Hops

To follow up to a previous post regarding "Sagwick's" a beer company I had started with a friend, that is still in the works. Maybe no longer with the intent of going commercial, but still to explore and understand brewing on a deeper level. To date we have brewed three batches (including a cider which did not carbonate). To make the experience more enjoyable I decided I should try growing some of the ingredients. The easiest to grow are hops. They are a very hardy viny plant that grow in more extreme climates (including Sudbury). They are perennial and require little maintenance. Their only requirement is space, a lot of space. They climb to about 20' in a single growing season. I set up a trellis of sorts along my neighbours garage. Although it didn't reach 20' (more like 10') it got the job done. Now, the hops are used as an aroma and flavour/bittering agent for beer (depending on when they are added to the brew). The earlier in the process they are added (in the boil), the more bitterness they will give off. The later in the process they are added (in fermentation [called dry hopping]), the more they will contribute to the aroma. Like I said, the hops themselves are really easy to grow and I would definitely recommend to anyone. The plant itself is nice enough for decoration alone. The most difficult part was actually getting a hold of the plants I wanted. After the famous hops shortage of 2008, more and more brewers are growing their own hops, and the supply chain has yet to compensate. I leave you with a picture of my first years harvest. Apparently a good harvest is rare in the first year and the plants usually begin to yield after the second or third (similar to asparagus).