Flyway Wings Its Way to Memphis

Flyway Brewing Co. has seen major expansion in the past few months. (Provided)

Matt Foster still gets a thrill when he visits, say, a truck stop in Hope and sees cans of Flyway Bluewing beer in the cooler.

Flyway Brewing Co. of North Little Rock got its start in 2013 or so, with Foster, an English teacher at Little Rock Central High School from 1999 to 2015, brewing beer on his back porch. Last month, Flyway announced it was expanding into Memphis with the purchase of High Cotton Brewing Co. at 598 Monroe Ave. and the adjoining space formerly occupied by the restaurant Edge Alley at 600 Monroe.

Flyway opened its first location, a 10-barrel microbrewery and taproom and restaurant, at 314 Maple St. in the Argenta District in December 2015. That’s where it produces its kegs for statewide distribution.

It opened its second location, in Fayetteville, in November, taking over the former site of Apple Blossom Brewing Co.

The March 31 tornado delayed the opening of Flyway’s taproom in Breckenridge Village in Little Rock, but Foster, co-owner and co-founder of Flyway, said the build-out on that space is beginning.

And now Memphis. Foster noted that the Flyway brand was inspired by the Mississippi Flyway, the great bird migration route that roughly follows the Mississippi River, and he finds it fitting that the company should find itself in Memphis, on the banks of the great river.

For the foray into Memphis, Flyway has teamed up with the ownership group behind City Silo Table + Pantry, which has locations in Memphis and Little Rock. And Ross Avery, president of High Cotton Brewing, will also have an ownership stake in the new venture.

Scott Tashie, who with his wife, Rebekah, founded and co-owns City Silo, is part of the Memphis ownership group of Flyway. Flyway will be combining the High Cotton and Edge Alley spaces to create a taproom-restaurant similar to the Flyway in North Little Rock and seating about 100, Tashie said.

The space will also feature a special events room, complete with a stage and sound equipment, that looks into the brewing operation.

But Flyway will be maintaining the High Cotton brand, Foster said, describing High Cotton, a seven-barrel brewery, as one of Memphis’ pioneering craft beer brands. Part of Flyway’s “mission there in Memphis is to help maintain the tradition that High Cotton started and keep their brand alive,” Foster said.

High Cotton continues to operate in its space, and Foster hopes that the enlarged restaurant area will be open this summer.

Flyway Brewing now has about 100 employees, Foster said, and the company had a record sales year in 2023, with the North Little Rock location posting $2.6 million in sales.

In addition to the thrill of spotting his beer around the state, Foster said the recent Little Rock Marathon provided another proud moment: Flyway Light was the official beer of the marathon, with each marathon finisher of drinking age getting a free cold one. “That was just one of those moments where I was like, ‘Wow, this is wild. This is so cool.’”