Cool all-English hop project: Hopshires

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seymour
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Cool all-English hop project: Hopshires

Post by seymour » Fri Sep 05, 2014 2:29 am

Maybe this is something you already know about, but I was excited to discover it. Please check out the website: http://www.thehopshires.co.uk
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Welcome to England's Hopshires

The hopyards of Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire produce more than half of the hops grown in the UK, but most beer drinkers are unaware that these farms even exist.

So, in 2013, many of the counties’ hop growers and brewers came together to shine a welcome light on the region’s hop-growing prowess and the vital role it has to play in the future of British brewing.

As a first step, we felt we needed a new, succinct and memorable way to refer to Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire as hop-growing counties, so we decided to call them England’s Hopshires.

Pint of beer made with Hopshires hopsNext, during the hop harvest in September and October, local brewers will each produce at least one beer using only hops that are from the Hopshires.

Over time, we hope to see the Hopshires name become synonymous with all that is good about great British hops and the beers that are brewed with them.
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The site goes on to list hop varieties, hop growers in the region, breweries which have signed-on to brew beers containing 100% Hopshire hops, etc.

Some of the world's best (and my all-time faves, for what it's worth) are grown there: Fuggles, Goldings, Bramling Cross, Challenger, Progress, Sovereign, First Gold, etc.

So...I'd love to hear what you guys think. Have you seen any promotions surrounding the Hopshires initiative? Have you tasted any of the featured beers? Which of you live in these shires? Better yet, any of you live there and grow your own hops there?

For my part, I think it's high-time English hops growers show the same terroir pride (and guild organizational prowess) as Hallertau growers, Alsace growers, Australian/New Zealand growers, etc. Heck, in recent years Poland has a better organized public relations front for their hops (no offense, zgoda, I mean that as a compliment.)

Let's get a lively Hopshires conversation going.

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Re: Cool all-English hop project: Hopshires

Post by orlando » Fri Sep 05, 2014 8:31 am

seymour wrote: Have you seen any promotions surrounding the Hopshires initiative? Have you tasted any of the featured beers? Which of you live in these shires? Better yet, any of you live there and grow your own hops there?
[/b]
For my part, I think it's high-time English hops growers show the same terroir pride (and guild organizational prowess) as Hallertau growers, Alsace growers, Australian/New Zealand growers, etc. Heck, in recent years Poland has a better organized public relations front for their hops (no offense, zgoda, I mean that as a compliment.)

Let's get a lively Hopshires conversation going.
I'm embarrassed to admit no in every way, I haven't. :oops: Nor have I seen or heard of this on any other forum, in What's Brewing or Beer (the CAMRA publications) or in the news media, where have I been? :roll: So having got that out the way my reaction is "bloody typical". Yet another example of how we just don't do enough to let the World know this is the best country in the World to drink beer, alright that last bit might not be controversial in my house but the role English hops play in our style of beer is a significant contributor to its reputation. Hopefully this is a trend in the reversal of the decline of hop growing in the UK, akin to the revival in apple orchards due to the renewal of interest in that other great drink.
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Re: Cool all-English hop project: Hopshires

Post by Padalac » Fri Sep 05, 2014 9:31 am

I completely agree with the terroir sentiments. Seems like a cool initiative!

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Re: Cool all-English hop project: Hopshires

Post by Clibit » Fri Sep 05, 2014 10:01 am

Completely new to me this too. It seems to be the case that UK hop growers have just dealt with hop contracts and got on with growing, and the demand has been determined by breweries selling beers that use them. UK breweries are using more and more imported hops, so acreage, or hectareage, is shrinking. Hops marketing is very low key.

I know that hop marketing attempts are being made, but it seems a lot more could be done. And it's not an industry that should be dying. But Germany has managed to dominate European production, and the USA sends hops everywhere. I hope UK hops become really popular in the USA, they provide a fantastic alternative. High intensity and low intensity hop beers are not mutually exclusive. I like to do double boil brewdays, and make one beer with English hops and one with elsewhere hops, and I love both, or all. Then I drink as the mood takes. I'm also cottoning on to the possibilities of using a mix in one ale, brought home to me whilst drinking a Goose Island IPA, which uses English and US hops. It really works. I know a lot of US craft breweries use English hops, it just doesn't seem to be enough yet to halt the decline, which must be coming from within the UK, and from European breweries going elswhere? UK craft breweries tend to boast about the New World hops in their beers, but you don't see the same attitude to English hops. They use English hops, but don't push that in the branding.

PS Seymour, have you used Sovereign hops? Good? I seem to remember having a Sovereign hopped bottled beer a few years ago, and it being pretty pleasant.

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Re: Cool all-English hop project: Hopshires

Post by Padalac » Fri Sep 05, 2014 1:14 pm

I think that part of the problem is that a lot of people associate "craft" beer with new world hops. If it uses english hops, its traditional, its musty and fuddy duddy. If its new world hops, its exciting craft beer. It's also something that is associated with America, because despite a huge amount of the knowledge, recipes, equipment, and personality of craft beer's origin coming from the UK, it is an american beer or american-influenced beer that a lot of people first encounter - and therefore associate it with. This means that up until now, the english hop growers have struggled to get much benefit out of the surge in popularity of craft beer in the UK, which is just bad news!

A good example is a beer review I saw of quite a prominent UK-based reviewer that criticised shepherd neame for using english hops in their new IPA (which incidentally is a beer I do enjoy - even if its not as hoppy as it could be). He described them as lazy, for using local ingredients, and criticised them for not trying to do it with American hops. I personally don't agree with that attitude and if anything found it refreshing to see a brewery like Shepherd Neame trying to brew a genuine IPA using kentish hops, even if they could have used more of them.

Anyway, this whole attitude really throws out the baby with the bathwater. Hops are only an ingredient. A huge part of what constitutes so called craft beer is the techniques, attitude and skills of the brewers involved. I think that its great to try everything and the more different things that people try and the more people do it the better, but I think there is a case to be made that there is space for english hops within craft beer and even within hoppy english beer. Having said that I think local ingredients are key to giving a product a real character, and using english hops is really important in putting a character into beer.

Don't get me wrong - I like new world hops and I use them myself frequently - I also understand why people find a new hop profile exciting - however let's ditch the attitude that says that craft beer has to have an american hop profile. Ironically, I suspeect that that attitude is more prevalent in the UK than it is in the states!

This kind of initiative hopefully will make people more aware of the idea of terroir, and start bringing in some new modern hop profiles using local ingredients. I think its an awful shame if we have to import in all our hops and the potential flavours that could be exploited from our own land ebb and fade away.

Should english hop growers be trying to develop hops that taste like cascade and centennial - thats another question..

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Re: Cool all-English hop project: Hopshires

Post by Subsonic » Mon Sep 08, 2014 8:27 pm

As a home brewer I often struggled with hops a bit, in terms of trying to identify the scent from a vac packed bag. Following this thread I think we could all do our bit as home brewers and plant some hops. I have about 10 classic varieties here. After growing and harvesting them I know a lot more about hops. I harvested about 10 pounds dry this year. The scent of the resin on my hands will stay with me for ever. If you brew as we all do, maybe plant some hops, you won't regret it. Sub

Padalac

Re: Cool all-English hop project: Hopshires

Post by Padalac » Tue Sep 09, 2014 9:28 pm

anyone tried thornbridge colorado red? its quite a showcase for english hops..

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Re: Cool all-English hop project: Hopshires

Post by seymour » Wed Oct 15, 2014 4:25 pm

I've been extremely impressed with UK Admiral hops in several recent beers:
Schlafly Hop Trial: Admiral
New Belgium Hop The Pond IPA

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