It's a Dogfish and pinot show.
Their act, perfected over five years, 20 drink-off dinners, and now the book He Said Beer, She Said Wine (Dorling Kindersley, $25), is pairing wines and beers with specific foods and judging which beloved libation is the winner.
A hard choice, but someone has to make it.
"Once we turned it into a contest, where people scored their choices, a war of the sexes, it just worked," Calagione says.
For the record, there's little war: Both beverage connoisseurs are 38, married to their high school sweethearts, and get along swimmingly.
He Said, She Said, with zippy photographs, recipes and ballots, pairs beer and wine with everything: pot roast, salad, sushi, hoagies, ham, ribs, pecan pie and, yes, a tuna salad sandwich (Neil Ellis Sincerely Sauvignon Blanc or De Ranke XX Bitter, a Belgian golden ale).
Which means their lunches are more lively than most Americans' midday repasts.
Beer Guy and Wine Woman will stage one of their tonier contests in the jeweled XIX Restaurant next Thursday during Philly Beer Week.
Wine Woman realizes she's at a distinct disadvantage as the challenger, pushing grapes in the midst of so much hops. Then again, Beer Guy competed two years ago at the Pittsburgh Wine Festival.
"It was like bringing a knife to a gunfight," Calagione says.
"Everyone has these preconceived misconceptions about what drink goes with what dish," Beer Guy says. "We're trying to make people look at beer and wine differently but in a fun way."
Wine Woman is unafraid to declare that a wine tastes "leathery." Beer Guy fearlessly compares a lambic to a "horse blanket." Their point is to be less of a snob about wine, and more open about good beer.
