Dogfish Head & the Grateful Dead Launch NEW Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager
Rhea-AI Summary
Dogfish Head (NYSE:SAM) and the Grateful Dead launched Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager on Feb. 18, 2026. The year-round 5.3% ABV American Rice Lager arrives in 6pk/12oz cans nationwide and features lemongrass, lime, lemon peel, Lemondrop and Contessa hops, plus sustainable Fonio grain.
The release accompanies Dogfish Head’s new Daydream Playbook digital hub for creativity. The beer extends a 10+-year partnership and follows 2025’s Grateful Dead Juicy Pale Ale, the company’s top innovation 6pk per Circana.
Positive
- Year-round national rollout in 6pk/12oz cans
- Targets brand loyalty via >10-year Grateful Dead partnership
- Uses sustainable Fonio grain for product differentiation
- Builds on #1 innovation 6pk momentum from 2025 launch
Negative
- None.
Key Figures
Market Reality Check
Peers on Argus
SAM was down 6.41% with mixed peer action: TAP (-4.43%) and ABEV (-0.96%) weaker, while BUD (+0.14%), STZ (+1.69%), and FMX (+1.09%) gained. Momentum scanner only flagged one other beverage peer, suggesting stock-specific pressure rather than a broad sector move.
Historical Context
| Date | Event | Sentiment | Move | Catalyst |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 02 | Promotional campaign | Positive | -0.1% | Angry Orchard Ex‑Change program trading exes’ items for cider credit. |
| Jan 28 | Product launch | Positive | -2.7% | Samuel Adams Cherry Bomb 9.0% ABV Imperial Wheat Ale launch. |
| Jan 21 | Product expansion | Positive | +2.1% | Twisted Tea 8% Extreme variety pack and single‑serve expansions. |
| Jan 06 | Brand activation | Positive | +2.1% | Dogfish Head “30 Minute Time Bank” pop‑up promoting 30 Minute Light IPA. |
| Dec 01 | Seasonal promotion | Positive | +1.0% | Twisted Tea limited‑edition Twistmas Stocking holiday pack launch. |
Recent product and marketing launches have produced mixed reactions, with some campaigns (Twisted Tea, 30 Minute IPA) aligning with positive price moves while others (Cherry Bomb, promotions) saw small to moderate declines.
Over the last few months, Boston Beer has focused on brand and product innovation across its portfolio. Twisted Tea’s Extreme lineup expansion on Jan 21, 2026 coincided with a 2.08% gain, and Dogfish Head’s “30 Minute Time Bank” event on Jan 6, 2026 preceded a 2.12% rise. By contrast, the high‑ABV Cherry Bomb launch on Jan 28, 2026 saw shares fall 2.66%. The new Dogfish Head–Grateful Dead lager continues this steady stream of innovation-focused announcements.
Market Pulse Summary
This announcement extends Boston Beer’s Dogfish Head–Grateful Dead collaboration with a year‑round Citrus Daydream Lager at 5.3% ABV in 6‑pack 12oz cans, alongside the new “Daydream Playbook” content hub. It follows other recent innovation pushes across Twisted Tea and Samuel Adams. Investors may watch how distribution, shelf placement, and consumer response to this co‑branded lager compare with the successful Juicy Pale Ale launched in early 2025.
AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.
Celebrating curiosity, creativity and the road less traveled, latest beer collaboration launches alongside brewery’s “Daydream Playbook”
MILTON, Del., Feb. 18, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dogfish Head and the Grateful Dead are back for a repeat performance with Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager. This week, the longtime collaborators unveiled their latest year-round brew, accompanied by the launch of Dogfish Head’s “Daydream Playbook,” an online resource hub for creative exploration. Just like the beer, the “Daydream Playbook” is built on the belief that some of the most meaningful ideas (and the tastiest beers) emerge when wandering off the main path.
Hitting shelves in 6pk/12oz cans nationwide, Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager (
INTRODUCING THE “DAYDREAM PLAYBOOK”
To celebrate the debut of Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager, Dogfish Head unveiled its “Daydream Playbook,” a digital guide championing creativity, encouraging curiosity and rewarding off-centered thinking – components integral to the dreamer-like ethos Dogfish Head and the Grateful Dead share. Inviting drinkers on an off-the-beaten-path journey, the resources, stories, videos and Q&As featured in the “Daydream Playbook” will act as a living, breathing hub for folks seeking enjoyment, experimentation and the same “road-less-traveled” creativity that has made Dogfish Head and the Grateful Dead the categorial icons they are today.
“Dogfish Head and the Grateful Dead both began as mere ideas, and thinking back to the beginnings of Dogfish, never in my wildest daydreams did I imagine we would one day be collaborating with a group as culturally influential as the Grateful Dead,” said Sam Calagione, Dogfish Head Brewer & Founder. “One heck of a wild ride, our now more than 10-year relationship with the Dead has reinforced my belief in the value of thoughtful, authentic, against-the-grain experimentation ... failures be damned. It is only by continuously pushing the boundaries of the beer and music industries that both Dogfish and the Grateful Dead have blossomed into what we are now, and together, I hope we can inspire others to do the same – to chart their own courses as they embark on their own explorations of goodness.”
Offering a content-rich counterpoint to life’s overly serious hustle culture, Dogfish Head’s “Daydream Playbook” is meant to inspire drinkers and music-lovers alike, helping them turn their daydreams into realities – just like the founders of Dogfish Head and the Grateful Dead have! Check out Dogfish Head’s “Daydream Playbook” at www.dogfish.com/daydream-playbook, and bookmark that page, as new content will be added weekly.
A CREATIVE PHILOSOPHY YOU CAN TASTE
Continuing Dogfish Head and the Grateful Dead’s more than 10-year partnership, Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager builds on the success of Grateful Dead Juicy Pale Ale (
“Fans of the Grateful Dead are totally engrained in its culture and can easily identify when something doesn’t fit seamlessly with the band’s ethos,” said David Lemieux, the Grateful Dead’s Archivist & Legacy Manager. “It’s Dogfish and the Dead’s shared values of creativity and non-conformity, and their laser focuses on remaining true to themselves that has made this partnership so successful. Fans felt the genuine connection between our brands with Grateful Dead Juicy Pale Ale and I’m certain they will with Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager, too.”
Similar to Grateful Dead Juicy Pale Ale, Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager is a light, easy-drinking craft beer option featuring two distinct hop varieties and one sustainability-oriented grain. It also features the Grateful Dead’s iconic “Steal Your Face” logo on its bright green and psychedelic yellow packaging, just like its predecessor. Complementary offerings, Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager and Grateful Dead Juicy Pale Ale will live side-by-side in Dogfish Head’s year-round lineup of beers.
For more on Dogfish Head and the Grateful Dead, see www.dogfish.com and www.gratefuldead.net, respectively.
*Circana 52 W/E 12/28/25
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DOGFISH HEAD CRAFT BREWERY:
With quality, creativity and non-conformity at its core, Dogfish Head has been committed to brewing unique beers with high-caliber culinary ingredients outside the Reinheitsgebot since the day it opened nearly 30 years ago. Dedicated to exploring goodness of all kinds, Dogfish Head later expanded its beverage artistry beyond just craft beer to produce award-winning portfolios of full-proof spirits – whiskeys, gins, vodkas, rums and more – and spirits-based, ready-to-drink canned cocktails. A Boston Beer Company brand and proud supporter of the Independent Craft Brewing Seal, Dogfish Head is a Delaware-based entity consisting of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, a production brewery and tasting room; Dogfish Head Distilling Co., a production distillery; Brewings & Eats, a brewpub and live music venue; Chesapeake & Maine, a seafood and cocktail spot; and the Dogfish INN, a beer-themed, canal-front hotel. For more about Dogfish Head, please visit www.dogfish.com or follow the brand on social media.
GRATEFUL DEAD:
The Grateful Dead is a social and musical phenomenon that grew into a genuine American treasure. In 1965, an entire generation was linked together by common ideals, gathering by the hundreds and thousands. This movement created a seamless connection between the band and its fans. As the band toured, Dead Heads would follow. Not because it was a part of popular culture but because it is a true counterculture that exists to this very day-one that earnestly believes in the value of its beliefs. By 1995, the Grateful Dead had attracted the most concertgoers in the history of the music business, and today remains one of the all-time leaders in concert ticket sales. Eventually, the caravan evolved into a community with various artists, craftsmen and entrepreneurs supplying a growing demand for merchandise that connected them to the music with their final tally being 2,318 total concerts. The band was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 and received a Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007, commemorated in the 47th class of the Kennedy Center Honorees, as well as the 2025 MusiCares Persons of the Year honored at the 67th Annual GRAMMY® Awards. The Grateful Dead celebrated their 66th Top 40 album on the Billboard chart —a feat no other artist has achieved —claiming the Guinness World Records title for the most Top 40 albums charted on the US Billboard 200.
Attachments
- Dogfish Head and the Grateful Dead are back with a repeat performance with Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager.
- Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager is hitting shelves nationwide in 6pk/12oz cans.
Megan Bayles Dogfish Head Craft Brewery 3024993149 megan.bayles@dogfish.com
FAQ
What is Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager and when did Dogfish Head (SAM) release it?
How will Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager be sold and distributed by Dogfish Head (SAM)?
What connection does Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager have to Dogfish Head’s previous Grateful Dead beer?
What is the Daydream Playbook that Dogfish Head launched with Citrus Daydream Lager?
Does Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager include sustainable ingredients important to Dogfish Head (SAM)?
What packaging and branding features does Grateful Dead Citrus Daydream Lager use to attract fans?
