Off-Centered Ale Trail: D.C.

Beer has a long history in Washington, D.C., where the brewing industry was once the second-largest employer after the federal government. A landmark from those days, the Brewmaster’s Castle, is the first stop on our Off-Centered Ale Trail through the nation’s capital city.

The National Museum of Health and Medicine is a bit of a hike from the many museums that line the National Mall, but its smaller collection is rich in the offbeat and the obscure. Fans of Dogfish Head Brewery’s Flesh & Blood IPA will not be disappointed by the museum’s surprising oddities, including a human hairball and the bullet that killed Lincoln. Elsewhere in the District, we spotted the spirit of SeaQuench Ale in the bustling Maine Avenue Fish Market and the scientific exactitude of the precisely-hopped 60 Minute IPA in the U.S. Naval Observatory Master Clock.

You can check out our Ale Trails across the country here, and start building your own by clicking the “Add to List” button alongside each entry. We’ll see you out there!