From ‘Dog Blaster’ to brewmasters: Iron Hill Brewery approaches its 19th anniversary

While Iron Hill Brewery may be known for their beer today, two of its three co-owners, Kevin Finn and Mark Edelson, admit that, like for so many, that first brew didn't go so well.

"It was horrible," Finn says of the kit-made beer, which he put together in the early 1990s in his Wilmington apartment. "I don't think we even heated it. We just dumped the can in and added some water and yeast and stirred it up."

Dubbed "Dog Blaster," that ill-fated pale ale eventually went to the only beer lover around at the time that would have it: Finn's roommate's dog, Shredder. So, at least somebody got to enjoy it.

Fast-forward many batches later, and Iron Hill's beer isn't fit only for dogs anymore. In fact, these days, people seem to be enjoying it just fine, and beer judges in particular.

Last month, the Newark, Del.-based restaurant medaled at the Great American Beer Festival for the 19th consecutive year, bringing home its 44th award from the competition to date. In 2014, the brewery nabbed its 22nd overall award from the World Beer Cup.

That isn't so bad for a couple of guys who started brewing because Finn's wife decided he needed a hobby and footed the bill for the kit. But even as Iron Hill moves into its 20th year and opens its 12th location, with a Huntingdon Valley store opening in 2016, Finn and Edelson, who run Iron Hill alongside co-owner Kevin Davies, don't quite know how to celebrate that success. Apart from grow their restaurant and its medal collection, that is.

"We're looking at sites in Delaware," Finn says. "But we're looking at sites all over the area, too — Maryland, the Lehigh Valley, and [New] Jersey."

Given Iron Hill's expansion hopes, that type of scouting is a necessity. The restaurant is currently on track for its planned 20 locations by 2020, with no intentions to stop building beyond that number. Though, they may put a cap on the state where Iron Hill began in November 1996.

"There's only so many you can build in Delaware," Edelson says.

The plan, then, is to continue to use the restaurant storefronts to distribute beer, which keeps the control in Iron Hill's hands, as it has been almost exclusively for two decades. Because, as Finn and Edelson admit, their first (and last) flirtation with wider distribution — attempting to serve at Citizens Bank Park its opening year in 2004 — went over about as well as Dog Blaster.

"They maybe sold three kegs all season," Edelson says. "We told people the beer was on tap, and then they went and nobody could find it." Finn adds that it "just wasn't a good marriage for us at the time."

Despite that somewhat limited distribution, canned beer will likely be more available in 2016. Currently, the restaurant is spearheading that push with its pumpkin beer, which is offered in takeaway four-packs. More varieties will be available in the future.

Whatever happens, Iron Hill will be moving into its 20^th year without Bob Barrar, their most medal-winning brewer, with 19 GABF wins overall. Barrar, who first brewed Iron Hill's beloved Russian Imperial Stout, departed the company in January this year to start 2SP Brewing in Delaware County. Soon, he'll release 2SP's own version of Russian Imperial Stout with an updated recipe.

But while Barrar's presence will be missed at Iron Hill, the restaurant's co-owners aren't busy fretting about his absence, especially when it comes to awards. As Edelson sees it, much of that success comes from the environment the restaurant's brewery fosters.

"After he left, we won two medals," Edelson says. "So he was our most medal-winning brewer, but all the other medals were won by other people."

That environment, naturally, is a creative one. Aside from making its six house beers, Iron Hill's brewers are allowed room to fill in their menus with upwards of eight or nine beers unique to their restaurant. While some are trendy or seasonally driven, like the pumpkin ale or one of Iron Hill's many IPAs, there are some gems that pop up.

'La Flama Blanca,' for example, is a Berliner Weiss aged in tequila barrels. The resulting brew is pleasingly sour with a touch of tequila funk that's apart from most any other Iron Hill beer. And while, as Edelson admits, it isn't selling well, it is "very special" because it exhibits the types of styles the restaurant is willing to allow its brewers to go after.

"A brewer is not 100 percent technical. They want to create," Edelson says. "They're just like a chef."

Despite their achievements on the brewery side of things, Iron Hill's business is 70 percent on the restaurant side, which suits its model just fine — even beneficial, in terms of beer. As Finn says, Iron Hill serves some 1 million customers per year. That's a lot of chances to turn people on to craft beer, which may well be Iron Hill's legacy in the area, revenue breakdown not withstanding.

"Over the last 20 years in the Philadelphia area, we've probably created more craft beer drinkers than anybody else," Finn says. "We've probably introduced tens or hundreds of thousands of people to craft beer."

And, of course, at least one dog. After all, as Iron Hill approaches its 19th anniversary, it's important that we don't forget its roots.