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Cougfan · 11-06-2009, 12:27 AM

I have looked around on the web and done some searches but cannot find information out on symphony hops. My cousin from Prosser, WA gave me about 4lbs of hops form the drying plant and said that they are symphony hops. Does anyone know anything about these? Estimated alpha?

**mmb** · 11-06-2009, 01:34 AM

The only write-up I could find online said

"Symphony is a new super high alpha acids variety released from a private company's breeding program in 1996. Its the first triploid high alpha acids variety in the US. Alpha acids content is almost 15% and beta acids content averages at about 4.7%. Total oil content is also high and storage stability is excellent, harvest maturity is medium-late with excellent cone yields averaging 3.000 Kilos per hectare.

Crop was decimated by the 1997 powdery mildew outbreak, and growers have agreed not to grown this variety again because it seemed to enhance the spread of the disease throughout the valley."

Makes me wonder where he got them if growers are staying away from it..

Also, there is some information on the DNA sequence of hops and symphony here
http://aob.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/mcn089v1

Cougfan · 11-06-2009, 01:55 AM

Thanks MMB. He had mentioned that they are a bittering hop, but I didn't know what AA they were. The cones appear fairly small relative to the ones that I grow in my back yard (Cascade, Chinook and Wilamette). I am not sure what grower he got them from but the Prosser area is loaded with hops.

I talked with him again tonight and he said that they are only a couple of years old to the market which makes me think they may be slightly different than what was released in 1996. Not real sure. Anyway, thanks again. The 15% number is certainly good to know.

**mmb** · 11-06-2009, 02:12 AM

I don't imagine that they would name a different strain the same as a previous variety. I assume they are the same.

Maybe they've bred a stronger resistance to downy mildew into the strain.