The practical application of scientific principles to the art of hop agriculture and brewing science
There’s a fine line between “that’s a creative way to save some time and/or money” and “uh oh, what did I just do?”. Sometimes those great ideas don’t work out too well, leading to the eternal battle between Current James and Future James.
This week we discuss some of the beer trends of 2020 and then get into where farming could be in the next 20 years. It’s full of odd concepts like “share of throat”, “hippie vinegar tea” and “decorating the cow with data”. Also, see what happens when Gregg tries a really unpleasant beer.
Moving hops from Point A to Point B. Pretty simple, right? Not so much.
BC is, of course, Before Crop. What do you need to do before you even think about planting? Envelopes of dirt, out of service telephone poles and the irrigation/shower tradeoff lead the discussion.
It’s your first year of hop production. What makes this year different from other years? Where should your expectations be set?
You changed something in your hopyard between Year 3 and Year 4. Yield went up. Did your single change make a difference? This week we dissect the Scientific Method and how to properly set up your experiments (insert maniacal laugh here).
We were going to simply call it “mail bag” but this title is more appropriate. A mixed bag of stuff that we’ve been asked over the last {covers mouth and mumbles} months. Rapid-fire hop chemistry, burnback, mathematical theories, carotenoid degradation and more.
Whether you like it or not, weather is important. This week it’s a deep dive into what, when, how and why to keep track of.
A gaggle of walkie-talkies, whether your potassium is pregnant and other measurements you’ve never heard of. This is Part 2 of our lists of things you need to run your hopyard. You can see our recommended items on a shared Amazon list at https://tinyurl.com/HopnologyShoppingList.
It’s time to go shopping! No sexy stuff like tractors and balers; this week we make an Amazon wish list of pipettes, gloves, scales and first aid kits.