LOADS of wild hops

[MattGuk]

So it has been a great summer here in the UK this year for the first time in years, even these guys would agree.
I picked some from this same spot last year, and although there were a lot last year, this year the same lane looks like a hop garden, there were hops growing down this lane that were not there last year.
Plus they look set to be ready earlier due to the weather, most of these are HUGE.

 

[solbes]

Score!! Get a wet hopped recipe ready to go and brew away. What did they smell/taste like last year? Would be interesting to figure it out.

Across the pond in the upper Midwest we are having a pretty good year for hops that get regular watering. I planted a Chinook and Centennial at my house and the hops are looking GREAT for first year hops. My vines at our property up north that don't get regular watering sprung up fast, but the hops are again small.

 

[MattGuk]

well last year funnily enough, i picked them but didnt use them as they went moldy due to not being able to dry them properly, but that wont happen this year.
last year they smelt funky, kinda garlic ish, this year they smell amazing, kidna piney with a hint of floral so im guessing maybe Fuggles or Challenger but we shall see.

 

[MattGuk]

Time for an update.
Went and harvested a load of these yesterday, i picked 1kg of these and pretty much all are mature, papery feel, spring back to shape when squeezed and really aromatic when crushed in the hand.
Will be going back next week or the week after to pick the rest.
This year i have made a table for drying these out and my garage smells amazing right now.

 

[Snowden]

That's awesome! They were just growing in the brush along the side of the road? I wonder if anyone else has had their eyes on them.

I am outdoors in undeveloped areas a lot for my job and am always on the lookout for a patch of hops. No luck yet...


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[PapaBearJay]

Time for an update.
Went and harvested a load of these yesterday, i picked 1kg of these and pretty much all are mature, papery feel, spring back to shape when squeezed and really aromatic when crushed in the hand.
Will be going back next week or the week after to pick the rest.
This year i have made a table for drying these out and my garage smells amazing right now.

Matt,

I'd ask if you found any seeds but I see you're located in the UK. If you do, let us know if you have an interest in attempting to grow them.

Let us know how it turns out!


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[MattGuk]

I do plan on getting a rhizome or 2 and growing them at home if they are any good.
This lane is just off of a main road, up a lane adjacent to a cricket pitch, but these hop grow in most of the hedge rows in this village, so my guess is that these were planted by farmers many years.
We are lucky that over here they seem to grow everywhere, and the area i live in used to be famous many many years ago for its beer and blanket making, along the main river that passes through the town and through this particular village where i got the hop, so maybe they were planted by brewers, or traders or both that travelled alone the river

 

[nagmay]

In that close up, they almost seem to have the distinctive square shape of Cascade... Are the cones squarish looking from the end? Maybe I'm just imagining it. Hard to tell with the other shots.

 

[tommysweetcorn]

I've been surveying wild-growing hops here in North Wiltshire. One promising patch has succumbed to downy mildew, very small cones with not much resin. Others have fared much better - interesting to see this variance.

Photo -977 shows a great plant with nice big cones.
Photo - 966 is 5 metres along from the previous one, here you can see (at least) 2 plants growing through the hedge - one has smaller cones and has ripened much earlier (cones are completely brown) and the other has bigger cones and is later.

Agreed, certainly seems to be a very good year for them!

I will be propagating seed of these and may snip a few root cuttings too.