Dogfish Head Crafts a Powerful Message

Our friends at Dogfish Head have something of an independent streak, and now that streak is clearly visible on the new packaging for their best-selling brew—the 60 Minute IPA—which prominently features the Brewers Association’s Independent Craft Brewers Seal on the box. And by “prominently” we mean “as big as physically possible.”

Craft Works

Sam Calagione, Founder & CEO of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery recently released a statement explaining why the company had taken this step and why it is so important to do it now. According to Calagione, “with over 7,000 indie American breweries operating today, the average American now lives within nine miles of a brewery,” but the vast majority of beer in the American market is still coming from two foreign-owned conglomerates.

To help consumers find out more about American craft brewing, Calagione has literally placed the issue front and center by positioning the Brewers Association’s Independent Craft Brewers Seal across the company’s most popular product. Since launching in 2017, the seal has helped to indicate to consumers whether the beer they are holding is from an independent brewery or… something else. According to Calagione, over 4,000 other independent craft breweries have also taken up the cause, placing the seal on their own brews.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that

However, Dogfish Head’s embrace of the Independent Craft Brewers Seal should not be seen as a shot across the bow of the beers produced by big, multinational conglomerates. As Calagione explains, “any time there is a line drawn in the sand, there are going to be some folks who are not happy to be on one side of that line or the other. There are great people brewing great beers on both sides of the indie craft line, but we believe consumers deserve to know who makes the beer they think is coming from an indie craft brewery at the point of purchase.”

For Dogfish Head and Calagione, it is a question of transparency and authenticity, and they want consumers to have all the information they need to make their purchase decisions. Calagione also praises the large number of consumers that have expressed a strong desire to know more about who makes the beer they are buying. “That’s a beautiful thing,” says Calagione. And for those who don’t care, Calagione says “that too is a beautiful thing.”

Freedom of choice

Breakthru Beverage Group wholeheartedly supports Dogfish Head’s efforts to empower and educate consumers so they can more easily make their purchase decisions, and we are proud to see that so many of those consumer decisions involve picking up the excellent beers from Dogfish Head. 

Talk to your Breakthru Sales Consultant today about Dogfish Head’s perennial favorite, 60 Minute IPA, and the entire portfolio of Dogfish Head beers. And to learn more about the people behind Dogfish Head’s brews, check out our photo story, “Dogfish Head: Great Beer, Even Better People.”