Another new guy from Minnesota

[QuixoticDevice]

Hey everybody,
My name's Scott and I'm a new brewer in Minneapolis, MN. I've been wanting to brew for years now, and I'm finally getting off my butt and getting things done. I've done a couple of kits in the much maligned Mr Beer system over the last few years, and that's been enough to whet my appetite to get into more in-depth brewing.

Due to my preference for nice, hoppy brews, I've got 6 vines of hops growing up the side of my house: two each of Cascade, Nugget, and Mt. Hood. I got a couple of ounces out of them last year (their first growing season) and I'm hoping for more than I'll be able to use at the end of this season. Luckily, I've got a bunch of friends who brew as well, so I should be able to spread the love around.

I've currently got a Pale Ale bubbling away in the primary made with my homegrown Cascade from last season. I was hoping to use my Nugget as well, but I apparently didn't do as good a job of drying them out as they had turned some interesting and unpleasant colors and had some nasties growing in the bag with them, so I had to buy some for this batch...

I love brewing, especially since it'll let me combine three of my favorite things: growing stuff (manly gardening! Hops, flavoring herbs, all the good stuff!); making gadgets (wort chillers, lauter tuns, and kegging systems. Oh my!); and most of all, BEER!
I'll be poking around looking for advice, though I'll try to keep my stupid questions to a minimum. See you around!

Peace,
Scott

 

[Lepersquatch]

Welcome, Relax and enjoy.

 

[DragonTail]

Welcome

 

[DakotaSchmidty]

hey Quixotic. Welcome!
I'm a newb too, I curently have my 4th batch in Mr. Beer. You caught my eye though. You say you're growing hops, and apparently beyond one year. My sister-in-law has a degree in horticulture, and has been growing hops in her garden for several years, she likes them as a decorative vine. The problem is that winter is too cold up here, they winter kill. How do you get them to survive a upper midwest winter? If you have a trick, I would love to hear it, 'cause I think it would be a lot of fun to brew a really "hoppy" beer with all home-grown ingredients.

 

[QuixoticDevice]

I don't really have a trick, per se. Each of the different varieties have their own little hill, and at the end of last year, each hill got a shovelful of manure and a new layer of cypress mulch which seems to have gotten them through the winter just fine. And, from what I've read, I should have used a softer mulch and trimmed the vines back after I had harvested, but they've still exceeded my expectations this year. I was getting the first sprouts only a few days after our last frost!

Most sources I've seen show hops flourishing down to hardiness zone 4, which is right where Minneapolis sits. From the map I've got, it looks like Grand Forks is about the same zone, so speaking from my admittedly minuscule experience, I don't see why your sister-in-law's keep dying off. Is she growing them in the ground or in containers? Is she planting rhizomes or seeds? Perhaps mine are keeping a bit warmer and more protected since they're right up against the side of my house. Who knows? There's a lot of variables...

One of the sources of info I read before I planted was from an organic hop farm/brewery up in British Columbia and they're further north than we are, though I suppose also further west. If you're looking to grow them, it's a pretty good read, though intended for a grander scale than what I planted:
http://www.crannogales.com/hopsmanual.html
I also have the book, The Homebrewer's Garden, which has proven indispensable.

I'd say give it a shot if you've got the space. It may be getting a little late this season, but I'm not one to talk. Last year I planted all of mine at the end of May. I didn't get much from them then, but this year they're already all the way up the twine to the roof! So even if you get them in the ground late, you'll be ahead of the game for the 2011 growing season.

Peace,
Scott

 

[DakotaSchmidty]

I didn't actually talk with my sister-in-law about it, my brother did, so I may have lost some of the details in translation. I just heard "winter kill" and dropped the idea. After hearing your results I will definately talk with her, and do some research on my own! I've done a little thinking about it, and I think my brother mentioned that she grows decorative varieties. Maybe brewing varieties are a little hardier as a side effect of all the controlled cross breeding? I assume they would only select the healthiest plants, which should strengthen the strain. Also, they don't live here in the Red River Valley. They are out by Hatton. On the drive there you pass by several sand and gravel pits, which leads me to believe they may have sandy soil. Maybe the sandier soil doesn't insulate as well? Or, maybe the plants aren't as healthy going into winter due to poor soil, so they have a harder time surviving. Anyway, thanks for the great info. I'll definately do some research on this.