July 22, 2008 - Jim Caruso may have studied economics, but beer is his passion. The new CEO of Flying Dog Brewery in Frederick has been with the company 14 years. He loves Frederick, and the Maryland-Virginia market is a top priority for the brewery, especially since it moved all of its operations to Wedgewood Boulevard, he said.

"We still have our chief financial officer and senior marketing person in Denver," Caruso said in an interview at the Frederick plant Thursday. "But all of our beer is manufactured here."

Though Caruso lives in Denver, he spends 150 days a year traveling.

"Basically, my office is an airport," he joked. He was in Frederick for a few days to meet with the crew. Then he was off to Georgia, Florida and other sites to promote the Flying Dog products. Seventy percent of Flying Dog sales are east of Ohio, hence the move to Frederick. Flying Dog purchased the struggling Frederick Brewing Co. in 2006 for $1.4 million, changed the name to Wild Goose Brewery, named for one of the products, then to Flying Dog Brewery. The outside of the building now has the Flying Dog logos and the tasting room is decorated in Flying Dog artwork, inspired by Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson and created by British artist and Thompson affiliate, Ralph Steadman. The move did increase the cost of transporting beer to the West Coast.

Hauling it to the Pacific Northwest adds $2 per six pack to cover costs.

But like most businesses, Flying Dog is working to save money and energy.

"It used to take about seven gallons of water to make one gallon of beer. With new technology, we have cut that to 4.4 gallons of water," Caruso said.

Spent grain is sent to farmers for animal feed, the amount of chemicals and particulates going down the drain has been cut, and the plant is considering use of solar panels.

They even changed tasting cups to ones made from 80 percent corn. "They will biodegrade in 180 days, or you can stick them in the microwave and they will degrade immediately," Caruso said.

It is not just the brewery business that has to look at cutting costs, he said. A 40-pound box of hops is now $1,000, he said, noting that there are some hops growing on a trellis outside the building. The price of glass is up and the company doesn't use cans.

"It is not a question of recession, but inflation," Caruso said. "We are continuing to give a high quality product, but have to look at all costs." Sales of craft beer made by micro-breweries such as Flying Dog are up 15 percent, Caruso said, making it an affordable luxury at $1 to $1.25 a bottle.

"Even if we raised the price 50 to 75 cents, it would still only be 10 cents a bottle more for a six pack."

Production at the plant is about 60,000 barrels a year, though that could be easily doubled with more of the 300-gallon tanks used to ferment the beer.

"If we only did one type of beer, we could do a lot more, but what is the fun in that? We have all types from light summer beers to ales and darker beers," he said--18 different beers, in fact, including Wild Goose and Flying Dog, as well as some contracted for Brewer's Alley and a company in Georgia.

One of the most popular is a pumpkin beer, produced seasonally that will be available in mid August.

"It is a most wonderful beer," Caruso said.

Although its dark, porter beer has been one of Flying Dog's main products, Caruso said the company will introduce in about a month a special porter in limited quality, aged five months in 60 whiskey barrels to give it a woody flavor. The beer will be sold in champagne bottles, complete with cork and wire tops.

"It is a beer that can actually be aged up to five years and will probably taste even better," Caruso said. "It's a killer beer." Dark beer is more suited to heavy meals and even chocolate, Caruso said. Like picking the right wine for dinner, choosing the right beer is just as important and depends on the food.

Besides the 50 employees at the brewery, the company outsources hand-packing for its variety six packs. Employees at the Jeanne Bussard Center pack about 450 cases a day.

"We don't have the room or people to do it here," Caruso said. "So we haul the beer there, they pack it and then we bring it back here." Caruso began his career at Broadway Brewery in Denver in 1995. Flying Dog bought out Broadway in 1999, and he became the company's chairman. He has taken the helm from previous CEO Eric Warner, who will stay on for a couple of months as an adviser.

"It is a seamless transition since I've been with the company for so long," Caruso said. "I hope that one day when I decide to move on, there is someone to take over just as seamlessly."

Forbes magazine picked the Flying Dog Brewery as one of the best in the nation for a tour. Those are held on Saturdays, Caruso said, and typically draw 125 to 130 people.

"We also have occasional SIN cookouts. That's Service Industry Nights. We invite bartenders, hotel people, waiters. We have a cookout but it's not for the public," Caruso said.

The brewery does special tours and cookouts for small groups that have to be pre-arranged.