5Q: NC Hop Researcher Jeanine Davis
Hop production in North Carolina is a relatively new industry. Farmers are seeking new cash crops while the multitude of brewers in our state attempt to source out locally made ingredients more and more often. Jeanine Davis is on the NC State University hop research team and answered a few questions about their the results of their research and the problems facing growers in our state.
Tell our readers what the scope of your research with NC State has been?
The hops research at NC State University is a collaborative effort between Scott King and Rob Austin in the Soil Science Department and my program in the Department of Horticultural Science. We obtained several grants to build research hop yards on university research stations in Raleigh and in Mills River (near Asheville, in the mountains). The main objective of the current research is to identify the best varieties for North Carolina. We have ten varieties at each location. We are also looking at various cultural aspects; we have a short trellis in Raleigh and a high trellis (that we can raise and lower the top wire) in Mills River. We are also studying soil fertility; weed, disease, and insect control, and costs of production. We are also working with hop growers across the state.
Is there a history of hop production in North Carolina apart from the most recent growers? IE, pre prohibition?
There was a hop industry in North Carolina over 100 years ago. I have not been able to find out much about it online; I’ll have to hit the library stacks sometime. A friend of mine found an old ledger book from an ancestor of hers who was a hop farmer in NC long ago. She promised to photocopy some of the pages of that for me.
What results have you seen? (varieties that have done well, seasons in NC, terrior, etc)
The hops are doing surprisingly well here, considering how far south we are located! They seem to be doing particularly well in the mountain areas. Identifying the right varieties is going to be crucial for success. Cascade, Chinook, Nugget, Zeus, and Newport are good performers in many locations across the state. Our yields will never be as high as they are in the Pacific Northwest, but the reports we are getting back from brewers indicate that overall the quality is good. Our hops mature really early here; we start harvesting in July. We aren’t sure what that means for the plants in the long term. We have more disease, insect, and weed pressure than in the PNW, but we expected that and we are figuring out ways to cope. I think our success will rely on having markets that will pay a premium for high quality, locally grown, hand-harvested hops (wet or dry).
What are the challenges that North Carolina Hop growers are facing?
Our organic growers are having the biggest challenges right now fighting diseases and insects, but they are finding that some varieties are much better than others. Finding adequate labor to maintain and harvest a large yard is proving to be a challenge for some growers. We are going to have to find ways to reduce the labor needs.
What is in your beer fridge right now?
With four beer drinkers in the house with different tastes, there are new beers in the refrigerator almost every week. If I remember correctly, there are three NC breweries represented there right now: Highland, Weeping Radish, and Duck-Rabbit.
More North Carolina hop farming news
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President of the Brewers Association and Founder of the American Homebrewers Association Charlie Papazian will be in Asheville later this month as the keynote speaker for an educational event presented by The North Carolina Brewers Guild and Asheville Brewers Alliance.
