If you’re planning on going to the Fremont Oktoberfest in Seattle, Washington, which this year is being held September 19-21, buy your tickets online and receive two additional free tasting tokens. Just enter the code “FOKT” in the “Discount Code” window to get your extra tokens.

Let me start out by saying that I am not a big fan of Alcopops. I understand their appeal and the demographic that generally prefers them. I am of the opinion that they probably make it harder for craft brewers to capture the just-over-21 market because of the average younger persons’ preference for sweet flavors. But as malt-based beverages, they are in the family of beer, albeit often considered a distant cousin at best. I’ve been guilty myself of wanting to throw them under the bus sometimes, simply because they’re such a target for neo-prohibitionists. Because of their supposed popularity among younger drinkers, they’ve been an equally popular target for the anti-alcohol factions of society.

But let’s re-think this. It’s clearly not working to simply let malternatives take the fall. In California, recent legislation to tax alcopops as spirits — a quite ridiculously tortured and incorrect way of defining them that was done simply because neo-prohibitionists got to have their way — also may quite possibly do away with (or make prohibitively expensive) barrel aged beer, too. So maybe we should think about this in the same way we do freedom of speech. We may not like what someone has to say, but we understand that we must protect their right to say it or one day we, too, may be unable to express our opinion. That may be what’s happening with malt-based beverages. Even though many of us in the craft beer world may not like them, perhaps we should defend them. Wait, here me out. The truth is, once the neo-prohibitionists have put that segment of the alcohol business out of business, they won’t be satisfied and simply go home and live their lives. They’ll just move on to the next target.

It reminds of that famous quotation/poem by German Pastor Martin Niemöller:

“In Germany, they came first for the Communists,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist;
And then they came for the trade unionists,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist;
And then they came for the Jews,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew;
And then . . . they came for me . . .
And by that time there was no one left to speak up.”

It wasn’t my intention to necessarily compare neo-prohibitionists to the Nazis, but in terms of tactics and propaganda, it’s not really a bad analogy. So I’m starting to think we should speak up for our malternative cousins. Whatever they say and do to go after them, eventually they’ll say and do to craft beer.

That fact that young people who are under 21 might also like sweet drinks is hardly a reason to force them to not offer them for sale to legal adults. Soda is sickeningly sweet — not to mention arguably worse for a person’s health than beer — and we don’t sue them to stop their sale because young people might be harmed by them. There are thousands of such products made for adults but not ideal or illegal for kids that we don’t think should be discontinued just because of their appeal to kids. It’s up to parents to decide what’s best for their own children and up to retail companies and law enforcement to restrict those products that are illegal for minors from being purchased by them. The very idea that something legal for adults should be wiped off the face of the earth because kids might like it too is one that continues to baffle me. Follow that logic to its obvious conclusion, and we’ll create a world suitable only for children. Given that childhood is all about learning to grow up and be an adult, it just makes no sense. When you consider that roughly 29% of the American population is under 21, that means neo-prohibitionists and the CSPI want to ignore 71% of the rest of society, in other words the vast majority.

Back in June, the CSPI notified Miller and Anheuser-Busch of their intent to file suit against them. Uncharacteristically, the normally litigious A-B decided to cave in to their demands and “agreed to take caffeine and other unapproved additives out of its two alcoholic energy drinks, Bud Extra and Tilt.” They also paid $200,000 to eleven states “to reimburse them for the cost of the investigation.” I can only presume they did so primarily to avoid negative publicity, and not due to any belief that they had done anything untoward.

In the St. Louis take on this story, they claim that the CSPI “said the drink contains ‘unapproved’ additives, including caffeine and guarana,” though it’s unclear who needs to approve them. They continue:

CSPI’s lawsuit argues that it is illegal to use caffeine, guarana, ginseng, and taurine in alcoholic beverages. The group argues that the Food and Drug Administration has given only very narrow approval for caffeine and guarana—with no allowance for alcoholic drinks—and no approval for ginseng in any food or beverage. Taurine is only approved for use in chicken feed, not human food, according to the group.

But I’ve seen soda with guarana, taurine, ginseng and, obviously, caffeine. And brewers have been brewing beer with coffee for at least a decade or two, with no issue having been raised by the FDA as far as I know. And as mentioned in the MarketWatch report, “the Federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau has approved all product formulations and labels for the Sparks line.” MillerCoors continues:

Further, “we have and we will continue to ensure that the labeling, marketing and product formulations of all our brands meet all applicable federal regulations and that our brands are marketed responsibly to legal drinking-age adults.”

But let’s forget about those reports and go directly to the source. According to the lawsuit itself, which was filed in the District of Columbia, the two causes of action alleged by the CSPI are one; that Miller Coors violated the “D.C. Consumer Protection Procedures Act: Deception D.C. Code § 28-3901, et seq.” and two; that they also violated “D.C. Consumer Protection Procedures Act: Breach of Implied Warranty of Merchantability D.C. Code §§ 28:2-312-318.” Even if successful on either of the two counts, that means MillerCoors would only be enjoined from selling Sparks in Washington D.C., at least for now. Undoubtedly this is a test case, with the fate of the fifty states hanging in the balance. The complaint is filled with a laundry list of “facts,” which are actually not facts, but arguments (some of which are pure propaganda), including listing their own success in earlier lawsuits. Two of the so-called “facts” they allege are that “[t]hese drinks appeal strongly to underage drinkers, such as college students, because they taste more like a soft drink than an alcoholic beverage” and also that “[t]here is a physiological effect — and marketing message — that consuming alcohol and caffeine together allows one to drink more alcohol without feeling as intoxicated as would otherwise be the case.” The CSPI characterizes these two as “the most serious.” That means their biggest problem with Sparks is that people who prefer sweet tastes like them and they don’t like the way they’re marketed. But, of course, there are plenty of other sweet alcoholic drinks available. A recent survey by another neo-prohibitionist group found that underage drinkers’ clear preference is not beer (which is where Sparks would fit), but hard liquor with something added to sweeten it. Red Bull and vodka has been a popular mixed drink for many years. And a preference for wine and beer was roughly the same, and far below sweetened spirits, both at around 16%. But as usual, wine and spirits get a free pass, while beer is demonized.

In this case, though, it seems it’s not just the alcohol, but that it’s sweet and alcohol. Apparently that’s just too much. Of course, we should ask where that preference for all things sweet came from. Our genetic collective sweet tooth has been exploited by almost every single food company out there. Troll the average grocery store and pick up things at random. What you’ll discover is that practically everything has sugar in it. Stuff you would never, ever think might have sugar as an ingredient, does. For example, Morton’s Salt has sugar in it, for chrissakes. Sometimes they don’t call it sugar, but instead use chemical names ending in -ose, like sucrose (table sugar), maltose (malt sugar), fructose (fruit sugar), lactose (milk sugar), glucose (a.k.a. dextrose, grape sugar), and many, many more. And since food labels list ingredients in order of their concentration, many food companies list sugar several times in their individual forms, having several chemical names for sugar on one label, to hide the actual amount of sugar in their products. And sugar is arguably far worse for people’s health than alcohol. But you see little kids down to toddlers mainlining the stuff in soda, which probably started with all the juice they push on babies which is likewise loaded with sugar. Soda has such a high concentration of sugar that after drinking one, your body actually craves more liquid to dilute all that sugar you just drank in a hopeless effort to quench your thirst. Is it any wonder that we crave sweet tastes?

But neo-prohibitionists continue to blame the alcohol companies for this condition that was not of their making. You might argue that they shouldn’t exploit it, but when everybody else — and I do mean just about everybody — is pandering to kids and adults alike why shouldn’t they? I may not like these drinks, but I can’t reasonably say they shouldn’t be “allowed” to sell them, as the CSPI thinks they can, just because kids might like their sweeter taste. Even if they were outlawed, there would still be sweet wine and cocktails for kids looking to get drunk and satisfy their sweet tooth. Can the CSPI honestly believe that if there was no more Sparks around, kids would give up their desire for alcohol? I mean that rhetorically, of course. I know they’re not that stupid, so that suggests a larger agenda. This lawsuit is part of the CSPI’s Litigation Project, which is certainly an ominous sounding name for a “project.” What’s especially troubling is I can’t disagree with everything they’ve done so far. But the CSPI press release also boasts that their “agreement with Anheuser-Busch was the first alcohol-related accomplishment for CSPI’s litigation project.” If that doesn’t suggest additional lawsuits, I don’t know what else would.

I suggest that we support and help, if possible, MillerCoors with this latest attack on alcohol. No matter what we may think of malternatives or beers with caffeine and other additives, if we don’t speak up now, who will be here to speak for us when the neo-prohibitionists come for craft beer? I, for one, don’t want to slide down that slippery slope to another prohibition.

Tomorrow, September 9 at 10:30 a.m., a press conference will be held at Rubicon Brewing in Sacramento, California to rally support for a veto of AB 1245, dubbed “The Trash & Trinkets Bill.” The bill, supported by only one beer company — Anheuser-Busch — sailed through both the state house and senate, showing just what lobbying money can buy in the state of California. What will A-B get for it’s money? “AB 1245 would significantly increase the amount of marketing dollars Anheuser-Busch wants to spend courting new drinkers. Promoting an increase of 1200% in direct marketing swag the largest beer manufacturer in the U.S. wants to further exploit its marketing clout to the detriment of smaller brewers.”

“The real loser in the AB marketing game will be the consumer who will likely see reduced choices at their local market,” said Tom McCormick, executive director of the California Small Brewers Association. The fact that every single beer company — large and small, domestic and import — with the singular exception of A-B opposes this bill, it’s bewildering to me that our elected officials turn so blind an eye to the will of not only the people, but the majority of the business community, too, in passing this bill. With a total impact of over 24 and a half billion dollars, California represents 13% of the beer industry in America. We have more breweries than any other state and, until last year (when Colorado overtook us), brewed the most beer, too. Apparently our state government is more interested in the soon-to-be world’s largest multinational beer company being happy than they are in protecting the interests of the local beer economy as a whole. I know money is the grease that moves politics, but this is just such a blatant example of greed over what’s good for the state that it boggles the mind. Don’t we want our state elected officials to care more about the best interests of our state?

Come out and show your support tomorrow for vetoing the bill. It’s our last chance to keep the playing field where it is, not as level as we’d like but certainly more so than if Governor Schwarzenegger signs AB 1245 into law. On hand at Rubicon will be owner Glynn Phillips, Susan Little (owner of St. Stan Brewery in Modesto) and Tom McCormick (executive director of the California Small Brewers Association). Rubicon is located at 2004 Capitol Avenue in Sacramento, California.

Even the Sacramento Bee is opposed to the bill. This is from an editorial in the paper on Saturday:

Assembly Bill 1245: Anheuser Busch galloped into the Legislature this year like a team of Clydesdales. The company’s lobbying mission? To get a law passed that would allow beer brewers to distribute more free trinkets, such as Bud Light key chains. Smaller brewers and groups crusading against alchohol abuse oppose SB 1245 by Assemblyman Albert Torrico, D-Fremont. It sailed easily through both houses but deserves a red veto stamp on the governor’s desk.

I got an e-mail last evening from my friend Ralph Woodall, who’s the Director of Sales at HopUnion in Yakima, Washington. The Discovery Channel television show Dirty Jobs was in town last week shooting an episode on hop picking. Wikipedia describes the show as “host Mike Rowe is shown performing difficult, strange, and/or messy occupational duties alongside the typical employees.” They got in touch with HopUnion owner Ralph Olson less than two months ago and showed up last Tuesday for two days of picking hops and working the kilns.

The Yakima Herald-Republic has a short story and describes the cable show’s stay in Yakima.

Rowe spent two days picking and inspecting hops, working the kilns that dry the hops and making bales, Olson said. In addition to visiting Hopunion, which provides hop leaves, pellets, extracts and oils to the craft brewery industry, Rowe worked in the fields at Loftus Ranches in Moxee.

Ralph tells me the show will most likely air sometime this winter, but there’s no exact air date yet. I’ll keep you posted.

Ralph Woodall with Dirty Jobs’ host Mike Rowe.

Ralph Olson with Mike Rowe and the crew of Dirty Jobs in the upstairs break room at HopUnion’s offices in Yakima.
 

As I’ve done for the last few years, Saturday morning I drove up to Moonlight Brewing to help out with picking the hops on Brian Hunt’s modest hopyard. It’s always a fun time, and harkens back to the time before hops began being picked by machinery. In those days, hop-picking was a community event, with entire families spending the day in the fields. When I told my own family my plans, my four-year old daughter Alice said she wanted to come along to pick hops, which warmed her father’s heart. So the day became “Take Your Daughter To Hop-Picking Day.”

Me and my daughter Alice, having her first hop-picking experience.

Moonlight Brewery owner Brian Hunt cutting hops from his hopyard to make his fresh hop ale.
 

For more photos from this year’s hop harvest at Moonlight Brewery, visit the photo gallery.
 

This is our 19th monthly Session a.k.a. Beer Blogging Friday and Jim at Lootcorp 3.0 has chosen Deutsches Bier (or German Beer) as the theme, and he’s even offering bonus points for “Bavarian-themed posts.” Here’s how he put his intentions in his announcement:

I’ve decided to make September’s topic Deutsches Bier – German beer. I want you all to focus on the wonderful contributions our German neighbors have made to the beer world. You can write about a particular German style you really enjoy, a facet of German beer culture which tickles your fancy, or any other way in which Germany and beer have become intertwined in your life. Bonus points for Bavarian-themed posts.

It was that last sentence that caught my attention. Bavaria, eh? Well, I have over 2,000 photos I took during the press junket I took to Bavaria with a dozen other beer journalists last November. And I’d hardly had a chance to look at them … until now. So this Session seemed the perfect opportunity to get off my duff and get those photos posted. It’s taken more than a week to go through them all, choose the best ones and re-size them for the web. But, whew, happy to say that’s done now.

 
Seven Days in Bavaria
November 4-10, 2007
 
11.4 Miltenberg Sunday: German Beer Trip, Day 1
11.5 Miltenberg Monday: Faust Brewery Tour: German Beer Trip, Day 2
11.5 Wurzburger Hofbrau Brewery Tour: German Beer Trip, Day 2
11.5 Weyermann Malting: German Beer Trip, Day 2
11.5 Schlenkerla: German Beer Trip, Day 2
11.6 Bamberg Biermuseum: German Beer Trip, Day 3
11.6 A Walk Around Bamberg: German Beer Trip, Day 3
11.6 Mahr’s Brau: German Beer Trip, Day 3
11.6 A Quick Stop at Fassla and Spezial: German Beer Trip, Day 3
11.6 Schlenkerla Production Brewery: German Beer Trip, Day 3
11.7 Lammsbrau Organic Brewery: German Beer Trip, Day 4
11.7 Furst Carl: German Beer Trip, Day 4
11.7 Anheuser-Busch’s Hallertau Hop Farm: German Beer Trip, Day 4
11.8 German Hop Museum: German Beer Trip, Day 5
11.8 Kaltenberg, Part 1: German Beer Trip, Day 5
11.8 Kaltenberg, Part 2: German Beer Trip, Day 5
11.8 Dinner at the Hofbrauhaus: German Beer Trip, Day 5
11.9 Spaten: German Beer Trip, Day 6
11.9 Augustiner Brau Munchen, Part 1: German Beer Trip, Day 6
11.9 Augustiner Brau Munchen, Part 2: German Beer Trip, Day 6
11.9 Paulaner Nockherberg: German Beer Trip, Day 6
11.9 Ayinger Brewery, Part 1: German Beer Trip, Day 6
11.9 Ayinger Brewery, Part 2: German Beer Trip, Day 6
11.9 Dinner at Schneider Weiss Brauhaus: German Beer Trip, Day 6
11.10 Castle Mindelburg: German Beer Trip, Day 7
11.10 Meckatzer: German Beer Trip, Day 7
11.10 Zotler Brauerei: German Beer Trip, Day 7
 

The trip was organized by these trade groups in the hopes of bringing attention to beer from Germany. Despite not being coerced in any way to write anything specific, good or bad, there are critics among us who dogmatically insist objectivity is impossible under such circumstances. Just by accepting the trip, I’ve been corrupted already so anything I write about it suffers from that bias. This is apparently especially true if I write anything favorable, because I guess you’re not intelligent enough to decide for yourself if I’m being truthful or and am simply writing a puff piece out of gratitude.

All of the beers we had from these breweries were exceptionally good. Even they’re far from household names in America, I hope distributors pick them up and, assuming that happens, that people buy them and give them a try. There’s one style from each brewery available in a four-pack, with a good range of different German beers. From Lammsbrau, an organic brewery, their Lammsbrau Light is a mild lager, not a a low-calorie beer but a session lager (4.1% abv) that also full-flavored. Meckatzer Gold is a tasty helles. The Miltenberger Helles Hefe-Weizen is a great German-style hefeweizen, though I confess their Schwarzviertler was absolutely one of my favorites. The Zotler Bier Korbinian Dunkel is a nice dark lager. But don’t take my word for it — after all I’ve only been there — try the beer for yourself. These are great German beers. I’d say so no matter how I managed to get to Bavaria and visit these breweries.

MSNBC, through their partner Forbes Traveler, had a story today (sent to me by Pete Slosberg. Thanks Pete) that lists their choices for America’s Best Beer Festivals. It’s a surprisingly decent list, especially given other missteps Forbes Traveler has made with similar lists. A few months back, a magazine asked me to pick the top twenty beer festivals worldwide (but the assignment called for 25% abroad/75% U.S.) and eight of their eleven made my top twenty (or top 15 American festivals) and two more were listed as honorable mentions.

Here’s the Forbes list:

1. Great American Beer Festival
2. Oregon Brewers Festival
3. Philly Craft Beer Festival
4. Great Taste of the Midwest
5. Belgium Comes To Cooperstown
6. World Beer Festival
7. American Craft Beer Fest
8. San Diego Real Ale Festival
9. Vermont Brewers Festival
10. Great Alaska Beer & Barleywine Festival
11. Yakima Fresh Hop Ale Festival

The accompanying article has an extensive interview with my friend Marty Jones and also Julia Herz, of the Brewers Association. Overall it discusses the top few fests and also what makes a good beer festival. All in all, a decent job.

In a post entitled Obama beer-averse? ‘Come on, man’, on the Swamp, Tribune’s Washington Bureau, where the author reports that “Barack Obama, defending his beer-drinking credentials, says his party’s ticket won’t be out-blue-collared by the Republican ticket with the union and hunting family on it.”

In a recent 60 Minutes interview by Steve Kroft:

“But you tried really hard to reach these people,” Kroft pressed. “You went and sipped beer, which I know you don’t particularly like — I mean you even…

“Steve, I had a beer last night,” Obama interjected. “I mean, where do these stories come from, man?”

“I’m the one… [that] doesn’t drink,” Biden added.

“Where does the story come from that…I don’t like beer? ” Obama asked. “C’mon, man,”

“Umm, beer ….” Tell me he’s not looking at the beer and thinking, “damn, that’s really good.”
 
 

Given Cindy McCain’s ties to Anheuser-Busch, it’s a safe bet Obama’s not drinking Budweiser. The beer in the photo below looks to be a pale ale or amber ale at the very least. It’s certainly not a light beer. Does that make this election big beer vs. small?

The 2008-09 NFL Football season starts on Thursday, which means there are still two days left to join the 2nd annual Brookston Beer Bulletin football games. There are two to choose from, one is a simple no-spread pick ’em game where you try to guess who will win each game, each week. If that’s too much of a commitment for you, then the other game — Survival Football — is perfect for you. Just pick one game each week to win, but be sure about your choice because if you’re wrong, you’re out for the year. Last man or woman standing wins.

So far we’ve got 23 people signed up for the Pick ‘Em League, so there are still 27 open spots for you to take. And only 20 folks have signed up for the Survival League, meaning there are thirty more people we can accommodate. What are you waiting for, come on, play along. The more, the merrier. Both games are free (you just need a Yahoo ID, which is also free). Below is a description of each game and the details on how to play.

Pro Football Pick’em

In this Pick’em game, just pick the winner for every game each week, with no spread, and let’s see who gets the most correct throughout the season. All that’s at stake is bragging rights, but it’s fun.

In order to join the group, just go to Pro Football Pick’em, click the “Sign Up” button (or “Create or Join Group” if you are a returning user). From there, follow the path to join an existing private group and when prompted, enter the following information…

Group ID#: 29057 (Beer Bulletin Pick’Em)
Password: bulletin

Survival Football

If picking all sixteen football game every week seems like too much, then Survival Football is for you. In Survival Football, you only have to pick one game each week. The only catch is you can’t pick the same team to win more than once all season. And you better be sure about each game you pick because if you’re wrong, you’re out for the season. Last man standing wins.

In order to join the group, just go to Survival Football, click the “Sign Up” button and choose to “Join an Existing Group”, then “Join a Private Group”. Then, when prompted, enter the following information…

Group ID#: 8612 (Beer Bulletin Survival)
Password: bulletin

The Wall Street Journal had an interesting article last week about an apparently growing trend, entitled Hop Farmers Find Growth Business. Essentially it chronicles how many people saw all the stories that began last fall reporting the shortage of hops and the huge rise in prices for the essential beer ingredient and saw an opportunity. As a result, despite the steep learning curve and heavy capital needed, a number of people have apparently turned to growing hops. Some are brewers hoping to control at least a small portion of their own destiny, some are part-time entrepreneurs looking to cash in, while still others are trying to make a go of at as full-time hop farmers.

I know several brewers who have planted small amounts of hops on their existing property or have bought or leased additional land just for that purpose. In no case will it meet all their hop needs, but it will be a great story to tell, that they’re using at least some hops that they’ve grown themselves. Plus, many of the brewers I’ve talked to think it will be fun (though they know it’s hard work) and just want to see if they can do it themselves and outside the ideal climate of Washington, Oregon and Idaho. Hops did used to be most prevalent in upstate New York until the mid-1800s when a blight wiped out the entire industry there, so we know there are other climates where it will grow effectively. Curiously, at least two people told me they tried to get some help from the Hop Growers of America, a trade group that represents hop farmers in the tri-state area, but were soundly rebuffed. Their website states they “represent and promote the interests of U.S. growers” but dig a little deeper and you’ll see that’s not exactly accurate. Under “Growing Regions,” itself under “U.S. Hops,” the area even shown are the same three states of the Pacific Northwest Hop Growing Region. Since I know there are other hop farms — albeit quite small — around the country, when I inquired about those I was essentially told they were too small to matter.

This is one of those curious examples of how related, but competing, interests can diverge. It’s in the best interests of brewers to have a steady supply of all the hop varieties they want to use for an affordable price. I should probably say “lowest” price, but I believe most, if not all, brewers do sincerely understand and accept that hop farmers deserve a fair price. But, of course, the best interests of hop farmers is to get the best fair price they can and maximize the amount they can realize for their crops, usually on a per acre basis. The point of divergence often comes when trying to define what constitutes a price that’s “fair.” But you can also easily see why they would view any new hop farmer — no matter how small — as competition, especially outside the four main growing areas in the three typical Pacific Northwest states. And so they would be protectionist, and would not be willing to assist in their own demise or dilution of market share. I get that. But it is still a little disappointing that they wouldn’t be willing to help out a brewer growing such a small amount that it can’t be reasonably seen to be serious competition.

My friend Ralph Olson, who owns HopUnion, is quoted at the end of the Wall Street Journal piece warning that many of the new crop of hop farmers “won’t be in business in a few years. Prices will come down, and insects can wreak havoc.” And I think that’s essentially true. From everything I’ve learned talking with hop farmers and visiting the hop growing areas, hops is a difficult business that requires more effort than other kinds of farming. The processing equipment is capital intensive and dealing with potential pests and diseases a veritable nightmare. Many of the current hop growers are third or fourth generation, farming the same land as their ancestors. They say that hops gets in your blood and that is what keeps them in the game. Seeing what’s involved, I believe them.

But I also believe that the craft beer brewers got a little spooked by this last shortage, coming somewhat unexpectedly at a time when they were riding high on several years of double-digit growth. I myself had that sinking feeling when just as things seemed to be going so great for the industry, it appeared that the hop shortage/price increases might bring that growth to a screeching halt. Some brewers felt that the people who sell hops could have done a better job last year (and even before that) of managing the supply and the pricing and should have done more to warn the industry about the impending shortages. After the shortages revealed themselves, they encouraged every brewer to enter into long term contracts to ensure their price and supply, but prior to that time some brewers were unable to get a hop contract at any price.

Again, what I think we’re seeing here is competing interests, normally symbiotic, but occasionally — like now — less so. According to August 1st estimates, it appears this year’s harvest will be up 27% over last year. I haven’t seen that broken down by varieties yet, but most of the new acreage planted was the high alphas preferred by the large breweries rather than the diverse aroma hops that craft brewers need. So even with what appears to be good news overall, I expect that there will be some hop varieties still scarce and that prices won’t drop much, if at all.

But as long as there are still opportunities to make a living growing hops, we’ll see people try their hand at it. We can embrace them, as most brewers have done, or discourage them, like it would appear the hop growers, or at least the trade group that speaks for them, has done. While I can’t fault them for wanting to protect themselves and their market, especially those that have stuck with it during the lean times, it still strikes me as a somewhat bitter response. It will be interesting to see how many breweries make their beer with hops from unusual sources this fall, though in truth any hops planted for the first time last spring will not be at full yield (that takes three years). But with necessity being the mother of invention, I’m sure we’ll see a lot of creative innovation nonetheless.

Hops just before harvest time in Yakima, Washington, where over 70% of American hops are grown.