Many breweries claim to have the freshest wet hop brew, but FlyteCo Brewing Hop Is My Co-Pilot likely takes top honors. Early in the morning on Aug. 15, FlyteCo co-founder Eric Serani piloted a small plane from Denver across the Rocky Mountains to Billy Goat Hop Farm on Colorado’s western slope. After a quick tour of the farm, Serani loaded 60 pounds of freshly-picked hops onto his plane and flew back to Denver for a mid-day brew session.

A Passion for Flight

While a fresh-hop flight may sound a bit extreme, it’s hardly surprising given that two of FlyteCo’s founders — Serani and Jason Slingsby — are licensed pilots. Likewise, co-founder Morgan O’Sullivan has several pilots in his family. The trio’s passion for flight is evident in both the brewery name and its original aviation-themed taproom in northwest Denver and second location in a former control tower.

Long Journey to Fresh Hops

On brew day Serani went wheels-up from Denver at the crack of dawn. He and his passengers enjoyed a smooth flight and stunning scenery in his four-seat RV-10 plane during the one-and-a-half-hour flight over the towering Rockies. While they were flying, workers at Billy Goat were hard at work harvesting.

Upon landing at the Montrose airport in southwest Colorado, Serani jumped in an SUV for the 15-minute drive to Billy Goat. Serani and his guests quickly toured the farm before grabbing Cascade and Chinook hops straight from the vine. At the same time, head brewer Jason Slingsby was at the brewery mashing in so that the wort would be ready when the hops arrived.

After a quick flight back to Denver, Serani rushed the hops to the brewery where Slingsby immediately added them to the boil. FlyteCo’s founders estimate the total vine-to-kettle time at an astoundingly short three hours.

Brewing Tradition Becomes Aviation Event

The tradition began in 2019 when when Ryan Evans of Bruz Beers noticed a hop farm close to an airport while camping on Colorado’s Western Slope. He reached out to Serani with the idea of a collab brew using the freshest hops that a private plane could provide. The FlyteCo crew jumped on the idea and created an enduring annual celebration.

In addition to the brewing tradition, FlyteCo invites its friends in the aviation community to caravan out in their own planes. This year eight planes made the journey.

“It’s a little bit of a different flight every year but this year was by far the most fun,” Serani said.

Slingsby encapsulated the day by explaining, “It ties together our brand and our passion for flying with the brewing. It’s not necessarily a practical day but it’s a really fun one.”

Hop Is My Co-Pilot

Slingsby anticipates that FlyteCo Brewing’s Hop Is My Co-Pilot will be a flavor-forward IPA showcasing the Cascade and Chinook hops. He used a base pale malt with a little Vienna and wheat, targeting a mid-6% ABV.

“It’ll drink a little bit bigger and more full and hopefully stand up to all of the fresh hops in there,” he said. For good measure, Serani and Slingsby plan another flight this week to collect more hops for dry-hopping.

If all goes as planned, the brewery will celebrate the long-distance harvest with a mid-September release. FlyteCo will hold release parties at both the original 38th Avenue location and the newer FlyteCo Tower in Denver’s Central Park neighborhood. O’Sullivan encouraged beer-lovers to try the beer as close to release as possible for the most intense hop experience. “It’s best the moment that it’s tapped,” he said.

A True Colorado Collaboration

Alongside FlyteCo Brewing’s Hop Is My Co-Pilot, the brewery features a full range of beer styles on 20 taps, including lagers, stouts and of course several IPAs. Slingsby hopes to use the hops collected this week in at least one other brew style.

Billy Goat is a small, 32-acre farm near Montrose, Colorado, owned by Chris Della Bianca and Audrey Gehlhausen. The pair grows nine hop varieties in the dry southwestern climate. While a far cry from traditional farms in the wet Pacific Northwest, drip irrigation and abundant Colorado sunshine turn out abundant crops of flavorful hops.

In the end, the happy convergence of an aviation-focused brewery and a local Colorado hop farm ensures that Denver-area drinkers can enjoy probably the freshest wet-hop brew in the nation.

Featured image credit: Anna Norman

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