Hops

Hops are one of the primary ingredients used to make beer. They are flowers that possess both bittering and aroma characteristics, with brewers selecting different varieties of hops to brew different styles of beer. The Northeastern United States (New York State in particular) was once the largest hop producing region in the country. For a number of reasons, poor production practices and Prohibition among them, large-scale domestic hop production is now centered in the Pacific Northwest. However, hops are still being grown in the Northeast today, and an effort is underway to increase production throughout the region. OUR HOPS Our hops will differentiate themselves not only by being regionally grown, but also by being of the highest quality. We pelletize at  low temperatures, which preserves more of the essential oils and provides the hops with a compelling appearance and aroma. Brewers will receive a lab analysis along with their hops, which will arrive packaged in vacuum sealed, nitrogen flushed bags. Read More > ABOUT HOPS Hop flowers form on bines, which in many ways are similar to vines. Commercially, bines are trained to spiral up strands of twine that are suspended from a trellis structure. A hop trellis can reach up to twenty feet tall, and hop plants will generally reach the top of the trellis in 6-8 weeks. Planting and harvesting hops is labor intensive. Once harvested, proper drying of the hop cones is a critical step needed to preserve their aroma and structure for brewing. While some craft brewers still use whole leaf hops in their brewing process, the vast majority rely on hop pellets. Read More >