MARSHFIELD — If you stop by Stellwagen Beer Company’s taproom, you won’t be able to find its most popular beer.
It sold out in under three days.
In terms of style, the beer isn’t anything revolutionary. It’s a dry-hopped lager that clocks in at 4.6% ABV.
There aren’t any crazy ingredients or adjuncts. In layman’s terms, it’s a beer that tastes like beer.
So why is this one beer singlehandedly flipping Stellwagen’s business on its head?
Everyone wants to try the “Drake Maye beer.”
The “Love the Drake” lager from Stellwagen Beer Company in Marshfield(Nick O’Malley/MassLive)
How ‘Love The Drake’ came to be
Did I say, “Drake Maye beer?” I’m sorry. I meant the “beer featuring the generic football player wearing No. 10 in blue.”
If you’re lucky enough to find a can of it, you can see its proper name, “Love the Drake.”
It’s a simple beer that blends a “Seinfeld” reference with a nod toward the star quarterback of the New England Patriots.
Stellwagen first released “Love the Drake” at the tail end of 2024. The brewery had a new lager in the works when head of sales Eddie Letsche came up with the idea for the name.
At first, he thought it would be for an IPA. But the team at Stellwagen agreed: “Love the Drake” lager was the perfect fit for football season.
The beer draws its name from two sources. The first is a famous scene from “Seinfeld” where Jerry and Elaine grill George about not loving a guy named Drake. That part is represented by elements of the “Seinfeld” logo that’s worked into the can art.
Then there’s the football player. It’s clearly a quarterback in a navy No. 10 jersey and silver pants scrambling with the ball.
It’s a familiar image for Patriots fans who watch Maye work his magic for New England every Sunday. Fortunately for Stellwagen, creative director Annika Phillips made sure to avoid using any logos or trademarked materials in the design.
Letsche says he’s been a little worried about flying too close to the sun with copyright infringement. But they haven’t heard anything yet.
“If we get a cease and desist from (”Seinfeld” creator) Larry David, I’m framing that (expletive).“
After last year’s success, Stellwagen put the lager back into production for the Patriots’ 2025 season.
The response has been beyond anything Stellwagen could have predicted.
“It’s the first beer ever that we’ve had go viral,” says Phillips.
Four-packs of beer cans for sale at Stellwagen Beer Company in Marshfield. They have plenty of beer, but were fresh out of “Love the Drake” at the time.(Nick O’Malley/MassLive)
The people love ‘Love The Drake’
Stellwagen’s social media accounts are full of announcements of upcoming events and promotions. But above all else, it’s laden with updates on the availability of “Love the Drake.”
The loosely Patriots/Seinfeld-themed beer has caught fire on social media. As a result, customers have flocked to liquor stores and the Stellwagen taproom to get ahold of it.
Stellwagen’s most recent run of the lager was made available on Sunday, just in time for the Patriots’ regular-season finale against the Miami Dolphins.
The demand was so intense, they didn’t even bother putting it in kegs. Every drop available in the taprooms went into cans to satisfy the hordes of customers looking to get their hands on it.
Stellwagen continues to distribute cans of “Love the Drake.” But even the liquor stores that are getting shipments of it throughout Eastern and Central Mass. are selling out quickly.
Letsche says Stellwagen’s most recent run was packaged Friday morning before they opened up at noon.
“At 12:01 p.m., there were people walking in and walking out with cases,” he says. “I was like, we might run through this before we actually sell some for this week.”
By Monday, they were sold out.
A sign outside Stellwagen Brewing Company in Marshfield.(Nick O’Malley/MassLive)
They can’t brew it fast enough
Stellwagen has run into a good problem to have.
Demand for “Love the Drake” has outpaced anything else they’ve ever made. Phillips says the brewery has gotten requests from as far as Florida to see if they can ship out four packs.
They can’t. But it’s amazing to hear people ask that.
Instead, Stellwagen is focusing on keeping up with demand without leaning too hard into their breakout hit.
If you visit their taproom today, you can still try out most of their stellar lineup of beers.
Their Stellwagen IPA and Invisible Airwaves do an incredible job of scratching that hoppy itch. They have plenty of conventional light lagers like their Cooler Beer.
Stellwagen has been in operation for eight years now and has put down solid roots on the South Shore. In a craft beer industry where some businesses have struggled, Stellwagen has found a good niche.
It was only recently that their profile exploded with the popularity and demand for “Love the Drake.”
Stellwagen is working to make as much of the beer as it can. But they don’t want to cut corners or jeopardize the project.
Letsche knows that “Love the Drake” will be the first beer that many people ever try from Stellwagen. It’s important to the brewery that they nail the first impression.
To do that, they can’t cut corners. “Love the Drake” is a well-crafted lager with no frills and no ingredients added. It’s just a solid, well-crafted beer that takes time to brew correctly.
Fortunately, Stellwagen has every intent on brewing more. Keep an eye on their social media pages for updates on when it’s available.
I finally got my hands on it
For weeks, I’d been trying to get my hands on this beer. I’d looked on Stellwagen’s social media pages to see which liquor stores were getting shipments.
Several trips later, I had yet to see a can.
I reached out directly to Stellwagen’s taproom. Phillips politely informed me that they were fresh out.
But after driving out to Marshfield, I found out that there was an Irish pub a few miles down the road that was selling cans at the bar.
So, there I was, at Raffety’s Pub in Marshfield. I’d never heard of the place until an hour earlier. But in this moment, it was my beer salvation, thanks to a handful of cans that were still in stock.
Before, all I could do was vouch for Stellwagen’s other beers. But after weeks of beer-hunting, I’m among the many who “Love the Drake.”
