Jerry Smith

The News Journal

It was the love of Harry Potter that led Rob Spengler to propose to Crystal Sullivan. Likewise, it was the love of Harry Potter that brought the Severna Park, Maryland, couple to Mispillion River Brewery on Saturday.

They were in Milford with more than 500 other people as Mispillion released five Potter-themed beers at the all-ages event called “Fantastic Beers and Where to Find Them” held in honor of the upcoming movie release of “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.”

Spengler was the first person in line at 10 a.m. for the event that opened at noon, which ensured he, his fiancé and a group of friends they would get their special edition commemorative pint glasses.

The Milford brewery paired the beers with four commemorative glasses, each dedicated to a house of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry: Gryffindor (9% ABV Double IPA), Slytherin (dry hopped sour), Hufflepuff (6% ABV Kolsch) and Ravenclaw (5.2% ABV Porter). Deathly Hallows, the brewery's small-batch Belgian Tripel, made its annual return as well.

“We collect pint glasses, and we couldn’t pass this up, especially when Mispillion announced they would have the Harry Potter commemorative pint glasses,” said Spengler, who proposed to Sullivan at Harry Potter World in Orland, Florida. “We’ll work our way through them and then head home to start our Harry Potter movie marathon.”

Mispillion River Brewery owner Eric Williams said he downplayed the event, but when he looked at Facebook and saw that the event post reached 20,000 people, it was shared 180 times and more than 400 people were coming, he was floored.

“We’re just blown away,” said Williams, who was in a full wizard costume. “Now it’s down to having fun, drinking beer and honoring our dorkiness.”

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There was no doubt when folks drove up to the brewery near start time that it would be a big event. The exclamation point was the line all around the brewery to the front door. Employees were stopping at each person in the long line and drawing the name one of the four houses in the Harry Potter movie series to determine what glass each patron would receive when they bought their first beer.

Patrick Campbell, of Dover, was about midway through the line and was worried he wouldn’t get inside to receive one of the 480 glasses ordered by Mispillion. If he didn’t, he was going to take advantage of the offer to order a set, which would come in the near future.

“I love Harry Potter. I’m a freakin' huge fan,” said Campbell, who was dressed in Harry Potter garb and even traveled to Edinburgh, Scotland, to visit the Elephant House Café where J.K. Rowling penned her first book. “I’ve read all the books three times, and I’ve had the Deathly Hallows beer here and it was great. I wasn’t going to miss this event.”

Lisa Vest, of Dover, and Rob Alloway, of Bear, have been to Mispillion River Brewery on a few occasions and made the trip on Saturday mainly for the beer. But the thought of wearing Harry Potter-themed costumes while drinking the themed brews appealed to them.

“It’s the quality of the beer that really brings us here, but then you come and get a unique experience like this where you dovetail on Harry Potter, and it’s fascinating,” Alloway said. “It’s all meant for you to be a Hogwarts family.”

Reach Jerry Smith at jsmith17@delawareonline.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JerrySmithTNJ.