rhizomes overseas

[cotoya]

Hello, I am trying to find some hops rhizomes to plant for my homebrewing, but here, in Spain, where I live it is really difficult.
All american sellers I have found say me that they are not shipping outside US.
Do you know any website selling american hops rhizomes to Europe?

I am looking for aromatic american hops.

thank you.

 

[Jesper]

I'm in Sweden and in a similar situation.

Freshops.com suggested that I try Willingham Nurseries (http://www.willingham-nurseries.co.uk/) and it looks like they have few American varieties, at least their web site list Mt. Hood, Nugget, Santiam and Willamette. I didn't contact them yet so I can't say for sure to which countries they ship, but at least they are in the EU so I don't think it will be an issue to ship to Spain.

 

[cotoya]

thank you very much, I will try there.

 

[broadbill]

I'd be surprised if Spain would allow the entry of seeds/roots/rhizomes from another country, at least without substantial paperwork. I know the US has pretty strict standards on things like this coming into the country.

The rationale behind this is that you might be unknowingly bringing in some sort of parasite, plant virus, blight, etc. that may wreak havoc on the native plants in your country. You might be in some trouble if the hops you shipped in had a virus that killed off the spanish clementine tree!

Another issue is the invasion of non-native species. It may turn out that hops grow really well in spain and you might be overrun with hop vines 20 years from now. Might sound good to you, but your government may not agree!

 

[GIusedtoBe]

Another issue is the invasion of non-native species. It may turn out that hops grow really well in spain and you might be overrun with hop vines 20 years from now.

Too bad kudzu can't be used in beer. Well who's to say maybe it can but I won't be the first to try it!

Regards,
Alan

 

[broadbill]

Too bad kudzu can't be used in beer. Well who's to say maybe it can but I won't be the first to try it!

Regards,
Alan

I was thinking of kudzu when I wrote that statement! I was thinking of all the small-mouth bass that get dropped into streams/ponds out west and how they decimate the native trout populations found there.

 

[cotoya]

Hops has been cultivated in Spain for long time, and it has never been an invasive species. I have safely some planted in my garden.
I suppose that plant sellers can certificate the quality of their plants and if they are virus-free, so I don't see much problem in importing it. Not more than taking it from Europe to America like somebody did in the past.

 

[StAnthonyB]

Hello, I am trying to find some hops rhizomes to plant for my homebrewing, but here, in Spain, where I live it is really difficult.
All american sellers I have found say me that they are not shipping outside US.
Do you know any website selling american hops rhizomes to Europe?

I am looking for aromatic american hops.

thank you.

My short answer is: Sorry bud, you're out of luck.

You can submit paperwork to customs and ask to have the export tested and sampled. Here in the USA, this process typically takes about 2 years.

I have been facing this issue with the desire to import certain olive varieties from the Slovenian coast; varieties more tolerant of cold and fog than say, Arbequina and Arbosana, which are more commonly available.

About 10 years ago some fool smuggled in an olive and brought along with it the notorious olive fly, which hadn't previously been in the Americas in 400+ years of domestic cultivation. It has quickly become a huge problem.

It is not worth smuggling plant and agricultural products. Consider that disease is a major issue. And, you do not want to be one the one discovered by the leftist, Fascist Zapatero government, as having been the one who ruined the social experiment of the peoples' Spain.

With all that said: Tenga suerte.

 

[cotoya]

why do you think I am trying to smuggle anything?
My aim writing this was to know any seller outside US. Like the one Jesper noted, It is in UK and I think it is perfect legal to import from there.

you say "Leftist, Fascist Zapatero government" I am quite intrigued why, but I think this is not the place to discuss politics.

we say here: "piensa el ladrón que todos son de su condición"

 

[StAnthonyB]

we say here: "piensa el ladrón que todos son de su condición"

I was only attempting to highlight the difficulty of obtaining plants abroad.

Creo que si. Ladron might be fairly accurate. To be honest everything is political. People are political in so much as we dwell in the polis. but don't mind me.... just an American looking out over the water watching the tides of my ancestral homeland wondering when the currents will be right for me to sail home.

Should you obtain hops. American hops probably would do you best considering the climate of Spain tends to be like that of the American west.

 

[Scooby_Brew]

Couldn't I just put my rhizomes in a box and take it to the post office to mail them overseas? I mean will they open the box and ask me what's inside?

 

[FreeParty]

Couldn't I just put my rhizomes in a box and take it to the post office to mail them overseas? I mean will they open the box and ask me what's inside?

Of course you can, and the odds of receiving them would be fifty fifty like everything else in life. Perhaps, you have never seen the Australian Customs reality show - they look in everything for drugs.

I am in Tenerife also looking for hop rhizome this season. The only site I have seen in Spain sells rhizomes for 14 euros each!! Robbery.

The Willingham UK site is not much better at 7 pounds apiece. Ridiculous.

Here is a site I came across while searching in Germany:
http://www.eickelmann.de/Hopfen-Shop/Aroma-Hopfen/
5 euros each. Much better.

What I have found to be most promising is the home brewers in Ireland. http://www.nationalhomebrewclub.com/
The guys are what home brewing clubs can be. They have a yeast library. I have seen members posting to say they are willing to help others out with rhizome cuttings. That is the way to build community and brew better beer, and more importantly drink better beer.

But in all, find people who are home brewing in your area, maybe the wine makers know people who brew beer. And post on here your successes.

By the way, I was cutting an over grown palm yesterday and I found a 16 liter glass carboy hiding in the midst. A sign to brew more beer....

 

[bionut]

I bought from http://www.eickelmann.de/Hopfen-Shop/Aroma-Hopfen/ last year, and the hops arrived in very good conditions. But they sell hop plants, not rhizomes. That's sort of a good news because you don't have to plant the rhizome and wait to see if it will grow or not... I advice you to buy in the autumn when the plants are dormant.
The hops collection isn't very big, compared to Willingham's Nurseries, but the price is too good to refuse it.
I will check out the national home brew club also, but the name says that is national, so i don't think that they will be willing to send outside Ireland. It would be great to form a club like that for the entire European Union XD .

 

[Ixtlanas]

I bought Cascade and Magnum young plants from Eickelmann, wonderful conditions. Unfortunately it seems no one in Europe has Centennial plants/rhizomes

 

[bionut]

Did you guys found any solution to the problem?