Did I stumble on some hops?

[Chupidacabra]

My girlfriend found these growing on her workplace's property. She's going to bring a few cones home tonight.

Are these usable? What are the signs of a mature cone? I don't know anything about growing. Any advice would be awesome!


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[stpug]

Definitely hops. As to the variety, it's anybodies guess. Bring some home and brew with them. Use them as flavor and aroma only, then base your guess on how they "display" in the beer. A mature cone is one that is starting to feel a light bit papery and when squished it doesn't immediately spring back to shape.

As for growing, you'd want to either cut some of the crown (best) or use a rhizome. The crown option would be best since it will take off much quicker (saves a couple years).

Awesome find!

 

[Chupidacabra]

I'm assuming the aroma will give away most of what I need to know in the hops. I'll probly do a small test tea and try it at different lengths of boil to determine best use. I'm pretty excited about this.


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[jiggs_casey]

Nice random find!