A BREWERY and a private jet operator have teamed up to offerVIP business trips for £50,000.

Fly Me Now, a private jet and helicopter charter company based in York, and the Great Yorkshire Brewery, in Cropton, near Pickering, have put together a package that would see a lucky ale fan and seven of their friends spend the day at the brewery, designing and making their own tipple.

Andrew Whitney, Fly Me Now commercial director, said: “The itinerary will start from their home anywhere in the UK, with their very own private aircraft picking them up. They will then be whisked to the party away to Cropton, in North Yorkshire, for what some will describe as the most expensive brewery tour.

“These beer connoisseurs will have a full tour of the brewery and each one will have the chance to get involved with all parts of the beer-making process, from mashing in to adding the hops.”

The budding brewers will then have the chance to design and taste a bespoke beer and receive 1,000 bottles delivered to their door.

Joanne Taylor, director of The Great Yorkshire Brewery, said: “Having thoroughly researched the idea of a VIP brewery tour takeover, we found that never before has a guest been able to essentially take full control of a brewery for a whole day and leave with their very own premium beer, bottled and labelled exclusively for them.

“With a price tag of £49,995, the experience is not for the faint-hearted, but if you want to treat your nearest and dearest to a present they will never forget, this is the perfect solution.

“Also, being proper Yorkshire, obviously we have already run the numbers, and the cost of your very own premium beer per bottle is just £6.25.”

 

• And if the £50,000 brewery tour isn’t unusual enough, here are a few more suggestions: Cocktail queen: A six-foot imperial shaker made from cast iron, brass, copper and silver, comes with a one-year supply of Tanqueray gin and a personal cocktail tutorial for up to 20 guests. It costs £22,000 from department store Neiman Marcus.

Future heirloom: Harrods is selling a £9,000 advent calendar with 24 ornaments behind each of the windows, a collection they say is “sure to earn its place as a family heirloom of the future”.

High roller: For the minimalist games room, the £42,000 ultra-modern Nottage Design pool table is made of toughened glass covered by a transparent surface that replicates the feel of a traditional cloth-topped version.

Posh coffee: Terra Neva coffee, from the Peruvian Andes, is the caviar of coffee beans and comes in a sterling silver sack – 500g costs £3,400.

Perfume dispenser: A perfume-filled decanter with 15,000 ruby Swarovski stones from Harrods is yours for £5,500.

Fine words: Find £2,225 and a Geoffrey Parker Scrabble set in cherry wood, inlaid with a printed, hand-bound leather board with leather Scrabble letters and letter racks is yours.

Gold shoelaces: £12,000 will get you a pair of 24 carat gold laces – of which there are only 10 pairs in the world.

Dressing down: An Only Fools and Horses dressing gown, styled to look like Del Boy’s sheepskin coat, is only £35.

Astro-noughts: £156,000 will get you a seat on Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic spacecraft.

Deep sea: Finally, a mere £36m will pay for a Triton Submarine three-person 36000/3 submersible, which can reach depths of 36,000 feet.