On a Friday morning a couple weeks back, my phone buzzed after dropping my son off at school. A text from Jude La Rose, co-founder of Hop Butcher for the World appeared, inviting me to come by their Taproom that afternoon for the release of a new Wet-Hopped Pale Ale called
They canned theirs, so I bet it was made at their other location. Regardless the Wet Hop vibes were kickin on Lincoln and that’s all that matters. Sticky Fat! What a blast from the past.
I wish they told you when you were in the good old days.
Some (possibly irrelevant) perspective from a PNW hop farmer on your what-ifs at the end:
-I think the northwest is starting/continuing to do this, where the hop farm is being called out on the can or in social media!
-At scale, fresh hops don’t really make sense as a sale, but are naturally more of a marketing opportunity to get brewers out and connected to the farm. And I’m not sure about WA or ID, but it’s pretty common for us OR hop farms to help brewers find the hops they’re looking for from a neighbor if our harvest schedule/their brew schedule don’t line up.
-I’d love to see a fresh hop beer database/posting that consolidates all of them in one place! I visited Colorado and was pleasantly surprised to stumble across some fresh hop beers, but wish I could’ve known where to look!
I appreciate the feedback and certainly relevant perspective. I didn't mean for the What IFs to be presented as brand new concepts or ideas, but an "imagine if" a new concerted effort went into all these things coming together for a reinvigorated push with today's environment considered. All of this is aimed toward the broader US, not those in OR who don't face as many constraints as a brewery in say the Southeast.
We've collaborated with Haas, Crosby / Hop Revolution, and Hop Head Farms with their logos on the labels of beers and they were all awesome experiences, getting us closer to our partners with stronger friendships made. I'm just feeling that the timing could be coming up on right for a new-age concerted push
Love that imagine if concept! And I definitely feel spoiled being in Oregon where most brewers are able to make at least one fresh hop, but some as many as 12!
Great overview; I hadn't considered the fact that "fresh" and "wet" are often used interchangeably when there's such a clear difference between them.
I'm ashamed that I never tried Fist to Table, and more ashamed to admit that I was unaware of its existence! But that's life out in DuPage County lol.
Very pleased that Floyd's continues to release Broo Doo each year, even if it's "only" partially wet-hopped. This year's Born Yesterday from Lagunita's might be the most dazzling wet-hopped IPA I've ever had; I can totally feel the hop oils roll around on my tongue with each sip. Think I'm going to have to grab a second 6er, which is something I rarely say with any seasonal these days....
Farm to Fist. All good. The economics are so bad that it was impossible to use small batch packaging AND cut in distributors AND retailers without losing your shirt. So it was just available at our locations, which isn't our normal or preferred business model. Would have never expected someone from DuPage to know about it or make that long of a trip. Appreciate the feedback as always and I'll definitely be looking to pick up some Broo Doo.
Glad to hear Jude & Co at Hop Butcher are continuing the Lincoln Ave tradition of wet hop beers on that 15 bbl system.
Half Acre Beer’s Sticky Fat Wet Hop American Dark Ale was an all time favorite of mine as an ex-HABC guy and just an all around beverage fan.
Love all the articles, Doug.
They canned theirs, so I bet it was made at their other location. Regardless the Wet Hop vibes were kickin on Lincoln and that’s all that matters. Sticky Fat! What a blast from the past.
I wish they told you when you were in the good old days.
Thanks for reading!
Some (possibly irrelevant) perspective from a PNW hop farmer on your what-ifs at the end:
-I think the northwest is starting/continuing to do this, where the hop farm is being called out on the can or in social media!
-At scale, fresh hops don’t really make sense as a sale, but are naturally more of a marketing opportunity to get brewers out and connected to the farm. And I’m not sure about WA or ID, but it’s pretty common for us OR hop farms to help brewers find the hops they’re looking for from a neighbor if our harvest schedule/their brew schedule don’t line up.
-I’d love to see a fresh hop beer database/posting that consolidates all of them in one place! I visited Colorado and was pleasantly surprised to stumble across some fresh hop beers, but wish I could’ve known where to look!
I appreciate the feedback and certainly relevant perspective. I didn't mean for the What IFs to be presented as brand new concepts or ideas, but an "imagine if" a new concerted effort went into all these things coming together for a reinvigorated push with today's environment considered. All of this is aimed toward the broader US, not those in OR who don't face as many constraints as a brewery in say the Southeast.
We've collaborated with Haas, Crosby / Hop Revolution, and Hop Head Farms with their logos on the labels of beers and they were all awesome experiences, getting us closer to our partners with stronger friendships made. I'm just feeling that the timing could be coming up on right for a new-age concerted push
Love that imagine if concept! And I definitely feel spoiled being in Oregon where most brewers are able to make at least one fresh hop, but some as many as 12!
Stop rubbing it in 😉 (pun intended)
Great overview; I hadn't considered the fact that "fresh" and "wet" are often used interchangeably when there's such a clear difference between them.
I'm ashamed that I never tried Fist to Table, and more ashamed to admit that I was unaware of its existence! But that's life out in DuPage County lol.
Very pleased that Floyd's continues to release Broo Doo each year, even if it's "only" partially wet-hopped. This year's Born Yesterday from Lagunita's might be the most dazzling wet-hopped IPA I've ever had; I can totally feel the hop oils roll around on my tongue with each sip. Think I'm going to have to grab a second 6er, which is something I rarely say with any seasonal these days....
Farm to Fist. All good. The economics are so bad that it was impossible to use small batch packaging AND cut in distributors AND retailers without losing your shirt. So it was just available at our locations, which isn't our normal or preferred business model. Would have never expected someone from DuPage to know about it or make that long of a trip. Appreciate the feedback as always and I'll definitely be looking to pick up some Broo Doo.
Well no wonder I never tried it lol