Experience with Northwest Hop Farms?

[Brooothru]

Very interesting indeed. I’m assuming the pricing is In Canadian dollars. I’d be liking a report on quality of their hops, and especially on trans-border shipping and delays clearing customs.

SWMBO’d and I are planning an extended trip this summer across the Northern tier of U.S. states. Maybe a side trip to visit a few Provinces is in order. Where are they located? Nothing on the website gives a physical address.

 

[elproducto]

Very interesting indeed. I’m assuming the pricing is In Canadian dollars. I’d be liking a report on quality of their hops, and especially on trans-border shipping and delays clearing customs.

SWMBO’d and I are planning an extended trip this summer across the Northern tier of U.S. states. Maybe a side trip to visit a few Provinces is in order. Where are they located? Nothing on the website gives a physical address.

It's not a store, they are a wholesaler.

 

[Brooothru]

It's not a store, they are a wholesaler.

Yeah, that's pretty much the conclusion I came to. I did find a business address in Quebec Province which isn't really along our route, so it's just as well they don't have a store front. Several years ago we were passing through the Yakima Valley region in Washington State and I wanted to visit some hop farms and local suppliers. As luck would have it, most of them were at BrewCon and we didn't get to see much, but one warehouse/shipping outlet in town was open with a skeleton crew, and they did have a small shop on premises.

We didn't buy anything, but I did leave a note for the head honcho, who later got back to me and sent a free sample of one of their latest hop blends. It was called Cluster Fugget, and was apparently something that came out of the packaging room when "somebody" screwed up and dumped in a sizable amount of Cluster, Fuggles and Nugget into the hopper at the same time by mistake instead of just a single hop varietal for packaging. I remember seeing it on their website for a while, but they must have either sold out or disposed of them, never to repeat the error.

Coincidentally, at the same time I was getting ready to bottle an entry of mine (a Pre-Prohibition lager) in a local competition. It was a solid beer, but just lacked a certain 'Oomph' to push it to the top of what I was attempting to do. The main hops I had used were those traditional American varietals from the northern plains: Cluster and Nugget. I figured, "What the Hell," rolled the dice and chucked a couple of ounces in the keg, letting it dry hop for several days, followed by a hard cold crash for about a week.

It cleared nicely and added just the finishing touch it needed. It won Blue Ribbon for Category, which is easier to do in an under-represented style, but then went on to win top honors as my first Best of Show entry. As I already mentioned, I haven't seen that hop or hop blend listed on their website in quite some time, but my hops inventory spreadsheet still says I have a package of it somewhere in my freezer. Might have to brew that bad boy one more time.

 

[Gadjobrinus]

Well Northwest strikes again. Because as I understand from @Northern_Brewer the hop variety Flyer is likely gone as a crop, and Northwest had '22 on hand, I bought two pounds. I loathe purolator and paid the $5 premium for UPS (i.e., I'd like to get the hops at some point. Purolator has been a nightmare for me in the past).

 

[Gadjobrinus]

They eventually got back to me and told me they'd switched the order to UPS. They arrived today.

Opened and resealed. Awesome.

 

[day_trippr]

I was contacted by Phil of Northwest Hop Farms today with regard to their improving their hop packaging line. I had purchased two pounds of some hard-to-find at the time EKG pellets last year and when they arrived noted that the metallized mylar bags had been improperly thermal sealed causing large voids through the seal line which in turn led to a huge loss of character. I mean they were largely inert, aroma wise.

Sadly, Phil had tried to make up for that with replacements, but those showed up in even worse shape! He clearly had a problem with their vacuum bagger/sealer. But this email claims he has replaced the equipment with new and wanted me to check out the result.

I'm taking him up on his offer and will give an honest appraisal when the hops arrive (two pounds of 2023 EKG).

Meanwhile I noticed he has a huge listing of hops available - way more than I remember from last year. Did not check his prices, however - and there's still the whole Purolator thing to consider (seriously, the worst). But he's having a 5% off sale, so maybe that'll make up for the aggravation...

Cheers!

 

[Gadjobrinus]

In fairness to Phil, I need to clarify the above hop bag thing wasn't his fault - it looks like it was Homeland Security. I asked him if the box was labeled as hops. etc., and he said "only like everywhere, including customs," fair point. He was pissed but sent out a new order right away. Haven't tried them yet. I am wondering if Phil is not the original guy, the guy with apparent baggage as mentioned above?

Anyway, I hope it all comes out well. It would be fantastic to have a regular supply of so many of these hops.