Great story about the rise of craft brewing in the US, focusing especially on Dogfish Head Brewery in Delaware, maker of various “extreme” beers (really hoppy ales, beers with offbeat ingredients, etc.). For my birthday I treated myself to a 4-pack of their 90 minute IPA. Yummy stuff.

The article, though, becomes a kind of philosophical debate about the nature of beer: is beer best defined within strict parameters, such as those enshrined in the (unfortunately named) German “Purity Laws”? Or can beer encompass all kinds of odd ingredients and styles? When is a beer not a beer?

I was also charmed by the Trappist monk/brewer interviewed in the article who named Budweiser as his favorite American beer. Being catholic–at least in my taste in beer–I certainly appreciate the King of Beers on occasion (even if it’s now owned by a Belgian brewer!).