We all know hops play a vital and delicious part in beer, but what’s all this fuss over fresh hops? And how are they different to your average beer?
“Fresh hops offer a completely different flavour profile – they’re really vibrant, really unique with a flavour you can’t get any other time,” explains Richard Adamson, co-founder of Young Henrys and president of Inner West Brewers’ Association (which runs the Ale Trail).
Typically, beer uses hops that have been processed, pelletised and vac-sealed in bags so brewers can use and store them for longer. Fresh hops, on the other hand, have just been picked off the bine (not vine) and usually boast a ‘greener’, earthier and more pungent flavour profile.
Of course, like any plant, they don’t stay fresh for long which requires a lot of haste and logistic planning if you want to use them at their peak for a beer festival like our Hop Harvest Fest, which involves 11 different breweries including Batch, Future, Kicks, Mixtape, Philter, Sauce, The Grifter, Wayward, White Bay, Wildflower and Young Henrys.
“It was a mission but a really fun one,” says Richard. “We piled into vans in Sydney and drove seven hours to Bright in Victoria to visit the farms run by HPA (Hop Products Australia). We did a tour and then crammed over 200kg of fresh picked Galaxy hops into the vans and powered our way back to Sydney to deliver them to the breweries to brew that very afternoon.”
From there, it was up to each brewery to utilise the hops how they wanted, choosing different recipes from pale ales to dark ales to experimental raw IPAs and even combining with other hop types and products. The result is a delicious and really diverse range of brews ready just in time for Hop Harvest Fest.
“I think there’s a lot of work that goes into hops before brewers get them,” says Richard. “So we wanted to celebrate our hop farmers and beer‘s connection to agriculture. That can sometimes often be forgotten when you’re sinking a schooner in the pub.”
“The event is all about celebrating beer at its freshest, exploring different styles and learning about the brewing experience along the way,” says Richard. “This year’s beers all use fresh Galaxy hops, but each one is uniquely different: depending on the brewer and how they utilise the hops and other ingredients. I can’t wait to try them.”
Hop Harvest Fest runs from this Friday April 11 to Thursday April 17 – check out our beer list and find out how you can score a free festival shirt too!
