Entrepreneur, 'Brew Masters' Star Calagione Speaks at SU Apr. 20

SALISBURY, MD---Whether it’s traveling the world for his hit television series, promoting his products at events throughout the East Coast or spending time making some of the region’s most revered beer at his Milton, DE, company, Dogfish Head Craft Brewery owner Sam Calagione is constantly on the move.

On Wednesday, April 20, he shares his story as the next speaker in the Franklin P. Perdue School of Business’ Executive Leadership Series. His talk is 3:30 p.m. in Salisbury University’s Holloway Hall Auditorium.

Dogfish Head got its start with little more than a home brewing kit, which piqued Calagione’s interest in creating something other than the mass-market beers that were served in seemingly every bar in the nation.

In 1995, Calagione founded Dogfish Head as a small brewpub that still serves thousands of customers annually in Rehoboth Beach. Today, the company’s custom ales are available in 27 states, with annual sales over $28 million.

Last fall, his face became familiar to television viewers across the country as the star of the Discovery Channel reality series Brew Masters. The show chronicles his search for exotic new ingredients and ancient brewing practices to further enhance Dogfish Head’s offerings.

In 2005, he chronicled his rise to the top of the industry in the book Brewing Up a Business: Adventures in Entrepreneurship From the Founder of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery. He is also the author of Extreme Brewing and co-author of He Said Beer, She Said Wine.

Dogfish Head has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, BusinessWeek, People, and Bon Appetit and in the documentary Beer Wars. It is one of the top 25 breweries in the nation, out of more than 1,600 total.

The company’s slogan, “Off-Centered Ales for Off-Centered People,” has earned Calagione a reputation as one of America’s most adventurous entrepreneurs and brewers. The Small Business Association named him “Businessman of the Year,” and he is recognized as one of the youngest to be named to the Brewers Association board of directors. He is currently a finalist for the James Beard Foundation Award for outstanding wine and spirits professional.

Calagione lives in Lewes, DE, with his wife, Mariah (Dogfish’s vice president), and children, Sammy and Grier.

Admission to his talk at SU is free and the public is invited. A reception follows in the Holloway Hall Social Room. Bay Bank sponsors the Executive Leadership Series.

For more information call 410-548-5391 or visit the SU Web site at www.salisbury.edu.