If you have been to our Beer Hall recently, you may have noticed some beers available on draft either called “Co-Pilot” or “Test Flight.” Both series are brand new and coming straight from our Pilot System. This 5-barrel system is the home to all of our small-batch, brewery exclusive, experimental beers. Both series are draft only and are used to test new recipes on a smaller scale.
The Co-Pilot series will be brewed monthly to experiment with different ingredients, flavors, styles, and brewing techniques. Our Co-Pilot beers may eventually become beers in the Jack’s Abby or Springdale lineup, and are brewed as a collaboration between both production teams.
Test Flight is a new program we have been developing in-house to give brewery employees a chance to experiment and learn the brewing process through hands-on involvement. Every two months, a team of employees from production, to sales, to our Beer Hall staff, get together to brew their own unique beer. The team gets to write their own recipe and develop a beer from start to finish. The Test Flight program has been great for team building in the brewery. Our first team recently brewed a watermelon gose that is available now at the Beer Hall.
“Brewing a Test Flight beer was such a great experience as it gave me a real in-depth look at the ins and outs of making a beer – from conception to ordering ingredients to deciding glassware.” – Kat Leggett, PR & Events Manager.
In the future, there will be opportunities for you to brew a Test Flight beer on our Pilot system! We will be doing giveaways at events, on social media, and through other opportunities for you to brew a beer with us. Stay tuned for these exciting opportunities, and we can’t wait to have you as part of our flight crew. Prost!
Our first “Test Flight” crew holding their freshly brewed watermelon gose
