Hop Harvesting August 08 2015, 0 Comments

Your hops are growing like crazy and taking over your yard, by now you're probably seeing lots of those big bright hop cones and fantasizing about throwing them in to your next homebrew. You know that typically hop harvest begins in late August and continues through the beginning of October, but each variety reaches peak maturity at a different time, so when to harvest those hops in your yard? It is time to harvest your home-grown hops when you see:

1. The hop cones appear less tight, the leaves of the cone are opening and loosening
2. Bright yellow lupulin droplets are showing at the base of the leaves (this smells strongly like hops and is sticky when touched)
3. When you squeeze a cone, it emits a strong fragrant scent that you would expect from fresh hops
4. The hop cone feels papery and resilient, but not hard
5. The cone is no longer entirely bright green, the small leaves at the base of the stem are beginning to dry with the tips turning brown.

Keep monitoring those hops, harvest at the right time when you see the signs listed above, store the harvested hops properly or use them right away and before you know it you'll have a delicious homegrown homebrew! Let us know if you have any questions or want help making a recipe to use your fresh hops!