Interesting read.
Thanks for posting that article. I am in Oregon and interested in everything to do with the craft beer industry.
On another note, I currently have your TTLL in the primary based on a recipe you posted back in Oct. or Nov.
Have you done any more iterations of this since then? Interested to know if you have made any changes to it.
Also, I don’t have any more Styrian…What might be a good sub in your opinion for the dry hopping.
Interesting indeed! I sure hope it works out!
I have to say though, the comments from “Sammy da Truth” after the article are a bit bizarre.
yeah, the first by him I read I just thought he was yanking folks chains but, the more he posted, the less sure of that I got. Bizarre indeed.
I think Sammy’s other name is BFI.
Hops with qualities of coconut, blueberry, and garlic? I’ll pass.
“There is no belief, however foolish, that will not gather its faithful adherents who will defend it to the death.” - Asimov
I will do another brew of that soon. Will use some lighter British Crystal malt for slightly more sweetness and a touch of Black pattent for color. It was close, but not there yet. Also need to remember another teaspoon of gypsum in the boil to up the sulfates.
The comments to the article were wacky, for sure.
I thought it was interesting and I like what Indie Hops is doing. But I found the tone to be completely douchey with respect to Yakima. What’s up with that? Why bash Yakima? Weird.
The Indie Hops folks seem to have their axes sharp, as they are always being ground.
I don’t think it’s all that unusual for the paper in a “company town”. Having grown up in St. Louis, I’m still afraid to visit Milwaukee.
Interesting indeed. Thanks for posting.
I for one like to hear about alternative ventures in the hop yard world,
and the fact that the craft market is driving new hop experiments and potential varieties that may infuse new aromas and flavors into the scene is exciting. (although I agree with Denny that the examples they provided are lame and not appealing).
Umm…Oregon Pride Man. It has been a full on Yak Attack since '52 man. ???
What are you from Washington or something? :o
Geez, have to get a new look at these emoticons. ;D 
:
:-X
It is great to be proud of what you are doing - talk about how awesome you and your products are all day long. But if the best way you can build yourself up is by knocking other people down, you’re not worthy of respect.
I assume the attitude is the author’s because I’ve never gotten that vibe from any of the other articles about Indie Hops I’ve ever read. I hope that’s the case. A friend in Portland who sent me the article earlier today said this - “The Willy Week is douchey in general when it comes to beer. They started reviewing beers recently and it’s been all about being snarky. It gets no love if it’s not a PBR tallboy…”
Maybe the author takes the title “critic” literally.
I’ve read quite a few articles on the Indie Hops blog, and they definitely don’t come off as douchey to me. I wouldn’t be able to discuss the price gouging the big producers pulled during the hop shortage as politely.
The hop staging area. Where the guys who work there have coveralls, hoodies, and protective masks (cold in there and you would want to keep the dust out of your lungs). The hops are shoveled into the big “garbage cans” on wheels to be taken to the brew house. That was overload for a homebrewer.
We were there in '09. The research lab guy had a sample of Willamette from a ladies farm, and he said you could help her out by buy some, like a couple sacks, as AB stopped using Willamette. The name in the article rang a bell. Acres of Willamette are in steep decline due to less demand.
[quote]Part of the reason hop acreage has declined is that American macrobrews have been getting less hoppy over time, Shellhammer says. Tests show Budweiser was twice as bitter in the 1970s as it is today. Hops are the most expensive ingredient in beer, so cutting them helps the bottom line. “They take it out slowly and no one really recognizes it’s changing,” Shellhammer says.
[/quote]
I’ll have something with more than a few ounces per barrel of hops, please. And no, I don’t want to be weaned off of them over time. :
Yeah I saw that too. I’m too young to have drunk Bud in the 70’s, but a Bud with twice as much hops actually sounds pretty good to me.
Bud with twice as much hops sounds like Budvar to me
I think it would be higher than twice to match Budvar.