yonitz

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Ey I recent read up on some literature about growing hops. I am now starting the process for growing acre of land of hops when spring comes. I wanted to ask, whats the most popular hops to grow and if anyone knew any potential suppliers or anyone who would want to buy hops from my farm... My family has been farming since before I was born, corn hay rye potatoes and various vegetables, but this will be our first try at hops. Any information on selling hops would be great such as average pricing, and weight distribution. I do have a vacuum sealer so I can seal and ship fresh hops across the states

El_Exorcisto

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The three Cs (Cascade, Chinook, and Centennial) are always proven performers as far as sales. Columbus/Zeus/Tomahawk (all the same variety) is also a solid seller. You could also look into working a niche market, selling more rare varieties or ones less commonly grown in the states like Vojvodina, Sorachi Ace, etc...

__________________
On Deck: Saison "Jardin d'été" (3rd Gen 3711, Wild bugs, Pale ale malt, wheat, Willamette dry hop)
Primary: Saison "Vomissure de Grenouille" (2nd Gen 3711 from dregs, Pale Ale malt, Crystals and Willamettes)
Secondary: BM45/Spontaneous Bugs Experiment (down to 1.008, and tastes awesome)

Phillip-WVHops

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Yonitz,

Email me ay phillip@willamettevalleyhops.com. We are currently selling our rhizomes. Where is your family farm located?

Hopfarmer

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E Me organichops@rof.net web site http://www.coloradoorganichops.com/ There is a lot more to 1 acre than you think Cheers Glen

pdx909

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I bought bulk quantities last year from both Crosby Farms
www.bcrosbyhops.com

And The Thyme Garden -- www.thymegarden.com

Both places had really nice rhizomes, though I think Crosby was a bit more reasonable for pricing...you have to be careful because some suppliers ship very average at best type rhizomes.

jonmohno

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I think organic is a nice niche market, i cant get any unless i get them from the west coast ortherwise its hit or miss and rare. Ill buy them,nugget,columbus,chinook,cascades,galena,simco e,for a start.

Greatlakeshops

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I would suggest checking with the local brew pubs and craft brewers near your farm before you plant. Sometimes you can hook up with a local buyer if you are growing the variety they want. Also, look for a grower group in your area to join - shared equipment for harvesting and processing can save a ton of money and co-marketing can save a lot of stress!
Because you already are a farmer; you should also look into growing the 2 row barley that is malted for brewing - this could be as profitable as hops, with a lot lower startup costs; since you already probably have a lot of the needed equipment.

GVH_Dan

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Listen to Glen, there's a lot more to an acre of hops than "just an acre". Talk to your local brewers to see not only what varieties they are interested in but also how they want it to appear on their doorstep. A few lucky people find brewers that will take wet, whole cone hops. Others have brewers that will take dry whole cone. All of our customers want the cones dried, pelletized, packaged in air/light tight bags with full American Society of Brewing Chemists test done to get oil, alpha acid...and a bunch of other things. Also, you need to know the regulations in your state. In Wisconsin, New York and a few others, hops are considered a food product so our processing/lab facility had to meet all state and federal regulations. Yes, it was expensive.

I'm not trying to scare you away because it is rather fun and exciting. Depending on where you are, you may be able to get around many of these requirements. But if the requirement is there, you should follow it.

As far as the variety, the best advice we got was, "Throw several varieties in the ground and see what grows best. Bring those to me and I'll figure out what beer I can brew with it." Most of the brewers will latch on to unique fact that they are local and craft a special beer around what you grow.

My final advice is get education if you can find it. You are going to easily drop $10k per acre to get these up and running. I would pimp our 1 day workshop but I think we sold out a day or so after we opened registration. So look around. I can tell you of the people that take our course, at least 80% walk out realizing they don't want to go through the expense for the level of risk. Of those that remain, only a handful actually put rhizomes in the ground. This isn't like planting corn, wheat or barley...think grapes, mint or tobacco. Good luck.

Hopfarmer

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Dan,Grapes !!!! Thats a 4 year adventure !!! 4 1/2 years ago I thought HOPS were an easy answer to making my farm economically sustainable. We do get a lot of free beer !! One of my large grower friends said ( anyone can grow them but only 50 can process them). Both a truth and a untruth . Now we are all learning the small scale euro production techniques as well as implementing their used equipment. If I had any idea what it would take when I started in 2008 as the 3rd or 4th organic grower in the states . If anyone wants a one on one workshop contact me. I offer what not to do as well as my dream list for operation . Special thanks to AC Golden and their Colorado Native Beer . Cheers Glen

GVH_Dan

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Yep, how does the saying go, "If I knew then what I know now..." I probably would have invested my time and energy into scratch off tickets.