Inflight beer: How brewers make craft beers for high altitude

By Kate Springer, CNN
5 minute read
Updated 12:51 PM EDT, Fri April 7, 2017
<strong>Beer crafted for planes: What's the difference? </strong>A few airlines are pouring energy into enhancing their onboard beer experience -- by introducing beers specially brewed for flights. Teaming up with Hong Kong Brew Co., Cathay Pacific is the latest to join the game.
Beer crafted for planes: What's the difference? A few airlines are pouring energy into enhancing their onboard beer experience -- by introducing beers specially brewed for flights. Teaming up with Hong Kong Brew Co., Cathay Pacific is the latest to join the game.
courtesy Cathay Pacific
<strong>Cathay Pacific's Betsy Beer: </strong>Named after the airline's first plane -- a 1940s Douglas DC-3 -- Betsy is an unfiltered wheat-based beer made with pilsner, featuring Hong Kong honey, longan fruit and English Fuggle hops.
Cathay Pacific's Betsy Beer: Named after the airline's first plane -- a 1940s Douglas DC-3 -- Betsy is an unfiltered wheat-based beer made with pilsner, featuring Hong Kong honey, longan fruit and English Fuggle hops.
courtesy Cathay Pacific
<strong>A crowd-pleaser: </strong>Betsy is described as being light, fresh and slightly sweet. "The honey was the obvious addition as this helps to reduce the hop bitterness which is accentuated at pressure," says Toby Cooper, founder of the Craft Beer Association of Hong Kong.
A crowd-pleaser: Betsy is described as being light, fresh and slightly sweet. "The honey was the obvious addition as this helps to reduce the hop bitterness which is accentuated at pressure," says Toby Cooper, founder of the Craft Beer Association of Hong Kong.
courtesy Cathay Pacific
<strong>Lively on the tongue: </strong>"The place where (the beer) is most different is that the beer has about 10% carbonation -- that's to push the aroma and counteract the numbing of the senses you get inflight. This makes the beer livelier on the tongue," says Devin Kimble, director of Hong Kong Beer Co.
Lively on the tongue: "The place where (the beer) is most different is that the beer has about 10% carbonation -- that's to push the aroma and counteract the numbing of the senses you get inflight. This makes the beer livelier on the tongue," says Devin Kimble, director of Hong Kong Beer Co.
courtesy Cathay Pacific