FRIDAYS WITH DAVE: THE DOVE FLIES NO MORE

Naked Dove co-founder Dave Schlosser, photo by author

Naked Dove Brewing in Canandaigua, one of the pioneers of craft brewing in the Finger Lakes, closed its doors for good Sunday after over 15 years, caught in the changing economics of the craft beverage business.

It was in part a victim of its own success. New breweries, wineries, cideries and distilleries are opening every week. You can only slice the pie so thin and the pie itself has been shrinking. People are drinking less, today's economic worries have cut into discretionary spending and young consumers are increasingly turning to seltzers, teas and other products that didn't exist when Naked Dove opened its doors in 2011.

I had been a regular there since about 2012 or so. I kept driving by saying "I have to stop and check them out." Finally, one semester, my daughter had a class at nearby FLCC that got out at 1PM on Friday. That sounded like a plan! I would leave work in Geneva and get to the Dove when the doors opened on Fridays at noon. I would go get them from their class at one. 

I miss the way craft brewing was in the early 2010s. At that time, breweries were not allowed to sell pints, so you would order a flight, typically of four small pours. Very often, the person pouring the beer was the person who made it, so craft beer newbies like me could ask questions about the beers and learn. If you found one you particularly liked, you would fill your 64 ounce growler and be on your way. Customers would ask how long a growler lasts in the refrigerator and I would yell "a couple of hours at the most." Naked Dove kept that vibe right to the end, when many breweries became little more than bars selling their own beer. Crowded and noisy, grab your pint and go sit in the corner.

Naked Dove made a variety of traditional beers very well. Their Berry Naked might have been the most popular, a black raspberry beer that had the taste of fruit, but was very much a beer. The Dove stayed pretty consistent in its product line, choosing not to chase the latest fads. I have a rule about beer names. The longer the name , the worse the beer. Naked Dove would never make a toasted coconut vanilla bean avocado breakfast stout conditioned on Tide Pods and aged in rain barrels. What was my favorite? A few of us were sitting around one day at the bar and every time we though we had our list, someone would say "what about...." and we would say "oh, yeah." My top ten list has 25 entries. 

Naked Dove was my Cheers. Everybody did know my name. The servers would actually get a little worried if I wasn't in my seat by exactly 12 noon on Friday. Frankly, so would I. I don't remember who poured my first Naked Dove beer, but it might have been Kim. Kim was friendly, beautiful and very smart. She helped plan the events and handled merchandise, like glasses and shirts with clever sayings like "you had me at naked" and during the pandemic "beer is essential." She helped create the Love Wins IPA to celebrate Pride Month. She has been a big advocate for women in the industry.

In the early days, co-founder Don Cotter and his wife Donna were often behind the bar. Don told the best version of the story of the Naked Dove name. It was made up from the first names of founders Dave, Don and Ken.

There was Ann Marie, a smart, feisty young lady with a take no crap from anyone attitude. There was Doyle, a big hockey fan. We talked hockey and other lesser sports for hours. In the last year or so, it was often co-founder and brewer Dave Schlosser, who cut his brewing teeth at Rohrbach, Genesee and Custom Brewcrafters. I learned a lot and always enjoyed the conversations. I have forgotten some of the names, but I will never forget your smiles and your friendship.

The end came quickly. Dave announced the closing on social media Friday, saying the last day would be Sunday. I was out of town, so couldn't go until Sunday. I actually got there a little before noon, but was invited in. There wasn't a lot of time for reminiscing. It was kind of like sitting in your best friend's living room while he was packing to move. The inventory had been picked pretty clean on Saturday. A lot of people came in looking for one more Berry Naked fix. It was all gone. How about a six pack of cans? All gone. I sat at the bar and ordered a pint, hoping I could somehow freeze time. I couldn't. I bought a glass and two barrel aged bottles, a Russian Imperial Stout and a Barleywine. They will be saved for special occasions. Birthday, New Year's Eve, maybe a Friday at noon. Then, it was time to go, for me and Naked Dove.

If you go by the building some Friday at lunch time and see a car in the parking lot, that's just me. Stop in and say hi. Maybe we can go get a beer somewhere. Here's to Naked Dove.

For more of Naked Dove's history, read Will Cleveland's excellent Cleveland Prost writeup.