For the first time, Dogfish Head is releasing Choc Lobster, a new generation crustacean beer, beyond coastal Delaware. It'll start hitting taps on Friday, Aug. 7.

Previously a Dogfish brewpub exclusive, the 5.6% ABV Choc Lobster is a dry porter brewed with basil, dark cocoa and – you guessed it – lobsters. This year, the lobsters are from Ebenecook Oyster Farm on the Sheepscot River near Boothbay Harbor in Maine. Dogfish Head Founder and President Sam Calagione spent summers growing up on the Sheepscot (on a jut of land called Dogfish Head!), and Ebenecook is owned and operated by a couple of his best friends. 

“Choc Lobster provides an amazing, decadent, seaworthy beer-drinking experience,” says Sam. “It tastes like summer to me, and we’re happy to be getting some beyond our borders for folks to enjoy.”

Choc Lobster is a dark porter with notes of bittersweet chocolate and roast, with a slight herbal nuance and a subdued taste of the ocean in the finish. It brought home a Silver Medal in the Indigenous/Regional Beer category at the 2014 Great American Beer Festival. 

Choc Lobster is a draft-only beer, and it will be released Aug. 7 at World of Beer locations in markets where Dogfish Head distributes (Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, D.C., Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin). 

A limited amount of Choc Lobster will be sent to Portland, Maine, and the 3 Dogfish Head Alehouses in the D.C. area. It’ll also be available at Dogfish Head’s coastal Delaware brewpub and production brewery.

And at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 7, Sam will be at World of Beer in Reston to tap the initial keg of Choc Lobster. Reston also will be serving a mind-blowing Dogfish lineup: 60 Minute IPA, Sixty-One, 90 Minute IPA, 120 Minute IPA, Namaste, Festina Peche, Midas Touch, Burton Baton, Birre Etrusca Bronze, Palo Santo, Black & Red, World Wide Stout, Fort, Olde School Barleywine and Red & White.

Grab this limited beer while you can, because when it’s gone, it’s gone for good (well, for or a long time ... anyway). Just like the song says, it's not a rock, it's a Choc Lobster! 

A note from Choc Lobster: I’m made with real lobster. So if you have a shellfish allergy, don’t drink me! Thanks! :)