A novel hot-wire flowmeter based on a silver-coated optical fiber Bragg grating (FBG) cascaded by waist-enlarged bitaper is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The silver coating deposited on the surface of the FBG absorbs light of a pump laser, which is coupled into the fiber cladding by the specially-fabricated fiber waist-enlarged bitaper, to generate heat. Thus, the temperature of the FBG increases to a certain level, while air flow cools down the FBG by taking heat away. Bragg wavelength of the FBG changes with velocity of air flow according to a certain relationship. Experimental results show that a large measurement range up to 13.7 m/s is realized.