It’s hard not to get excited by the modern craft beer industry, with thousands of breweries around the country cranking out small batches of hyperlocal, high-quality beer. This is a reality that the pioneers of the industry would’ve had a hard time imagining when they were practically begging consumers to try beers that were dark or hoppy or far too boozy when compared to mass-produced watery lagers. Yet, in the swirl of excitement that comes with being a beer lover in our current era, it’s easy to overlook the beers and brewers that made this all possible. But many of these beers are classic for a reason, and while they may not be as attention-grabbing as the latest hazy juice bomb from your local brewery, their continued availability is a testament to their influence and their timelessness. In our monthly column The Beers That Made Us, we talk with brewers about the beers that have made the biggest impact on them in terms of their personal taste and love of craft beer, as well as how it inspired their personal approach to brewing. Hopefully their perspective will inspire you to take your own trip down beer memory lane. 

If there is such a thing as a beer celebrity, Sam Calagione is the embodiment. Along with Boston Beer Company’s Jim Koch - who purchased Calagione’s Dogfish Head Brewery in 2019 - few members of the beer industry have been able to hold down such a public profile while also retaining the respect of beer fans. Calagione has penned books and even had his own (highly underrated in this writer’s opinion) TV show, and has consistently served as the spokesperson and public face of the Delaware brewery he founded with his wife Mariah in 1995. Yet, even with so much time spent in the spotlight, Calagione has never wavered in his passion for beer. Though Dogfish Head is perhaps better known these days for its 60-120 Minute IPA series and low calorie offerings (all of which have massively influential on craft beer as a whole), Calagione and his team continue to revel in creating the “off-centered ales” that originally put the brewery on the map. Case in point is their recently released Crimson Cru, which finds them collaborating with a legendary Belgian brewery to make something that, like many Dogfish beers in its nearly thirty year history, honors tradition while pushing boundaries. It may come as little surprise that Calagione still chooses to wave the flag for the beer that inspired not just this new collaboration, but his journey as a brewer.  

Beer: 

Rodenbach Grand Cru

Sam Calagione: Hands down, Rodenbach Grand Cru. As a craft brewer who has been at it for 27 years, I may sound like a grizzly old curmudgeon but here goes: I love me some IPAs, including hazies, but a classic big, bold Belgian timeless beer like Rodenbach Grand Cru deserves to be drunk heartily by every 21 to 35 year old, as soon as possible.

Your first time:

November 2, 1993. Nacho Mama's burrito restaurant in NYC. Shift drink. Epiphany.

What makes it special:

Rodenbach has been perfecting this iconic style for multiple centuries, not just multiple decades.

Why this beer is influential:

The beer has been influential because it has lasted endurably for multiple centuries and is recognized as the quintessential Flanders Red Ale style embodiment. 

Why beer drinkers should pay attention:

I think today's beer drinkers are more synchronized in a focus-on-flavor experience, but also sessionability. Grand Cru hits on both those cylinders: intensely flavorful, memorable and food-friendly and yet only 6% alcohol by volume.

How this beer inspired your brewery:

Indeed, there is. Crimson Cru is the name of our collaboration with Rodenbach that combines one thread of the classic Grand Cru and a young American Red Ale we brewed at Dogfish in Delaware that’s infused with sumac and orange peels. Suffice to say, it's been an existential pleasure to collaborate with the makers of one of my epiphany beers.

The Beers That Made Us is a monthly column exploring brewers favorite underappreciated or simply classic beers that they find essential drinking. Read past entries into this series with the likes of Russian River Brewing founder Vinnie Cilurzo, Chuckanut Brewing founder Will Kemper, Cloudburst Brewing brewmaster Steve Luke, Hair of the Dog Brewing founder Alan Sprints, The Alchemist founder John Kimmich, and many, many more.