Raison D'Etre from Dogfish Head Craft Brewers

By Don

It's really crazy that it's taken me this long to finally post something about Raison D'Etre from Dogfish Head Craft Brewers.

Here's why....

Way back in 2005, Rick and I, along with our families and another family went to beautiful Cape May, New Jersey for a vacation.  We rented a house and spent the time there walking back and forth to the beach and into town, grilling food and, of course, drinking beer.

On our first trip into town to Collier's Liquor Store, Rick and I looked around the beer coolers.  We spotted Dogfish Head and read the label ... Lewes, Delaware - right across the Delaware Bay!  So, we picked up some Dogfish Head to try it out and one of the six packs was Raison D'Etre.  I was in love.

For awhile after that trip to Cape May, Raison D'Etre was my favorite craft brew and then I began to discover other offerings from their lineup.  For some reason, I went a long time without having Raison D'Etre again.

Flash forward a couple years to this summer.  Lori's sister & brother-in-law were coming to visit.  So, we stopped to pick up some brews for their visit.  Lori always liked Raison D'Etre as well and she grabbed a six of Raison D'Etre.

Lori poured herself one and I picked it up for a sip.  Instantly, I felt, "Hello, old friend."  I wondered why it had been so long since I'd had a Raison D'Etre.

This is another Dogfish offering that's more in the wine category than being called a beer.  It's brewed with beet sugar, raisins and Belgian-style yeast.  It was originally brewed to be a great compliment to a wood fired grilled steak.  It's more Bordeaux like.

This is more of a sipping beer and should be poured into a goblet or a snifter.  It's 8% ABV and clocks in at 25 IBU's.

Of course, another thing that I love about it is calling it "Rasin Detrey" just like Nathan Arizona says in the movie "Raising Arizona."

Cheers!