, which run Tuesday through Saturday, there is no charge at all, and they do tastings on the hour! So get yourself down to 16 Mile and enjoy a great beer brewed right in our county seat!
For more information go to www.16milebrewery.com or call 302-253-8816.
Happy drinking!
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