Harvesting Hops

My three hop plants have done quite well this year and after a few nervous moments when I thought they wouldn't produce they have done us proud and are covered in plenty of little hops. Very Happy

Now, when exactly do I pick them? I've been round hop farms so I could make a reasonable guess but is there any more technical way of knowing when they are ready? Is it best to pick them under ripe or over ripe? (They are Fuggles and Goldings and will be used for bitter).

Once picked what's the best way to dry them and keep for the next 10 months or so? Do they all need to be dried or can they be used fresh for making my Christmas ales?

Any help greatly appreciated and I'll post up how I get on.

Guest

They should be ready by early to mid September, and ripe for picking then. The flowers will open up a bit, and have a very hoppy smell. You will need to keep a watchful eye, though, as it is a short time between optimum ripeness and them going over, when they will start to turn brown and decay. Pick them on a dry, sunny day, when any dew or dampness has dried off. It's a long smelly job, and your arms will get covered in scratches, so be warned. I pick them straight into a brewing bucket, which holds quite a lot. I normally get about 2 1/2 buckets - when you consider you need 1 oz of hops per gallon, that's a serious amount of hops.
Tip the bucket out on to a table and pick over the hops - this also gives any insects a chance to escape. Remove any battered/brown/unhealthy looking ones. Leave for a few hours or overnight to let any more moisture escape, then tie them up loosely in bundles in a net curtain or similar - they must be able to breathe, or will son go mouldy. Keep the bundles in a cool, airy dry place for a week to ten days, when the hops will have dried, and feel a bit crunchy. Take them out of the nets and store in brown paper bags or similar - no polythene, etc. They should store more or less for a year before losing their potency, or they do in my experience.
Hops are not used fresh for beer making, always dried.

Treacodactyl

Many thanks for that. I have a couple of weeks to wait then and I think I'll start picking and perhaps leave some of the smaller ones a bit longer. As this is their first year they are smallish plants so easy to get at.

I also have a good collection of net curtains waiting for a use so no problems there. Very Happy

As they are bing grown on poorish soil I expect they'd appreciate a very good mulch of compost in the Spring. The plants are certainly worthwhile for anyone who brews their own beer.

Guest

My hops (Fuggles) when ripe are almost an inch long, so wait until they are quite big for the best flavour.
After harvesting, leave the bines alone until they start to wither and have gone brown, then cut them back to the ground (wear gloves and long sleeves for this) - the debris can go on to the compost heap. I mulch at this time with a thick layer of manure, then there is nothing to do until they start to grow again in the spring when it is a race against time to keep them in check so they don't take over the neighbourhood - I rarely manage this.
The spent hops are good for the compost heap, or can be used as a sheet mulch in the garden.

Treacodactyl

I've just found this site with some details on hop varieties: http://www.botanix.co.uk/varieties.html

Treacodactyl

The hops are opening up a bit now and have pollen in the cones. They are starting to smell nice and hoppy so I think it's time to start picking some over the weekend.

Treacodactyl

I decided to pick most of them yesterday, especially with the threat of storms about. Considering this is the first year the plants have been in and the soil is a mix of compost and chalk and in half shade I'm rather pleased with the harvest. Next year I need to get some longer poles in as the best hops grew where the plants had managed to grow up a neighbouring tree.

In the picture there are two types of Goldings, Mathon on the left then Cobbs, and Fuggles on the right. There's not much difference in how the plants grew.

There's about 10 oz before they are dried, so about 5 gallons worth.

Fiveravens

I'm hopping Rolling Eyes

with envy. I'm ashamed to say I buy all my hops - and I get through a lot! Do you know where I can get seed, or plants, preferably Fuggles?

Guest

I picked mine this morning - up to the 4 gallon mark in the brewing bucket, so plenty for the coming year. Just about to hoist them aloft in the old net curtains. Laughing

Been a good crop.
I got my Fuggles from Deacons on the Isle of Wight.; They ahve other varieites too. Occasionally pop up on e-bay as rooted plants; I will be selling some in spring as they are threatnening to take over this end of the neighbourhood Laughing

Treacodactyl

Yep, ours were from Deacons as well. There's some running commentary of their arrival and link here: Very Happy

http://forum.downsizer.net/viewtopic.php?t=2587

Mrs Fiddlesticks

read this with interest as there are some in our hedge, I've no idea if they are cultivated or wild ones - this area is reknown for hop growing so could be either.

Mungo

hops and harvesting

Phew - glad I looked in this bulletin board this past week. I live in Coquitlam and noticed that Treacodactyl (from Surrey, next door) had already harvested his/her hops. I did half of mine yesterday (17/Sep), have them drying now. It rained last night so that was good luck yesterday. I will wait until the sun has had a chance to dry them a little more then bring the remainder in. Can I ask how others are using their hops for brewing? Are you adding them to your own mixes, using a package brew (from a brewery). Also, do the fresh hops make a real difference in flavour - I am assuming so?

The type of hop I have is a question mark. I tried to find out and (thought there would be some type of info regarding the leaves or something) was just left with a question mark. The hop plant that we have is from my wife's childhood home in Calgary. So, we just call them the Hillcrest Hops (Hillcrest being the name of the street where she lived.

Treacodactyl

Surrey in England is a rather far from Canada. Very Happy

In the end I picked mine as it was about to rain and I think I was a day or so late but they have dried very well just being left on a tea towel on a large cooling rack for a few days.

I plan to use mine in my own brew, just boiled malt, water and my own hops and add bit of beer yeast when the liquid is cool. I find using hops gives a better result than kits but not by that much if the kit is good quality. I hope my home grown hops will be better still.

Do you know where the hops may have come from in Europe or what type of beer is brewed in Calgary?

Res

Treacodactyl wrote:

Next year I need to get some longer poles in as the best hops grew where the plants had managed to grow up a neighbouring tree.

Yes, they do grow quite long!! I remember when my brother used to live around the corner from where I work. The garden next door was virtually swamped in hop vines Shocked

lowlander

Hi From Coquitlam (across the river from Surrey BC),
Sorry about the mix-up in Surrey's but the weather here in the suburbs of Vancouver is very much like the UK. I keep telling my family in Scotland that. So, it was timely that I read your post.
I have now picked the hops, dried and finally freeze dried them. Before I freeze dried the hops I measured the same amount (by weight) of hop pellets that were being used for a brewing kit.
In the Vancouver area, we have wine/beer companies who actually do all of the brewing for us. All you are required to do is bottle the result yourself (the law). I contacted the chaps at the brew operation about a month ago and asked them if this was possible (using my own hops as opposed to the ones that came with the kit) - the supplier said that should not be a problem - if the quantities were the same. I was in to see the brewery chaps late last week (4 days after the brew was started) and they were ecstatic about the initial results. They couldn't wait to get me to get a wiff of the concoction. They had never had anyone come in and ask if they could use their own "real hops". I have to admit, the aroma was quite good (we are brewing a Pale Ale) and I joked that it almost seemed ready to drink now. Bottling day is October 14, so I will post the final result then.
Good Brewing all,
Lowlander

Treacodactyl

I didn't know there was another Surrey. Good luck with your brew and please keep me updated. I've yet to use mine, hopefully I'll put a brew on this week.

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