Beer is about something much bigger that what goes into the glass when you belly up to a bar. If there is anything that sums up why I do this blogging thing, I think that’s probably it. This big picture of why the craft beer industry is so different than anything else that I’ve ever seen becomes incredibly apparent with stories like this one.
DogBerry has teamed up with the West Chester F.O.P. Lodge #186 to craft a beer to honor one of their fallen brothers, Lieutenant Jon DeWitt, badge #71. Lt. DeWitt was a US Marine veteran before he served the community of West Chester for more than 20 years, until he passed away from cancer sending a community and family into mourning. It wasn’t that long ago that while doing their normal course of action for a weekend (pouring beers), the owners of DogBerry met an off duty police officer. Over a couple of pints, he shared the story of Lt. DeWitt. The brewery wanted to honor his memory in the way that a brewery can – beer.
Valor #71 embodies the strength, courage and bravery in the face of adversity that Lt. Dewitt was known for. The beer itself is an IPA, clean and crisp at 7.5% ABV. They went with Topaz hops to represent the thin blue line, a symbol used by law enforcement officers to represent a fallen comrade, and to symbolize the relationship of the police force and their relationship to their community as protectors of their fellow citizens. The beer also has some Mandarina Bavaria and Amarillo hops to top it off.
You can get your taste of this beer this coming Thursday when the brewery taps it. They’re donating a portion of the proceeds from this beer, and have a some other events that they’re working on in conjunction with it as well. If you haven’t had a chance to make it out to the nano-sized DogBerry yet… this is a perfect opportunity for you to do so. I’ve got a big story from them that I’m working on in the coming weeks… and we’ll be live from the taproom with an episode of Cincy Brewcast on 5/27… So stay tuned!