Little light green "pine" cones hang heavily on some of the vines; they almost drip from the entire vine length, pulling the darker green, maple-shaped leaves downward. Unlike a pine cone, hop cones are light, almost fluffy. The drooping leaves therefore, truly speak to their abundance on some vines. One can only hope for a repeat of this on all the vines, next year.
This is the first year for our hops production, and the rhizomes were just planted this past spring. They vary a great deal in their height; some nearly reach the full 15-16 feet of the trellis top while others only waist high. This height variation aside, the vines are sturdy and otherwise vigorous. More vines than expected have produced flowers - and this is a sign of good management and good luck! Ultimately it will mean a plentiful and quality harvest of the little cones that make-up one of the more famous flavor components of beer.
Inexperienced in hop production, this first harvest is considered practice by our production mentors at Gorst Valley Hops Cooperative. Guidance on judging hops for ripeness has been sent and reviewed carefully. Ultimately, it will be the acid content specific to each variety that will determine ripeness. Thus, just yesterday samples were sent to the lab for the first time!
James Altweis, one of Gorst Valley Hops founders, is also the resident chemist. He will be busy today testing the acidity of our varieties; Sterling, Nugget and Cascade. When this season slows for him (& us) I promise more information on this process.
Meanwhile, get your ice-cream buckets ready... our first hops harvest and corresponding harvest party is fast approaching. Stay tuned!
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