Father and son alumni David and Aaron Hopkins continue their family’s agricultural legacy with Hopkins Produce farm stand and Hopkins Farm Brewery. Their hyper-local brews and hand-harvested sweet corn are admired near and far.

Farm-to-glass brewery

Article by Molly Schafer Photos by Kathy F. Atkinson April 02, 2025

Father and son alumni David and Aaron Hopkins continue their family’s agricultural legacy

Since the 1920s, the Hopkins Family has farmed the same plot of land in Havre De Grace, Maryland. The tight-knit bunch enjoys working together, and that hasn’t changed in more than a century. What has changed is the way the Hopkins utilize their land and resources.

The farm housed a dairy from 1926 until 2000. Since then, the Hopkins family has produced tomatoes for canning and grain crops like barley, corn, wheat and soybeans. Today, fresh produce, grown on-site and harvested by hand, is sold at Hopkins Produce farm stand, and beer, brewed on-site, is served at Hopkins Farm Brewery.

“Things change in farming and agriculture, and you have to change with them,” said David Hopkins, a UD Class of 1979 alumnus of the University of Delaware Department of Plant and Soil Sciences. “I think a half dozen dairy farms might be left in Harford County, maybe a few more. In the 1970s, there were probably 120, and you could make a good living milking cows.”

As times changed, two generations of Blue Hens helped make the family farm the thriving business it is today. David grows the barley, and his son Aaron Hopkins, a UD Class of 2012 UD food and agribusiness marketing and management alumnus, uses it to create a unique range of craft beers. The father and son UD alumni duo are joined in their endeavors by David’s siblings, Alice Hopkins Puckett and Daniel Hopkins, who are co-owners of the farm and managing partners of Hopkins Farm Brewery.

The Hopkins’ hyper-local brews and hand-harvested sweet corn are admired near and far. In 2024, Aaron received a gold medal at the World Beer Cup, which purports to be “the most prestigious beer competition in the world.” For the past 30 years, David has claimed to produce the best sweet corn in Harford County, possibly the East Coast.

David Hopkins, UD plant science alumnus, farmer and operator of Hopkins Produce, grows the barley his son Aaron Hopkins, UD agribusiness alumnus, uses in brewing beers and seltzers on-site.

When asked if the best sweet corn title is self-given, David smiled.

“Pretty much,” he agreed amicably.

“The people awarded it,” Aaron said, backing up his father and crediting the farmstand customers.

The two clearly enjoy each other's company and good humor — almost as much as the farmstand customers enjoy their delicious sweet corn.

Aaron’s interest in brewing beer started during a senior agribusiness class at UD. The class project was to develop a business plan for an agriculture-based business. Aaron was considering a farm-to-table restaurant.

“That’s when it all started for me career-wise,” Aaron said of the project.

The same week his business idea was due in class, Aaron attended an event at the UD Barnes & Noble Bookstore. As Aaron listened to a local author read from a newly released book, the seed of another idea was planted in his mind. The speaker was Sam Calagione, co-founder of Dogfish Head Brewery, now a Delaware institution.

“It was really cool to listen to him read,” Aaron said. “It led me to change my project to a farm-to-table brewery.”

“That class project set everything in motion,” Aaron said. “I knew, eventually, we could do this on our farm. That was the goal.”

Aaron founded Chesapeake Malting Company in 2014, providing locally-grown and hand-crafted malted grains to breweries and distilleries throughout Maryland.

“Aaron was home-brewing and working at different breweries,” David said. “Then around 2018, my brother, his uncle, said, ‘Let's build a farm brewery.’”

Hopkins Farm Brewery’s “Level Common” received a gold medal at the 2024 World Beer Cup. The beer is named after Level Road, the farm’s address, and is brewed using barley and corn grown on-site in Havre De Grace, Maryland.

Flash forward to 2024, and Hopkins Farm Brewery’s “Level Common” received a gold medal in the historical beer category at the World Beer Cup. The beer is named after Level Road, the farm’s address, and was brewed using barley and corn grown on-site. A best-in-class award from the Maryland Craft Beer Competition followed later that year.

Aaron said it’s a surreal feeling that his farm-to-table brewery dream has become a reality.

“What we were able to do with the whole family involved is a lot bigger and more amazing than what I dreamed of while doing that project at UD,” Aaron said.

“If Aaron hadn’t gone to the University of Delaware and met Sam, we might not be sitting here in this brewery today,” David said.

The proud father is not one to mince words.

“Now he's busy brewing beer, and I’m doing all the farming around here,” joked David, whose cantaloupes and watermelons are as popular as his sweet corn.

Luckily help is on the way for David, who is looking forward to semi-retiring from the produce business. His nephew Mitchell is keen to continue the Hopkins farming legacy, and plans are underway for the younger generation to take on a portion of the business.

The spacious brewery is situated so patrons can enjoy the sunset from the patio, and the interior is decorated with reclaimed barn wood and stone found on the property. There are pavilion tents, space for events and 16 beers on tap, including mainstays and rotating seasonal brews. Seltzers and slushies are also popular offerings.

“We always have ‘field of dreams’ on tap,” Aaron said. “It’s a light lager we make with Hopkins Farm corn. Susquehanna Flats, our first IPA, is another staple.”

The Hopkins family has been farming the same plot of land since the 1920s. Father and son UD alumni duo David and Aaron Hopkins are joined in their endeavors by David’s siblings, Alice Hopkins Puckett and Daniel Hopkins, who are co-owners of the farm and managing partners of Hopkins Farm Brewery. Nephew Mitchell is keen to continue the Hopkins farming legacy, and plans are underway for the younger generation to take on a portion of the business.

In addition to using ingredients grown on Hopkins Farm, the brewery dedicates itself to using local ingredients and supporting local businesses whenever possible.

Aaron admits after creating a few hundred varieties, inspiration for new beers is harder to come by.

“We try to use local fruits whenever we can,” Aaron said. “Local farms will reach out with the availability of different fruit or ingredients and that will help spark something new.”

There is little doubt the Hopkins family will continue to try new things as they work to preserve their agricultural legacy for the fourth generation.

“I hope to keep them involved and keep it in the family,” David said. “Keep it going, make it a little better, and pass it down to the next generation. And right now, we're in a good place with all that.”

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