December Weather: Unseasonably

This weather we are experiencing is crazy. In the Midwest they are getting blasted with ice and snow, especially in Michigan where like New York there has been a resurgence in Hop growing the last few years. This is in part due to the efforts of the Michigan Hop Alliance and the Northeast Hop Alliance, which has chapters in the northeast including one in Maryland.

While they are being blasted with freezing temps, we are experiencing unseasonably warm weather off and on. It seems we have been doing a balancing act between 70 degrees and then the next week lows in the 30's. This of course will play havoc.....like our VCU Rams.....on the natural clocks of the root systems.

In fact, many plants are beginning to look like they appeared in early March in terms of some new growth. If you look at the base of your base, you may be able to see this new green growth. As the ground has not really frozen over as of yet and the under ground temps are still relatively stable, the roots have likely been waking up a little bit. Almost like sleep walking if you think about it.

When the real warm weather or mild Spring temps roll in and stay consistent, the activity in the root systems will trigger and the season will begin a new like illustrated in the picture below.

Obviously, some cold winter temps will likely come our way at some point in January and this growth will likely fall victim to the cold, but it is good to see that these cut root stock appear to be poised for a productive vegetative phase next season.

Virginia Support from the Governor

While it seems many people these days want to rail against government all the time it seems to me that some people seem to forget that there are things that government does that are very beneficial.

The promotion of agriculture is just one of them.

A lot of folks may have had issues with the Farm Bill at the Federal level and how that deal got brokered, but the reality is that famers and government working collaboratively is not that bad of a thing. In Virginia, we have seen incredible growth in our Brewing industry. The economic development associated with the industry has created quite the buzz in Virginia.

Governor Bob McDonnell has been an big supporter of Virginia's Wine Industry but in 2013, the Governor and the Department of Agriculture Consumer Services recognized that the book in Craft breweries throughout Virginia was vital economic activity for the State.

In support of Virginia Breweries and Virginia Hop Growers, Gov. Bob McDonnell hosted both brewers and growers at the Executive Mansion in Richmond, Va to plant hops (May) and then again in August to celebrate Virginia Craft Beer Month.

It has been an honor to be included in these events at the Mansion. We believe that we are setting the foundation to bring Hops back to Virginia as a recognized specialty crop in support of our Craft brewers.

Hop Grading--- Family Fun

Come Harvest time there is a lot of work involved when tasked with harvesting hops. It can take a single person roughly an hour to hand pick would doesn't even possibly seem like a full pound of green deliciousness.

Once the hops are harvested, it is important to grade the hops so you do not send poor quality cones to the brewers. It also important to make sure that if you are harvested multiple varieties that you try and harvest as best you can one single variety at a time. This will reduce the risk of mixing hops, especially if you have lots of hop helpers out to pick with you.

Its a tradition now of sorts to let the girls grade some of the hops. I am not sure at what point my girls will no longer think its fun but until then its really cool to see them have fun with it.

My girls like the crazy smells of Virginia Nugget and Chinook hops the best! Nothing like sticky, green fingers after working with all the hop buckets.

Its also important to document exactly the date and time of the harvest as well as if any of the rows where the hops are harvested had any chemical sprays used to combat things like mildew or mites. The reason for this is chemical sprays will leave a residual impact on the leaves of the hop and brewers should be informed of this fact as "wet" hops are thrown directly in the boil while brewing.
'

Rhizomes: What can we expect?

What are Hop Rhizomes exactly? Rhizomes are the roots that are derived from the main root system or crown of a fairly mature hop plant. It takes a few growing seasons for these root systems to develop, let alone produce enough roots that can be cut.

Rhizomes can be procured from varies sources. Most home brew shops and online brewing stores will sell rhizomes to consumers by the each and typically range from about $5 bucks to $8 bucks. Some rhizomes can also be purchased from overseas but as we talked about in a previous post may require some other permits and certificates to import.

The quality of the root stock that you will receive will vary depending mostly on the varietals of Hop Rhizomes are you are ordering. Some of these roots can be very thick after a few years, while others can still remain thinner yet as vigorous. Always inspect your Rhizomes upon arrival to grade quality. Look for strength and avoid pliable or root stock that appears as though it has dried completely to the point where it crumbles when pressed.

The quality will also depend upon the age of the Crown upon which your Rhizome was cut. See the thickness of the rhizomes in the picture below and you will notice considerable differences in size and diameters. This can be due to the age of the system in which these were cut from.

Though there will be differences, size is really not always the best indicator of which rhizomes will produce quality bines. The key very well may be the multiple locations on a healthy root stock that will offer the potential for the quality bines.

These rhizomes may be planted directly into the soil or potted with the buds pointing upwards. We will cover the planting in further posts.

Our orders for Rhizomes is typically complied in late winter for delivery in early Spring for planting after the threat of the last frost.

USDA Plant Permits/International Orders

Update regarding the transport of plant material inside the United States:

Keep in mind that if you are looking for procuring some hops from outside the US that there may be a few things to consider.

Permits like PPQ 587 (USDA) may be required of you if you plan to import or plant products. Its always best to find out if you are required to hold a permit before you order or have these contracted.

Phyto Certificates may also be required. This inspection is done at the point of sale and before the plant material is shipped out from its origination. Usually the costs of this are paid for by the party ordering the material to be delivered and can run about $30-60 per inspection.

Hops Analysis

Many new growers will likely come across interested breweries that may require what is referred to as "Hops Analysis" data. This data is derived from testing the hops based on the ASBC ( American Society for Brewing Chemists) methods. Brewers will want validation that the local hops being procured are of like or greater "quality" than the hops that they may be able to purchase through contracts.

Most of the tests most requested will center around the Alpha and Beta acids within the hops. Analysis, however is not only chemical but may also be by genotype. Other tests include that of total essential oils. These can typically be processed with about 100 grams per sample, however simply testing for Alpha and Beta acids can be done with about 30 grams.

The following can be screened for:

Alpha-Acids by UV-VIS or HPLC
Beta-Acids
Cohumulone
Colupulone
Hop Storage Index

One the newest processors/labs doing really great work is Western Michigan University. The Department of Chemistry offers the analysis for $30 for the Alpha and Beta testing and also offers an Essential Oils analysis for $100 (total profile).

The University of Vermont is another great resource for testing and analysis.

Stems: Whats the Story?

Often times some of the college classes that you take that at the time you wonder if you will ever apply in your life have a funny thing of coming back to you. Much of what I have learned regarding growing plants has come from my mother. She always had what seemed like hundreds of plants, mostly potted, growing and she taught me how to cut back, train, stake and nourish the plants. I had my first experience with Miracle Grow in elementary school.

I always enjoyed the whole biology thing regarding plants. Why some would grow and some would not. Why some would need more nitrogen than others. What the whole "zones" thing was regarding all the gardening catalogs we would get in the mail. In college, I had an opportunity to take some biology classes at the survey level but also managed to squeeze in an upper level Cell Biology class. My class was full of Bio majors and I think there was only two of us who were not. The class was probably on of the most interesting outside my major I ever took as an "elective".

In terms of Hops, the class has provided me some basic knowledge regarding the mechanisms at play with the plant. The Stem for example is very important. They are a part of the shoot system. Stems almost always come in various sizes and thickness depending on the plant. They typically grow above ground and may either be soft-like or woody.

The main function of a Stem is to provide support but also to hold the leaves, flowers or even buds. They are the transport system that ties the nourishment of the plant from the root system to the leaves and the flowers. In the case of Hops, these are the cones that develop.

Stems are characterized by the presence of nodes and internodes. Nodes are the area where you will see the leaves and flowers develop. Internodes is the space between two nodes along the stem growth. The growth that you will see extending from Stem and node area to the leaf is referred to as the petiole. The Petiole can provide researchers with the amount of nitrogen being  supplied the leaves through the stem and root system and can demonstrate any nutritional deficiencies .

 

The budding area- often an axillary- can be identified between the base of leaves and the stem—where it can give rise to the flower. 

 

What is known as the Apical Meristem is a point at which if severed the plant will no longer grow vertically, though the plant will continue to grow horizontally in the case of Hops. This is how we work those hops that are being grown on smaller Trellis System once the reach the max height of the trellis. The plant will still develop below the existing canopy of leaves, but will no longer climb any higher as the growth comes directly from this point of the plant as it matures.

 

The stems will be hardier for the most part than the horizontal growth that will be experienced. The strength of the Stem usually seems to develop from the ground up in large part because of the support it must provide the developing canopy of leaves being producing. These leaves for Hops are produced during the "vegetative" phase and throughout the summer will lead to what is called the "flowering" stage at which point cones ( the Hops themselves) will begin to develop.

GeoHopping: Be on the Look Out for Hops

Never forget that Hops for a long, long time were merely just another wild plant growing about in various parts of the world. There were not always tall "trellis" systems to signal to people that there were hops growing at a location. Hops grew from the ground up on other trees or grew more like shrubs entangled upon the ground in fields or meadows and later upon fence lines. Hops can still be found in places like the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia growing wild and in other places throughout Appalachia. There is a  great little geo mapping resource application where in you come upon hops while you are hiking or traveling you can enter in some data and send a picture of your find. The goal is locate feral hops that may be scattered about for research purposes. These could be "heirloom" or "heritage" hops that have been growing here in United States for centuries.

The Application for both Android and IPhones will take a GPS reading of your location of where the hops were sited. An example of some "wild" hops sighted in the project was this picture taken in Hamilton, NY where the hops were growing along the side of a road. The bines will continue to grow even without any real trellis support and can be very vigorous. Often times many people think they are simply just another form of weed or underbrush growing along the ground.

The website and information regarding the program and research being administered by the Cornell Cooperative Extension can be found at the following link:

https://geohopping.crowdmap.com/main

RVA/IPA: 2014 Invitation

All of us grow for our own reasons of course. I think one of the most pleasing reasons I grow is the Hardywood Community Hopping Project. Sure we grow all kinds of hops going to other brewers, but there is something about this project that is really cool. It brings the community of beer fans who typically appreciate Hardywood from a consumer perspective into the brewery of sorts in a different capacity.

I always look forward to checking on the hops that have been selected for the project. In 2014 we are doing some really awesome events out at the Hop Farm to work with more of the growers in the Community Hopping Project. One of the biggest issues a lot of people have is space at home to grow their hops. They want to grow more and of course Hardywood would like for them to grow more so we have decided to open up the farm to offer the space and full rows for our Hardywood friends to come out with us and plant rhizomes and field starts to contribute more to Hardywood.

We would like to help elevate this project to where anyone who wishes to participate has the opportunity to participate and we believe that by providing them the environment to grow that more people will join with us and support Hardywood even more. By inviting growers to grow collectively, we all can monitor and share in the experience together and learn more about the process as well.

In late Spring, we will be inviting all those that wish to come out to the farm and plant. Simply show up and join us and have some fun this Spring as we plant for Hardywood!

RVA/IPA: Whats is all about?

One of the best tings about living in Richmond, Va is all the community events that get created and we get to enjoy with everyone throughout the City. One of the best means for brewery-going Craft beer fans to participate with a brewery is the Hardywood Community Hopping Project.

This project originated in 2012 out of Hardywood Park Craft Brewery's desire to engage the beer community and bring people together through the brewing of the now famed RVA/IPA. Hardywood has provided three or four rhizomes over the last two years to each participant to plant at home. This can be done directly in the garden or as most City goers prefer, planting them in pots.

Its pretty exciting to grow your first hop plant. Even though there really cannot be that high of an expectation in terms of yield from some of the rhizomes given the rootstocks age, many new growers have seen their hops climb to sixteen or more feet. Some the first year have the bines climb very high but yield on a few cones-- this is in large part due to placement and the number/hours of full sun the plant experienced during the vegetation compared to the flowering stage. Many folks place these pots on their decks or along the sides of their homes, which may not get the direct sun the hops really require. Nonetheless, the yields have been pretty great to see.

Harvests in 2012 and 2013 could not be any more different. Heavy rains in late summer in 2013 pushed harvest back a few weeks and even then some of the hops were under developed. In 2012, we harvested twice; once in late July (all the Nugget we picked we provided to Hardywood which was about thirty pounds or so) and then again in August with more Nugget, Cascade and Willamette. In 2013, after an extra year of growing and working harder with new varieties we included Nugget, Galena, Sterling and Willamette. We did not include Cascade in large part because other growers like Stan Driver and Dave Whipple who also have been working with Hardywood to provide local hops for the project had committed this variety. Stan Driver is pictured on the right in the header picture we have at the top of the page and is the hop grower for Blue Mountain Brewery in Nelson County, Va. Both Stan and Dave do a fabulous job with their hop programs and we look forward to continue to work with them in the any effort involving moving Virginia Hops forward.

Harvest Day in 2013 was in mid-August and during Harvest Day everyone in the project brings their harvest hops to the brewery either in full bine form or as picked cones. This year yielded a wonderful bounty even given the hard growing condition in many parts of the region. Growers get to have their names etched on the RVA/IPA label and the participating farms also get the opportunity to have their logos on the back of the label.

In September, after the RVA/IPA beer is made and is about to be released to the public, Hardywood traditionally invites all those growers in the project to a special release party the night before and each grower gets their own bottle from Hardywood and a group photo is taken. I encourage everyone growing hops or any one needing a reason to grow hops to participate in this Project. If you were unable to get your rhizomes, do not worry. I will be sure to get you rhizomes!

Bill Walsh & Hops?

Everyone knows Bill Walsh. Famed Hall of Fame NFL Coach of San Francisco 49ers who retired after winning his third Super Bowl in January '89. I remember it like it was yesterday because '89 was the year I graduated high school. The 49ers would go on and win again the following season trouncing my Denver Broncos 55-10 in the year I entered the military. The next Super Bowl would  begin the Bills era of losses, but I would not see them begin there Super Bowl four peat as in '91 most of our military was gearing up for the Persian Gulf War and the Air War would begin weeks after the Bills lost to the New York Football Giants.

I was never a 49er fan. Never a big Montana guy. More of a John Elway guy but Coach Bill Walsh always impressed me. A few years ago I got a hold of his book, a road map more or less to apply to a great many things other than football.

Here is some take away of working principles and ones I seek to apply to my goal of trying to reintroduce Hops to Virginia:

1. We will handle big losses no different than big wins.
2. We must be patient when we grow
3. We must deal with setbacks
4. Don't be consumed by the competition
5.Be ready when the opportunity presents itself
6. Don't be awed by anyone
7. Don't let yourself become distracted by others
8. Each week is a new season
9.Don't expect some else to prepare you; prepare yourself

10. MASTER MORE SKILLS AND HAVE BETTER KNOWLEDGE THAN THE OTHER GUY!


Thanks Coach! Put me in. I'm ready to Play!

All the way from Kent!

In an effort to continue to expand and explore deeper into what Hops will propagate here in Virginia, we have had some limited success with some hops that hail from across the pond in origin. In 2014, not only do we plan to begin to transplant some of these English Hops to the rows but also hopefully to have some delicious beers provided we get some yield from one of our brewer partners.

We have some pretty dog garn hard to figure out importing regs, but in short the importation for those who wish to learn more can only be completed in rhizome aka "rootstock" form. Plants will be turned away mostly by US Customs. You will be required to pay for a Phyto Certificate where the material will be inspected before being shipped out to the United States.

We have worked with a few plants thus far and even though we experienced increased rainfall we did actually get some cone development this year so we decided to roll the dice and secure some more root stock to give it a go in 2014. Some of the brewers are pretty stoked about it as well.

We are trying to source a dwarf variety as well to trial in the experimental yard area as well. However, Prima Donna is a "registered" hop but is available from certified resources permitted to sell it.

We also decided that a trip to Kent in England should be in order in late 2014. They have a pretty neat Harvest celebration there which would be really cool to experience.

What matters most in your growing?

Breweries are awesome! They are a social gathering place where people can come together and enjoy one another's company. Hop yards not so much. Hop yards require a lot of work just like any thing else in agriculture. Its not really full of glamour or anything though it is a real trendy thing to get into these days it seems. Having been growing now for four years or so its really cool to see how things have progressed. Its a great thing but it also is a slippery slope for some.

That being said, as a grower you have to ask yourself what kind of grower you want to be and what interests you the most. Is it being the focal point, being in every snap shot on instagram or facebook throughout the entire process or is it simply succeeding in creating a bumper harvest for brewers. We live in a media hyped times for sure. God knows I have taken some hits for not promoting more or shooting videos, but what these people fail to realize is the Hops are supposed to be the product not the farmer/grower. Sure we have to establish the relationships, but in the end you live or die as a business model by your product.

We have always thought it best to simply concentrate on growing like a few of our grand fathers did. Can you recall the Virginia tobacco farmers throwing up pics out on the farm or Hanover tomato farms doing the same? I doubt it. Its a pretty modern thing, but lets face it folks no matter how many pics you snap and throw up on social media its not really going to change the true reality that growers face. The folks that know you personally are the ones you need to be leveraging. Not reaching out to people that you likely will never meet nor purchase hops from your operation. You are not really going to find these folks on facebook, rather growers need to be out there engaging the process in person and supporting the Brewers Guilds and Home Brew Clubs.

We have some exciting news to break regarding our commitment to the Home Brew Clubs in January 2014!

On a trip out to Oregon once, I had the opportunity to have this social media topic of discussion with a commercial grower. Sure they have a facebook page and all but no twitter or other pages. The facebook page is merely a landing page. I ask him why that was, having seen so many folks blowing it up on facebook back in 2012 with hops pics and such. He told that he already knew his customer. They knew him. With over 300+ acres of Hops he wasn't kidding. Third generation farmers and not growers really new to the game of Craft beer who think that its merely a trendy thing to do. I ask him about all the new growers, especially outside the Northwest and he calmly wished them the best of luck. I learned a lot from that experience. The dedication to the product, to the growing and to nature.

We put up Homegrown Hopyards to act as merely a resource for others looking for information about growing hops in our area or region. Its not perfect nor is it meant to be any thing more than a combination of our experiences as well as others on the internet that we have met, visited or been impressed by. If people truly want to experience the farm, they call us and we have them come out and spend a day with us--planting, stripping, composting, or harvesting. Otherwise, what true purpose does it sure save vanity.

We have learned what we need to concentrate on, what we need to produce and who our customer is now and who it will be in the future. In the end, this it what matters to a true committed grower. The notoriety of growing a particular hop may be perfect for a publicity spot, but only if you leverage that into a sales channel for your harvest.  Going over board in this manner can backfire as well. If you only have 200 plants or so and even if you have an incredible yield, realistically you are not looking at providing hops for very many people and facebook and social media can draw you thousands of eyeballs. You could conceivably spend considerable time fielding calls or emails/messages that you would have to turn away in large part because you truly only have enough yield at your disposal to accommodate a small run from one brewery.

This contributes to the large scale vs. small scale issue. Its why a lot of major production breweries may have an unwillingness to commit to a small scale operator except maybe for a special Harvest Ale or small offering. Its scale and they are producing such large runs they lock in their hop bill via contracts long before they require the hops to brew. This should not deter the small scale operator, but should drive them to spend more time working on their growing regimens and less time marketing---lets face it that's what facebook pages have become- for customers they cannot even service with hops any way.

The other side is a few growers we know and have provided plant material over the years, fly like we try to do under the radar in large part because they do not own the land in which they grow upon. This happens when you contract to grow on someone elses property. In effect you are a tenant and your landlord has no desire to have people showing up on the property on a whim to check out the hops. That's not what they signed on for and in fact there is an insurance liability around this as well. This model is apparently lost on a few folks who do not understand this concern.

Eventually, you reach the point in the road where you have to decide "what matter most". For us, its scale and quality of product. You have to reach a point where you decide to buy property, expand and grow full time and probably not just hops.

To the media end however, in 2014 in working with one of our brewery partners we will be doing some intense video formats but in this case its our intent to promote the brewery's commitment to local growers and local economies via agriculture partnerships that is truly going to be on display. Its not about us or the team we have put together, but about bringing more Virginia breweries on board to support other growers.

How do we start early?

After you have determined what you want to grow and you have ordered your plant material or secured it from another grower, you must decide how you want to proceed. Some growers merely will wait to the last threat of frost before planting their rhizome (rootstock) or field start/cutting but we prefer to work with our rootstock to get a jump on things.

After we have done our own cuttings or transplants or have received our latest plant material to work with we immediately begin to get them acclimated to the soil from the yards. The hurdle for us in this over the years has been determining which yard will be used for each plant during the winter months, however in 2014 we are consolidating three yards full of plants to one single larger scale yard where we can consolidate both our plants and our time. This will also provide us access to immediate drying capabilities as well as direct, natural water resources for the irrigation of the yard.

If you review of the pictures illustrating some of the things we are doing you will see its really not that different from starting seedlings for your garden. My grand mother and mother got me into doing this when I was growing up and it just stuck with me.

We take the rootstock and examine it looking for any imperfections. We check to make sure its hardy and not pliable or rotted. We look for strong growth node prospects and once we have determined the location we place the rootstock in soil vertically- with the promising node area facing up- within a plastic cup that has holes in the bottom for water displacement. Often times you will find the roots on some of the older rootstock will reach out and actually go through the holes at the bottom. ** Make sure that you mark your cups with the Varietal name and date them along with where you plan to plant them- Row, Yard, etc.

After we have graded these rootstocks, we never like to throw anything away. One never knows what will come back even when it appears that the quality is not there in the root. We like to bury these in flats of soil and monitor them throughout the Spring and then if they warrant being transplanted we then take them out into the yard or we pot them instead.

The above picture demonstrates how we augmented the natural soil with some organic compost and controlled both the air flow, nitrogen and watering and brought back some of the root stocks that we thought might not perform well in the soil. Obviously, this illustrates that its never good to judge to early and its always a good thing to give roots a chance to survive. We called this area the HOP ICU!

The Hop Thing?

A lot of times when you tell people that your grow or are planning to grow Hops you will get a gambit of questions or at the very least raise a few eyebrows. Lets face it, its not something that you hear every day but with the growing brewing community success and Craft Beer exploding nationally it has become a small community of people reminiscent of the Home Brew Clubs that are rapidly expanding throughout every major city.

In short, it is about community. There is no place for contention or rivalry that may exist elsewhere. We all have seen this in other industries, but in the brewing community there is a special bond ness that anyone taking the time to see will see, especially locally. Brewers work together to grow the scene. Its hard to go up against national brands so the local and regional brands have to create new and innovative ways to gain the trust of the market. Growers must work together as best they can during this stage of development.

Hop growing remains in its infancy, but one day it is many of our hopes that it will expand in Virginia. It very well may never be as viable commercially or a staple commodity like say our corn, tomato, soybean, tobacco etc but its a goal that many of us have. It has not been met with some hurdles. With everything else we are faced with egos and agendas. Many of these however, can easily be associated with poor relationship building. Part of this results from multiple growers calling on the same few breweries that have expressed interest in using locally grown hops.

We have been dedicated to the big picture, but also respecting the process. Recently, we decided not to advertise or promote the breweries we have relationships with because what we found in 2012 was that other grower felt compelled to approach them as well. We believe in relationship building and though the best course to take in 2012 and 2013 was to get Virginia Hops in as many folks beers as possible from commercial brewer to home brewer. This has been a point of contention with some because we have not charged a single penny for the hops we have grown the last few years. Let me repeat we have not charged for the hops that we have provided breweries and home brewers.

Some growers may not respect this model of approach but as an industry growers have to crawl before than can SELL. Relationships are very personal and you have to give something of value and cannot simply want to sell your product, especially in the first few years of developing your yard. After almost three years of providing hops, we believe that we have convinced enough of the market that Virginia Hops are a viable alternative and Virginia brewers should create a space for them in their brewing regimens.

Hops is not easy. You find yourself calling on friends and family who have very particular skill sets. Maybe its a tractor, an auger or have trees for poles that can be used or they want to help with planting, stringing or Harvest Day. Family is huge in this endeavor because you will be spending a lot of time early in the Spring and late in the Summer---while most are hanging out drinking beer and cocktails at the Outer banks--- a lot of times out in the field alone. Some times though you get to incorporate family into it. Its harder if like us if you do not grow at your residence, but my girls still like to help out and grade the Hops with me. Grading is critical to your relationship with brewers. You should never provide an inferior hop cone. It should be part of your Mission Statement. If you provide brownish over developed or high water % hops to brewers it will not be long before they will look elsewhere and your brand will be tarnished in the market.

This year during one of the area home brew contest we supplied sample of dried hops for the participants that placed to try out with there beers and included a little bit of everything for them to try out free of charge. A lot of our area home brewers in recent years have gone on to brew for some of our newest and most innovative breweries.

Important Survey: Hop Growers and Virginia Brewers Surveys

When we started investigating the propagation of Virginia hops and its reintroduction in the Virginia agriculture, the late Andy Hankins of Virginia State University had a huge impact on us. His time and guidance regarding everything from growing to market formation was essential to spring board us to where we are today. After years of trialing, we have gotten to the point where its is time that growers begin to collaborate with brewers in order to form a true market to benefit one another.

Virginia has experienced tremendous growth within the Brewing Industry and a lot of things have really developed quickly since the passage of legislation in Richmond leading to the formation of the "farm brewery" model. This model now permits our breweries to offer pints on premise as well as growlers to go for fans modeled much like our Virginia wineries. It will drive more traffic by consumers to breweries in order to attend events or simply enjoy the Tasting Room on site.

One of the basic discussions we had with Andy Hankins back in 2010 was concerning the creation of unique "markets" for the end product. These products would have to be in the form that meets demand. These forms being "wet" hops, dried hops, pellet hops or even hop extracts. For the most part, the last two years there has been a little revolution in the growing community as a few hop yards have popped offering two very distinct models; the first model is hop yards planted that grow specifically though not always exclusively for a Virginia brewery and the second are smaller scale yards looking to grow for various breweries throughout not only Virginia, but also in North Carolina and Maryland. The first model is demonstrated by the likes of production breweries like Blue Mountain and Blue Mountain's Barrel House Hop Yards under the watch of Stan Driver, Chairman of the Old Dominion Hop Cooperative. Others include Country Road Hops Farm for Rusty Beaver in Carolina County and the incredible operation in Goochland County operated by Sean-Thomas Pumphrey in Lickinghole Creek Farm Brewery which opened a few months ago to raving reviews. Its focus on community events and engagement has been a firecracker for the County and is bringing more people from Richmond to Goochland to experience great beers at the brewery tasting room as well as Midnight Brewery in Rockville. The second model is supported by smaller hop yards that are growing hops either specifically for home brewers or for breweries at large.

Currently, the form of hop being provided the last two years has been predominately "wet" hops or Harvest Hops. These hops are picked and harvested almost exclusively by hand though currently there is one Bine Implement Harvester in Virginia that this last season was shared by a few of the hop yards. There is currently a feasibility proposition for the creation of a mobile, hop harvester under development specifically for small farm operations working with the USDA.

Information data is critical to provide data of support for grant funding and research endeavors where it must be demonstrated that there is both a need and a market. The last two years we have spent much of our time interacting with breweries in order to create the market for Virginia hops. The increase in the number of breweries and the increase in volume of Virginia craft sales demonstrates that our brewers are meeting the expectations of quality with the Virginia consumer. We now must meet those same quality expectations the brewers have for the ingredients in which they use to create their releases.

The Virginia Hops Initiative's sole purpose is to engage both growers and brewers alike. To collaborate and engage one another in order to support one another. The benefits of local hops are obvious. Local hops will add to our agri-economy here in Virginia, will help a brewery reduce its carbon footprint and unite the agricultural community with the brewing community. It will also demonstrated through its purchases its commitment as a Virginia business to its own community. Buying Local is a huge trend now and more and more consumers want to know where a product comes from and where the ingredients used in the product come from.

Two Surveys have been created to gather data in which both growers and brewers can align themselves with. The questions lend themselves to providing information that each will be able to use creatively in their operations.

The Virginia Hop Growers Survey
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/8B3X6LF

The Virginia Brewers Survey
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/29NYKGP

What Varieties? The Growers Dilemma

One of the first questions that seems to come up after speaking with those interested in growing hops  is always one regarding which Hop plants to plant and which ones not to. First, any new grower must determine what the intent of said growing is to be. Is it to grow hops for home brewing? Is it to grow hops for fun or for a project like the Hardywood Community Hopping Project? Or is it to sell to breweries or create a business selling Hops? In order to be successful we need to think very small, no different than our starts in the Spring as shown below and then as we develop full growing regimens begin to think bigger and bigger as the years move forward.

Obviously, if your intent is to create a business than you will most likely be or should be planting a substantial field/yard. This will require the greatest commitment - both in time and expense and certainly a grower will want to grow what appears most acceptable. The question remains who is the authority to determine which Hops are acceptable and which are not. It is not as simple, nor should it be, to assume which Hops can grow and which cannot without first experimenting with said Hop and learning very factually if it will indeed not grow in your region. Every Hop is different, just like every region and even some regions within regions. Just because North Carolina or New York did not have success with a certain Hop should in no way deter growers from experimenting with those hops on a limited scale and find out if that data applies to their region.

Too many people are putting new growers in a box and telling them "what" to grow and less about "how" to grow. When we started, we started like everyone else growing Cascade because we were told it was the only one that would grow here in our State. The basis of this of course was that someone had come before us and planted Cascade successfully. Hop fields like the one at Blue Mountain Brewing produce Cascade for its acclaimed Full Nelson beer. We scowered the resources trying to find all the information we could, but inevitable we learned that a lot of the information really was not as pertinent to our region as we thought. growing in Oregon, Washington, Michigan etc is very different than Virginia or even North Carolina. Once we applied things and or modified and created new means, we learned that we could grow Cascade. We  then decided it was important to learn if other Hops would grow alongside the Cascade. After all, what if we wanted to brew with a hops other than Cascade? We moved on to Nugget, which was a huge success. Our Nugget yielded us more than the Cascade and subsequently we have moved on to other Hops over the last four years or so. Experimenting with them in pots, in rows and working with other growers from other regions in learning how each one is very different and yet similar in a lot of ways as well.

I am a true believer in the notion that you can grow a lot more Hops than growers have thus far. One of the best things that demonstrated this was the Hardywood Community Hopping Project where Hardywood Park Craft Brewery provided three rhizomes free of charge to those in the beer community who would be willing to grow the Hops and then donate the whole cone hops for the project to brew the Hardywood RVA/IPA release in September. The goal would be to harvest the hops and deliver them to Harvest Day where upon gathering all the hops, Hardywood would add them to the boil for the release. The RVA/IPA has been 100% Virginia Hops and has released the last two years. Each year the number of growers and participants has expanded. Through this project, many learned that Columbus (CTZ) could successfully grow in the region as well.

The Project has spurned a lot of interest in Hops. It can be attributed to the beginnings of a lot of the current growers that are producing the larger harvest throughout the region. If Hardywood had not provided the Columbus in 2012, would we be growing CTZ on a larger scale in 2014? Probably not. It takes growers that are willing to experiment and grow Hops while thinking out of the box in order to continue to expand Hop growing here in Virginia. We cannot simply just think Cascade or Nugget because we know it will grow but while growing those we must also seek to grow other varieties as well that are in demand by the brewing community.

If you are a grower who simply wants to enjoy growing and use your Hops in your own home brews than the best thing you can do is determine which Hops you like to work with in your beers and go from there. As long as they are not "proprietary" hops like Simcoe, Summit, Citra, Amarillo than you should be able to locate plant material in order to plant some Hops for your own use. The "proprietary" hops are only grown at registered farms and are very limited in production, which is why they command a higher price per ounce/pound often times at retailers and suppliers. You should not be deterred by what others are saying about "what will or will not" grow as you are likely growing at a much smaller scale and can experiment with a few plants in the beginning. Who knows, you could end up discovering another Columbus!

For the larger scale growers, there is obviously reservations over planting Hop varieties that others have not demonstrated success. This is normal, however it is not unusual for commercial growers to grow various varieties and though many of these have been in families for generations at some point someone had to decide to plant new varieties. Brewers are looking to source local hops, but they also will want more than just Cascade even if it is for special smaller runs of a particular release. If a brewer is interested in a particular Hop and approaches a grower about planting it, the grower should research the hop chemistry to learn if it closely resembles through breeding hops that have been successful in the region or analyze its growing requirements and see if they can be met effectively. I believe if a brewer is interested, it is worth the risk to plant some of the variety and work with it and learn by growing and not by simply reading what others say about their experiences.

I always like to talk to people about the great research being done down in North Carolina. North Carolina has two research yards where they have been examining the growing regimens of Hops now for a few years. They are a wonderful resource of valuable growing and cost analysis for anyone interested in growing. However, I like to point that the two yards are quite different in geography as well as results within the same State. Lake Wheeler and Mills River research yards as part of the North Carolina Research Hop Project demonstrate how hops can vary in yield and production even within the same geographic area. Soil differences and climate conditions like annual precipitation play large roles in factoring how Hops will perform. We must also consider that these are but one or two experiences and any number of factors could have influenced the data and are meant to provide information to begin the discussion not end the discussion. The research being undertaken in invaluable to all growers and I urge any one intending on growing to attend workshops, field tours and if possible contribute to the research through donation.

We have proven that the following Hop plants can be grown from both rhizome and/or field starts here in Virginia: (yields at harvest)
Cascade
Nugget
Columbus (CTZ) aka Zeus
Chinook
Sterling
Centennial- limited low success rates
Galena
Willamette

Maryland and North Carolina growers may find they have higher yields and success rates with other varieties, which is all the more reason to collaborate with those growers and learn from their experiences as well.

We have about a dozen experimental hops we are working with and are not confident as yet until after 2014 to render opinion as to whether they are ready to be moved into the group above. We also have some new plants for the first time that will be grown, mostly in pots the first year, but we are excited about working with some of these because we believe our brewing community will support us in planting full rows if we can have some success with them the next two years.