Basics on Hops Flashcards
How many hop farmers are there worldwide? How many of those are within the United States?
There are an estimated 4,800 hop farmers worldwide, with less than 100 in America. But those few American hop farmers more than pull their weight. The United States is home to about 30% of today’s world hop supply.
How are hops grown?
Hops are grown asexually, mostly from cuttings of the original or by crossing with another variety. Crossbreeding doesn’t just combine the traits of the parent plants—it can introduce unexpected new characteristics.
What is the mortality rate for crossbred hops?
Hop crosses have a very high mortality rate with one estimate at 90-95 percent.
What part of the hop plant are used to make beer?
Hops used in beer are the plants’ flowers, and come from the female plant only.
Are hops easy to grow?
No! Hops are one of the most labor intensive crops in the world. Every bine (not vine) is hand strung with one estimate at more than 1,500 strings per acre.
Is it inexpensive to create a hop breed?
No. According to Hopunion Hop and Brew School, the typical cost for bringing a new hop variety to the market is approximately $1.5 million.
Between the large global U.S. brewers or the craft brewers, who uses more aroma hops?
Craft brewers recently surpassed large global U.S. brewers for usage of aroma hops—a trend that is expected to continue to grow.
How long does it take to create a new hop breed?
It takes about ten years (on average) to develop each new hop variety—thus the less than two hundred worldwide varieties today.
How do vines and bines grow differently?
Hops are vigorous growers, averaging several inches a day at minimum. Vines have suction cups and tendrils for support, hop bines have strong stems and prickly hairs to help in their ascent. Hops always grow clockwise. On hop farms, they grow up heavy twine or rope, but in the wild they use other plants for support to get to sunlight.
The hop market can be divided into two categories, alpha hops and aroma hops. What is the difference of the two?
Alpha hops refer to the higher percentages of alpha acid in certain varieties’ lupulin glands. Alpha hops provide more in the way of bitterness, while aroma varietals are lower in alpha acids and have a higher percentage of essential oils, which impart the characteristic flavors and aroma to beer.
How can hop harvesting become a fire hazard?
The immense pressure created by the weight of hop bales and super high levels of alpha acids in some varieties can make for a serious fire hazard. In 2006, Hopunion lost 2 million pounds of hops from spontaneous combustion. The fire added to the 2007-2008 hop shortage that greatly affected craft brewers. The majority of the hops destroyed were of the CTZ variety, which include Columbus Tomahawk and Zeus (CTZ’s are especially prone to combustion).
Where hops grown in the U.S.?
In the U.S., 77 percent of hops are grown in Washington, while the majority of the rest are grown in Oregon and Idaho.
What is the average size of a hop farm in Germany?
By comparison, the largest grower in the Hallertau region of Germany is 193 acres. The average size of all farms in Germany is 32 acres. There are 73 hop growers in the U.S. (twenty years ago there were nearly 200).
Are hops grown by their seeds?
No. Hop farmers never use seeds to grow hops because there is a fifty-fifty chance of growing a male plant. Hop cones only come from the female plant, making the male plants commercially worthless. So, with no seeds, hops are grown from potted plants or rhizomes.
What does the term IBU represent?
IBU, or International Bittering Unit, is a value that refers to how much dissolved alpha acid is present in a finished beer. Basically, it’s a number that helps a brewer compare their beer to a given style specification. The higher the IBU rating, the more bitter the beer, right? This is not necessarily the case. Many people cannot taste bitterness in excess of around 100 IBUs. Plus, the IBU of a beer matters little to how each individual perceives the bitterness of a beer. It is also important to note that many factors affect hop utilization during the brewing process. The only accurate way to find out a beer’s IBU number is by sending it to a lab for testing, so most the time it’s just a brewer’s estimate.
