Late fall brings us a preponderance of seasonal brews, from ciders to Christmas porters to Glögg. But one you may not have heard of-and one you should definitely try-is wet-hopped beer, which is suddenly popping up in taprooms and being written about in Bon Appetit. So what is it?
First of all, let’s talk about the hops. Hops are the flower of the hop plant-the resin-packed cones-and they look a little like green acorns. Their bitterness provides the counterpoint to the syrupy sweet flavor of malt, that crisp tang that evens the keel of your IPA boat. Many IPAs are made with hops that are dried and pelletized, while wet-hopped beers are added within hours of picking, still wet and fresh from the field-presenting an interesting dilemma for brewers located further than a day from the farm. Turns out, the hassle is worth it.
A Brief History of Hops
Hops weren’t always used in beer brewing-in the earliest days, brewers used all kinds of plants to flavor beer. According to this excellent Short History of Hops by beer historian Martyn Cornell, one early mention of the usefulness of hops comes from a surprising source: Abbess Hildegard von Bingen, the German mystic whose latin texts inform some of what we know about Medieval Europe.
In the 12th century, Bingen described how hops could be used to preserve liquids. And while it’s not clear when they were added to beer, German farmers were doing good business selling hops to brewers across Northern Europe by the 13th century.
Many of the modern hops we use today are mostly descended from breeding programs, many of them aimed at creating hops that were higher in resin content. Yes, resin is the stuff that creates that bitter, crisp taste, a bit like the resin of cannabis plants. American hops-the ones you’ll be tasting in wet hopped beers around these parts-are famous for their delicious resin-y goodness.
Often, the hop cones are picked and dried, then put into a kiln and turned into little pellets. As Bon Appetit explains in this great post, pelletized hops taste very different than their fresh-picked counterparts, just like dry herbs taste different than fresh ones.
But because fresh hops start to wilt very quickly after they’re picked, pelletized hops are the practical way for most brewers to make their beers-getting hops from the farm to the brewery in under 24 hours is a logistical nightmare for most breweries.
Moving Hops Across State Lines
So, considering the industrialization of the farming and brewing business over the last century, how did the idea of wet hop beer ever enter the picture? To find out, I called Jason Ebel, the co-founder of Two Brothers Brewing Company about 30 miles west of Chicago. Two Brothers makes a wet hop beer called Heavy Handed, and was one of the first breweries to try the technique from the Midwest-where access to hops, normally sourced from the Pacific Northwest and California, was anything but steady.
As Ebel told me, a friend on the West Coast described adding fresh-picked hops to a beer, and he had to try it. “Part of the fun of craft brewing is experimenting,” he says. “I thought, there’s got to be a way to try it here in the Midwest.” Back then, Two Brothers worked with a small Washington State hop farmer to source their hops-so Ebel called her up and asked if she’d be willing to “box them up right out of the field” and put them on an overnight truck.
The farmer was game, and the first shipment of wet hops packed in parkas made of ice packs to keep them fresh left the farm at 3PM and was already brewing in the Two Brothers’ batch by 8AM the next morning. So far so good. The next shipment was scheduled to arrive by truck the following morning for another batch-but strangely, it never arrived. By that afternoon, Ebel had scrapped the batch and given up hope. But late that afternoon, the UPS driver rolled into the lot and revealed that his haul had been opened and the ice packs removed. The hops were unusable.
What had happened? “Sorry it’s late,” the driver explained to Ebel, who cracks up recalling the story. “This got quarantined because they thought it was dope.”
That was in 2000, and much has changed about brewing culture since then. For one thing, hops moving across state lines are a far more common sight. Two Brothers is now in its 15th season of making Heavy Handed, and now grows the hops at a local farm in Pontiac, Illinois. Each six pack of the beer features three separate beers, each brewed with its own wet hop variety-Cascade, Centennial, and Chinook-and every year, the company hosts a day at the hop farm that begins with harvesting the cones and ends with dinner paired to the resulting beer.
So How Does It Taste?
There are now dozens of wet-hopped beers on the market, but keep in mind that wet-hop beers depend far more on the harvest process than conventional beers-so supplies of specific brews might not be as consistent as other IPAs. I tried the three I could get my hands on at my local shop, starting with Denver’s Great Divide Brewery, which makes its Fresh Hop Pale Ale with Pacific Northwest-grown hops.
Great Divide’s contribution to this (deeply empirical) taste test surprised me. I’d read so much about wet hops, I expected a razor-sharp bite of resin. But this leaf-colored beer taste more malty than hoppy at first, until I gave it a few more sips to sink in-then I noticed the earthy stuff everyone mentions when they describe fresh hops. It was more soil than grass, and I mean that in the best way possible.
On the opposite end of the spectrum was Lagunitas’ Born Yesterday Pale Ale, which they shipped to me within 24 hours of brewing-what the company calls a “birth record.” The Pale Ale uses Amarillo, Mosaic, and Equinox hops (“picked on the equinox itself, for all those astrology fans,” says the Lagunitas). It was with Born Yesterday that I really started to taste the grassy notes. In fact, they weren’t just notes, they were intense, blaring choruses. It was almost like tasting the green-stained smell of grass, crackling and fresh. It was delicious and overpowering.
Finally there was the Two Brothers’ Heavy Handed I’d heard so much about, which landed somewhere between the two. It was more like a layer cake of earthiness and crazy, bright citrus, like the bastard child of a rye and an IPA, with a crazy porter uncle. Ebel had described it perfectly by saying that wet hops add “an extra layer of depth,” adding “earthy, sometimes grassy” character to your IPA.
There was a surprisingly huge range between the three beers, which I had kind of expected to taste like double IPAs on steroids. That’s definitely not the case; wet-hopped beers are more of a way to taste the plants themselves, each with their own eccentricities, than a single style of beer. It’s way more fun that way, really, a bit more like wine-tasting for beer fans. Now get out there and drink some.
Source: Wet Hop Beer
It is BEERFEST TIME, so in celebration I thought we should have a list of drinking games. These will provide you with hours of fun and a MASSIVE headache. Enjoy!
Beer Pong
This is a classic game that can be played at the bar. The only materials needed are Plastic drinking cups and a Ping-Pong ball. The object of the game is to arrange the cups in the form of a pyramid so the tip is facing your opponent. Each team will arrange their cups to face the other team. . Once this has been done and each team is on the opposite end of the table, players will take turns tossing a Ping-Pong ball towards a cup on the other end of the table. The shot must be a direct one and the ball may not take a bounce. If the player succeeds in throwing the ball in the cup the other player must drink and empty that cup of its contents. The team or player that makes the other drink all of their cups first will win.
Flip, Sip, Strip
This is an easy game that can be played creating a fun environment. All players will need is a drink in their hands and one quarter or coin. The object of the game is to toss the coin into the air and while it is still in the air the player must call it. If the player guesses correctly he passes the coin on to his right. However if the player guesses incorrectly he must choose whether to drink a shot or strip an article of clothing. The game gets tricky because a player cannot pick the same thing twice in a row.
Boxing
This is a simple fast paced game that will end when one player pukes or quits. The game has two main players and 1 or two players in each corner to help their boxer out. Players will have a shot in front of them that will be their penalty if they get “hit”. Both players roll a die and the one that rolls the higher value “hits” their opponent. The player that has been “hit” will proceed to drink his shot and his team will rapidly refill the shot glass and they roll again. The game can be played in 30-second rounds and the object of the game is to move quickly and have multiple hits per round. The match is over when a player pukes or quits the game.
Quarters
The origin of this game is unknown; however the fun it can inspire is far from a myth. This game is best played with 3 or more players. The object of this game is to sit around a table with a glass in the center. Each player will take a turn to bounce the quarter on its side and try to get it to land inside the empty glass in the center. If a player manages to get the coin in the glass he will pick another player to drink. The amount will vary according to the rules and wagers set by each group. Making higher wagers and increasing the distance from where the bounce must occur can alter the game while making it more challenging.
Flip-Cup
The object of the game is to split into two teams, each with 3 to 4 people in them. Players will have a plastic cup that can have either beer or a shot in them; this will depend on each player. The object of the game is that players must begin in order and drink the content of their cup; they will then place the cup on the edge of the table and flip it. They must make the cup land upside-down, once this is done the next player may drink and flip their own cup. This game is played as a relay race; the first team to finish wins. The losing team can have additional drinks as penalties.
Images via http://www.drinkinggamezone.com/
There are many different ways to host an amazing beer party, but there are a few things that you should always keep in mind while planning one. There will be two key ingredients to every party these are: the beer and the people. You will want to take your time with the first one.
There are literally thousands and thousands of different beer brands, and hundreds of varieties as well. A true beer lover will always have their preferred style and brand. However this is not a party for one, so the first rule when selecting the beer for a party is now your audience. You will want to have varieties that your guests enjoy or that you think they will enjoy when they try them.
While it is true that some people can just guzzle down any type of beer you want to keep an open mind while planning your party. You will want to select a variety of beers that will give people the opportunity to test and experiment with their palate. They will enjoy this new experience and probably thank you for it as well. It is important not to feel bad if you make a selection that someone does not enjoy as much because all of our tastes are different. If this happens just pass them a different one.
The second key factor to an awesome time is the people. When planning this type of party you will want to invite those over who you know will enjoy beer tasting. This will give them an opportunity to expand their horizons and try new things. In the end you can invite who ever you want as long as they are coming in with an open mind and anxious to have fun. Remember to have a fridge, mini fridge or cooler available to place your beers in. it is very important to keep the beers cold!
There is nothing like a nice cold beer and good company. So relax and open your first beer because you are about to have a great time!
Beer enthusiasts love a generous, foamy head on their drink of choice. Not too much, lest it detract from the beer itself, but it’s got to be there, absolutely. How though, is the beer’s head formed? And why? Read on to find the intriguing facts about foam.
The Science Behind The Foam
The head of a beer is created when CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) rises to the surface of the glass that the beer is poured into. How does the CO2 get into the beer in the first place? It’s actually a part of the fermentation process, although it is also possible to dissolve CO2 under pressure and insert it into almost any liquid.
By itself CO2 rising to the top would create a foam, but it wouldn’t last very long. You see that in practice when you pour a can of soda into a glass. Sure, you get foam, but it goes away in a matter of just a few seconds. With beer though, it lingers. Why is that?
The Answer Lies In The Ingredients
The longevity of the beer head has to do with the type of malts and grains used in the brewing process. Some grains will help produce a longer lasting head, while others will facilitate a rapidly disappearing one. It’s important to note here though, that malts and grains don’t tell the whole story. A clean glass is important, and not just for the obvious sanitary reasons. The fact is that oil and grease on the inside of a glass can kill the foam as fast as anything.
A good head on your favorite beer is important for two practical reasons. First, it displays the aroma of the beer, which is all part of the drinking, and second, all that released CO2 means that there’s less to come out of you later, in the form of a colossal belch. Depending on your personality, you may or may not regard that as a good thing.
Guinness
No discussion of head on a beer would be complete without a mention of draft Guinness. Tasted at its finest in Ireland, a draft Guinness is poured, into a straight glass, not a tankard, and then left to stand on the bar while the head develops. It must be thick and creamy, around half to three quarters of an inch in depth, and you might have to wait for several minutes until the black and white nectar is ready to drink. But it’s worth it.
For detailed insights into which beers offer the best head (!) visit the 2015 Edmonton International Beer Festival
There are a number of fantastic beer museums scattered around the globe. If you’re a beer aficionado and have never visited any of them, then you owe it to yourself to do so. Below, we’ll outline three of the best, from third place to first and tell you why they’re worth the trip!
Sapporo Beer Museum
The beating heart of Japanese beer traditions, Sapporo has been brewing since 1877. The museum is housed in a former brewery from the nation’s Meiji Period. It provides visitors with an introduction to beer and brewing in Japan, and the grounds of the museum contain a small beer garden where tastings are available after you get your fill of history. If you’re in Japan for business or pleasure, this is one destination you won’t want to miss!
World Beer Museum
Surprisingly, two of our three “best” museums are located in Japan. This one’s in Tokyo, and unlike Sapporo, this museum has a much more cosmopolitan feel to it, featuring an extensive beer garden with beers from around the world, making it truly the best of the best in that regard. A full fledged museum located in SkyTree Town along with a mind boggling array of beers from around the world, it is unlikely you could try them all in a single visit, at least not if you plan to still remain upright. A fantastic place to visit again and again.
Deutsches Brauereimuseum
Japan might have two of our top three museums, but the crown for best of the best has to go to the German brewery museum. Located in Munich, it offers tons of great information about the German brewing tradition, and in its antiquities collection, you’ll find a drinking cup from the 4th century, BC. There’s even a dedicated microbrewery right there on the grounds, which makes for a fantastic way to end our tour through the museum proper.
If you don’t have your passport yet, get it, because these fantastic museums are ready and waiting for you.
If you can’t make it to Japan or Germany, how about Edmonton for the 2015 Edmonton International Beer Festival?
