hops

‘Love it or hate it’ homebrew hop goes pro

Jason Perrault, Pettault Farms, Hop Breeding Company, Select BotanicalsThe Hop Breeding Company just announced it has given a full name to an experimental hop previously known simply as HBC 438, the homebrew hop, or Ron Mexico. That means Sabro brand HBC 438 will be sold to commercial breweries to use on a larger scale.

It’s pretty well guaranteed to be a star. It has the attributes brewers intent on delivering tropical and other bold aromas are looking for, with a high percentage of essential oils (3-3.4 mL/100g; Cascade has 0.8-2.5, Citra 1.5-3), and particular compounds (linalool and geraniol) considered markers for outsized flavor. Based on its lineage, it also likely contains thiols that contribute to New World character.

I first had a chance to smell HBC 438 when I spoke at Hop Union’s Hop & Brew School in 2013. It was one of several unlabeled varieties, including commercially available hops and experimental ones, and one of two that “popped” at first whiff, Simcoe being the other. On that day, at least, I preferred the aroma to Citra and Mosaic (which were also on the table). I gave it high marks for tropical fruit, stone fruit, herbal and spicy, and liked a subtle cedar note. But I also gave it five (out of seven) for onion/garlic (less than Mosaic, more than Citra). Of course that was only the aroma of the raw hop.

Beers made with the variety will be poured at the Craft Brewers Conference Brew Expo American in Nashville next week, where I’ll be able to ask about how much Sabro will be available after the 2018 harvest. (I’ll also ask about thiols, and report back in Hop Queries.)

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Hops 2018

Johann Barth & Sohn, which today has grown into the Barth-Haas Group, was founded in 1794. Hopsteiner was incorporated in 1845. They sell hops. They are German. They are traditional. These are not flavors they talked about hops adding to beer a decade ago. But here we are now. Their advertisements in the current issue of The New Brewer.

Barth-Haas advertisement, The New Brewer

Hopsteiner advertisement, The New Brewer

Monday beer links: All that glitters isn’t hops

BEER AND WINE LINKS 03.26.18

Essential oils in hops
Something’s Brewing in the Lab: Beer Without Hops.
Industrial brewing yeast engineered for the production of primary flavor determinants in hopped beer.
I’ve written a bit about this in the next Hop Queries newsletter (which goes out Tuesday), so just three quick points. First, we’re not talking hopsless beer. The full report (second link) has the details. Second, the researchers have focused on two key compounds (linalool and geraniol), but hops contain more 500 compounds and scientists have not identified what (if anything) they all add to aroma and flavor. It is one thing to create a “hoppy” flavor. It is another to replicate Citra (not that folks aren’t trying; Hop Queries also digs into blending research this month). Third, genetically modified yeast.

Glitter Beer: The Full Report.
Glitter Beer Sparkles as Spring’s Craft Beer Trend.
Those who said “this too shall pass” about juicy/hazy IPAs may want to brace themselves. Jeff Alworth gives it the full Beer Bible treatment. A lot more details, for instance, about glitter here than sahti in his book, which allows for considerable comment about the food safety factor. This is not to suggest that breweries are adding anything that will harm you, but it reminds me that far too many brewers are casual about filing the proper government paperwork when a beer will only be sold on draft. They are legally required to obtain formula approval when adding any ingredient that is not on the TTB approved list. Some I have talked to think it is necessary only when seeking label approval for packaged beer.

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A hop blast from the past, and UK champion

I originally intended to include a few paragraphs about this in the next volume of Hop Queries but it grew a bit longer. The free newsletter will mail Friday.

“Too bitter, rank and slightly unpleasant” in 1935. The winner in judging for the British Hop Awards for 2017.

Can you name that hop?

A hint. Her sister is 19 percent of the pedigree of Citra.

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Miracle Brew: Continuing beer education

Miracle Brew by Pete BrownBeer writer Pete Brown was conducting a tasting of IPAs when a woman in the audience raised her hand to ask a question.

“If these beers have got so many hops in, are they still suitable for celiacs?”

He replied that hops don’t contain any glutens.

“Ah, so they’re not barley hops then?”

He offers this story as a footnote in his latest book, Miracle Brew, writing that “ironically, she could only misunderstand beer so dramatically because, compared to most people she was better informed and more engaged.”

Brown is currently visiting the American northeast in support of Miracle Brew and he’ll likely get similar questions. Plenty of beer consumers are playing catch up, keen on learning the basics but also something that goes beyond. Consider a recent story from NPR about “how sour beer is driving a microbial gold rush.” That’s a conversation several steps removed from barstool discussions about if bock is really just beer left over from the bottom of the barrel (a myth, but it lives on).

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