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Celebrating Oregon Beer Newsletter
Published about 5 hours ago • 4 min read
Celebrating Oregon Beer
Your fortnightly round-up of all the beer and hop news from the Beaver State.
We have a special newsletter this week with just a single item--a drinkers' guide to Oregon fresh hop beer. We'll be back with our regular format next time.
Cheers!
Spotlight: Finding the Fresh Hops
In Oregon, fresh hop season has four distinct phases. The hop harvest begins in the middle of August, the earliest point at which breweries can gather their green gold. The harvest lasts a month, however, so only a small fraction of the hop varieties have ripened by then. Over the next two weeks, intrepid drinkers can find fresh hop beers, but they’re sparse and harder to locate.
The second phase kicks in around Labor Day weekend. By that time, a lot of fresh hop beers are in the pipeline and they're easier to find. Still, it’s a bit early to find them everywhere. One still needs to do some hunting, while exercising patience.
The fourth phase, to step out of order a bit, begins around October 1st. The wet season arrives then in Oregon, and the high temperatures are dropping fast. One of the key elements of fresh hop season involves the Pacific Northwest’s amazing Septembers, when the weather is still nice but not scorching—perfect for sitting outside. Nothing complements the mood more than a harvest-fresh beer. With shorter nights and cooler days, it's not quite the perfect time.
Which brings us to this weekend.
If you don’t live in Oregon, the third phase, beginning the third week of September, is peak fresh hops. All the hops have been harvested, and even beers made using the longer process (see below) are out. Take Roscoe’s, a local taproom, as one example. As of this morning 15 of 20 of their taps are pouring fresh hop beers (in nine different styles). Now is the moment!
So given that we’re on the cusp of the first weekend of Peak Fresh Hops, let’s talk about where to find them.
General Things to Know
Hop varieties mature at different times. Growers cultivate many different varieties of hops so they don’t all ripen at the same time. This affects which varieties of hops you’ll see at any given time in beers during fresh hop season.
The beers are made differently, according to two schools. Brewers can add freshly-picked, undried hops to beer as it’s being made, or to finished beer. If they add them to beer they’re making, it will take a couple weeks to complete the process. If they add them to finished beer, it can go out almost immediately.
Some breweries specialize in fresh hop beers. Not every brewery makes a dozen fresh hop beers, so plan ahead by visiting Instagram feeds before you visit a brewery to see what's pouring.
They’re better on draft. (But buy them in cans, too!)
Where to Find the Fresh Hops
Independent Taprooms & Pubs For the sheer number of offerings, it’s hard to beat independent taprooms and pubs like Roscoe’s. Because they’re not limited to what they can brew, they can devote half their taps or more to fresh hops. In one sitting, you might be able to choose from a dozen or more different offerings. Below is a sampling of places—but it’s far from exhaustive. Check out your local to see what they've got on tap.
Fests Fests are definitely the most target-rich environment in which to find fresh hops--they're only limited by time. If you can visit one, definitely do.
Fresh Hop Pop-up. Portland’s long-running joint venture with Prost! Marketplace runs for 17 days, kicking off yesterday. Each day features a different theme, with a dozen or so beers that fit the bill. Yesterday was beers using Goschie Farms hops; today it's a showcase of Breakside's beers. Click through to see the whole schedule.
Hop & Heritage Festival, Sept 26 (Independence). This is a new festival sponsored by Coleman Agriculture and hosted by the city of Independence, in the heart of hop-growing country.
Hillsboro Hops Fresh Hop Fest, Oct 3 (Hillsboro). The Hillsboro Hops baseball team has a brand-new ballpark, one designed for events that don’t include double plays. The ballclub is very excited to get into beer, and this is their maiden voyage for a beer fest. Organizers curated it for diversity of styles and breweries, and it should be a great time.
Orchard and Ale Fest, Oct 3 (Hood River). This successor event to Hood River’s long-running fresh hop fest is styled more as a harvest fest, and draws in the valley’s strong cider tradition.
Source: Fort George Brewery
Breweries We don't have a precise figure for the number of breweries who make fresh hop beers, but it's a lot. As one data point, Coleman Agriculture keeps a running list of the different breweries who buy at least one batch of fresh hops, and it numbered more than fifty this year. That’s somewhere between 20-25% of all the breweries in Oregon—buying from one grower.
Visiting breweries and discovering what they have on tap is one of the joys of the season. No single brewery will have as many fresh hop beers on tap as you'll find at a taproom or festival, but there's something about the serendipity of finding a perfectly-made, days-old fresh hop beer served straight from the source. Again, check with brewery Instagram feeds before you visit.
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