Back in 1993, Dogfish Head founder and brewer, Sam Calagione, was living in an apartment in NYC and was beginning his journey as a brewer with his first ever homebrew that he very dearly called Cherry Pale Ale. He snagged the ingredients, brewed the beer, and after giving the recipe a big ol' thumbs up, he decided it was time to share his first homebrew with his friends.  

In preparation for the beer’s release party, Sam took to bottling and labeling the beer. The labels were decorated with handmade potato stamps, and the bottles were adorned with custom carpet coasters. We know what you’re probably thinking ... carpet coasters?! Well, it turns out, as Sam discovered a little too late, that when you pull hot bottles out of an oven after disinfecting them, that they will, in fact, be hot enough to melt the carpet below them right to the bottles. And thinking to himself that, ‘this could still work’, Sam simply cut the carpet around the bottles to make these custom coasters.  

Now, thirty years later, this story lives in infamy in Dogfish Head’s history, and in celebration of 30 off-centered years, it’s making a limited come back! We’re releasing a reconstruction of Sam’s first-ever homebrew, Cherry Pale Ale, with replicas of all of the original adornments, from the potato-stamped labels to the carpet coasters all in a special 30th birthday box exclusively available at www.givethembeer.com starting Friday, July 18, 2025.  

Cherry Pale Ale is a limited-edition beer that’s as authentic as possible to Sam’s 1993 homebrew. It’s brewed with Delaware wheat, a nod to our home state, and Maine barley, a nod to our namesake, alongside Cascade hops and boatloads of beautiful cherries for an easy-drinking, summertime sipper with balanced sweet and tart notes of stone fruit. Alongside a six-pack of 12 oz cans of the beer, the 30th birthday box will also include a selection of 90s-inspired Dogfish Head merchandise including a magnet, sticker pack, mini pennant flag and a special Post Tape digital cassette. 

While the Cherry Pale Ale 30th birthday box will only be available for purchase online at www.givethembeer.com, drinkers in Delaware can pick up a 6-pack of12oz cans of Cherry Pale Ale, ‘carpet coasters’ and all, at our Milton Brewery. Limited to one 6pk per person.