Dogfish, Italians arriving in UK

Five brands on offer led by Palo Santo Marron

US craft brewer's portfolio launched this week

The distinctive brand portfolio of equally distinctively named Dogfish Head Craft Brewery is now available in Great Britain – with a trio of Italian micros arriving in the near future.

British specialist beer importer Vertical Drinks is distributing an initial order of ten mixed pallets of 1,500 bottles from the east coast US craft brewer. On offer at specialist beer retailers and on-trade outlets will be the assertively hoppy 60 Minute and 90 Minute IPAs; Indian Brown Ale, a cross between an IPA and an American Brown; and Raison D’Etre, robust 8.0% abv ale brewed with beet sugar, green raisins and Belgian yeast.
 
This is a portfolio certain to delight beer aficionados, yet standing out from these worthies is something truly exceptional. Palo Santo Marron is 12% abv unfiltered brown ale with robust caramel, malty notes. Its character is derived in part from having been aged for a year in brewing vessels made from Palo Santo wood used in South American wine-making circles.

For Vertical Drinks the challenge will be to extend Dogfish Head’s appeal beyond the brewing fraternity to a broader consumer base. Sales and export manager Andreas Fält is optimistic about its potential.
 
“We want to see where it takes us,” says Fält. “It’s a well known product within the beer community but we’re not sure how it will work with the public. We know the beer enthusiast will love this beer, we have seen that already. But of course it’s the general public who will buy the beer.”

Vertical Drinks has a track record with American craft brewers, having imported a range of Sierra Nevada products for some years now. According to Fält, last year European sales of Sierra Nevada products reached 4,800 barrels, with 75% of that total destined for the United Kingdom.

Vertical Drinks imports beers from several countries, including Belgium, Germany and the award-winning Weissbier Etalon from Ukraine. Next month it broadens its offer, beginning imports from three Italian microbrewers, Birra del Borgo, Birreria Baladin and Amarcord. The beers will be introduced in March to a sympathetic audience attending La Dolce Vita Italian Festival in north London.