Begin Brewing!

Years ago, working with Dr. Pat McGovern, Dogfish Head's Sam Calagione produced a line of ancient ales, including one based on information found in Egyptian heiroglyphics and (I think) some pottery shards.  The resulting beer, which Dogfish Head labeled "Ta Henket" seemed to do well in the market initially, then vanished, reportedly due to low sales.  I was always a fan of that beer, and bought it whenever I found it.  With it off the market, my only hope is to brew my own version.  Fortunately, Dr. Pat's book contains an extract-based homebrew recipe for Ta Henket. My first attempt at brewing the beer met with some success.  It was a bit darker than the Dogfish Head beer, but nonetheless pretty tasty after it aged for several months.  One of my friends took a particular liking to it, and I only have about three bottles of it left. I've decided for this batch to shift away from malt extract to a Pilsner malt base. This should lighten the color of the ...

The finished beer In early August, my wife and I visited Dogfish Head's brewery in Milton, Delaware.  We took their tour, which was interesting and informative, and enjoyed a few samples at the taproom afterward. The whole visit inspired me to think about brewing, and specifically about brewing clones of some of my favorite Dogfish Head beers. If you asked most folks which Dogfish Head beer was their favorite, they would probably mention 120-Minute IPA (or 90-Minute or 60-Minute), or World Wide Stout, or maybe one of their others. The ones I really enjoy most from Dogfish Head are the Ancient Ales series. Of those, Ta Henket is probably my favorite.  Judging from the fact that they appear to have stopped making it (according to a book I'll mention in a moment), perhaps I'm one of the few "off-centered people" who liked it. Ta Henket impressed me with its Ancient Egyptian pedigree, its unusual spicy and herbal aroma (which reminds me of what I imagine the i...