" Wild " hops

[Hounds]

I have discovered a hops patch on the property here in Upstate NY. Is there any way of knowing what variety it is? Or should I send it in for acid content testing. At least I would know what I can use if for eh?

It is HUGE and well established. 18" leaves.

Thanks.

 

[ChefRex]

I don't think there's anyway to determine what type of hops they are, i would make a hop tea so you could determine it's flavor profile.
Believe me i have no idea of what i speak, but if you like it send me a crown!:cross:

 

[bionut]

If you can test the acidity do it!
Also you can try a mini brew to check the flavour profile, or a tea )
You don't have to know the specific variety to make good beer with it.

 

[Hounds]

That's what I was thinking bionut, if I know the acid profile and some other things I could at least know what to use if for if its viable. I don't know the extent of so called ornamental hops around here. But I won't use it til I know at least the aa content.
NYS used to grow a lot of hops and I don't really know if there were dominant strains people grew. I do know that my fuggles did not grow well here and the Cascades are doing very well after 3 seasons. Smaller leaves than what I found, but who knows the age of the others they could be 100 yrs old. lol

 

[Hounds]

So I got very curious today and I went to seek out the 'source' or the main shoots. They are HUGE, maybe 3 inches in diameter.

They appear to be hard to get at and along an old stone wall. If I go digging and cutting rhizomes, will the resulting shoots be viable or 'new' in terms of what is left in the plant?
I heard hops are 50 yr plants and this sucker has to be all of that or more.

If I go planting rhizomes or cuttings off the main shoot, am I still getting 50 or 100 yr old plants? This plant is HUGE in length and size of the bine diameter and the 'mother shoot'. However, the amount of cones are very low and they are quite small.

Am I wasting my time? My thought was after testing it for alpha acids and flavor if I like it I was going to plant some and the result would be already acclimated and hardened to my area. ?

OR am I going to get a 50-100 yr old bine with still a minimal yield ?

Thoughts?

 

[LabRatBrewer]

Got pictures?

 

[brian4508]

It will be a new plant if you take a rhizome from another. Otherwise, we would all have 'x' year old plants from the first time and plant that a variety was produced.

I am just south of Syracuse, and would love to talk about getting a couple rhizomes from that beast!

 

[GVH_Dan]

As Brian said, you would be getting a new plant that is a clone of that wild plant.

The small cones are probably because of the excess vegetation of the plant. When we grow hops, we cut it back to about 2 to 4 bines and that results in larger cones. If you had all 20+ bines grow from a home plant, they would probably turn out similar.

Before you spend money on alphas, make the tea and decide if it is tasty. Even if the alpha is awesome, no sense using it if it makes awful beer.

 

[Hounds]

Thanks guys.
Quick question on tea. How much hops and how much water? I wouldn't have a clue, other than beer. lol

 

[Dinomyte]

Thanks guys.
Quick question on tea. How much hops and how much water? I wouldn't have a clue, other than beer. lol

I heard an interview with the guys from Anchor Brewing on the Brewing Network and they had an interesting way to test out new hop aroma and a bit of their flavor. They took a bottle of bud light, removed the cap, placed 3 hop cones in the bottle, re cap it and let it sit in the fridge for 2-3 weeks. Bud light is just neutral enough to let the hop shine through a bit, and also gave the the "beer" background flavor and carbonation to give you a better idea of how it will taste in a beer.

 

[SkaneatelesBrewingCo-op]

I live in UpState NY, so where are these hops at ; )

 

[Hounds]

Hey Skaneateles,
These hops are just North of Pulaski, NY. The famous Salmon River. lol. I just sent you a PM.

 

[Robar]

I heard an interview with the guys from Anchor Brewing on the Brewing Network and they had an interesting way to test out new hop aroma and a bit of their flavor. They took a bottle of bud light, removed the cap, placed 3 hop cones in the bottle, re cap it and let it sit in the fridge for 2-3 weeks. Bud light is just neutral enough to let the hop shine through a bit, and also gave the the "beer" background flavor and carbonation to give you a better idea of how it will taste in a beer.

Very interesting idea on testing wild hops. Dry hopping bud lite is almost laughable until you think about it. I also have a wild patch in Grand Rapids Michigan that I found about 4 years ago. I always missed harvest time so I've never had the opportunity to try them. This year I won't miss the harvest. A hop tea along with the bud lite dry hop is actually an excellent combo for figuring out what you have.

 

[GVH_Dan]

I have a buddy doing some form of low-carb diet. I give him a bag of whole cone and he shoves them in a can of MGD 64, waits 5 minutes and then it taste "like" beer. So, I'm sure the bud light thing would work.

 

[Hounds]

LOL.

Update; I can't reach the SOB's they are 30 feet up in a tree, don't get much daylight and the rhizomes all appear to be deep in an old stone wall. However, I WAS able to get some smaller cones near the bottom and made a tea. I liked the aroma and flavor but they were less bitter than my 4yo. Cascades. I am guessing they were/are compromised a bit from lack of sunlight and near the bottom which has virutally no light. The cones at the top look a LOT bigger. I did manage to get 2 decent rhizomes though. So I will plant them and then take the resulting cones ( if they take ) for some " official" lab testing.
The wet aroma when pinching between fingers is more fruity than the Cascades.
I have named them Fred Smart heirloom hops. He was the founder of my little hamlet here of Smartville and owned this house in early 1900's. The house is 1875 however.
Who knows how old they could be. A LOT of the bines or "roots" are above ground and dead but with ever so slight 'buds' coming off of them and are 3 to 4 inches in diameter. Too bad most of them are going deep into stone wall.

 

[Dinomyte]

Very interesting idea on testing wild hops. Dry hopping bud lite is almost laughable until you think about it. I also have a wild patch in Grand Rapids Michigan that I found about 4 years ago. I always missed harvest time so I've never had the opportunity to try them. This year I won't miss the harvest. A hop tea along with the bud lite dry hop is actually an excellent combo for figuring out what you have.

I live in GR as well and harvested a friends that he had growing up his 2 story deck. You might be getting pretty close to harvest on those wild hops around here.

Never think to look for wild plants when I'm out and about in the woods around here. Will have to keep an eye out more often!

 

[head]

That's an awesome find.
Check out the hops I found last fall, hopefully they'll be ready soon.

Sorry, pics are loaded from my phone, I couldn't figure out how to get them to load in the correct orientation.

 

[Grigs78]

This place is supposedly starting hops testing in October. You could send a few of your hops there and see what numbers you get back.

http://coastalsciencelabs.com/xcart/product.php?productid=17617&cat=9&page=1

If you are willing to ship some root stock my direction I would be willing to pay for it. I'm starting brewing this year but I got really into growing hops and a wild or unknown one would be sweet to add to the collection. Especially if it's as old as you think.

 

[alane1]

hop farming moved from Massachusetts to upstate NY in the late 1800's and the variety that was grown is Cluster. You might want to get an ounce at your LHBS and compare, but if I were a gambling man I'd say that's what you have.

 

[mthompson]

I wouldn't put too much weight on the flavor of the wild hop cones. I found some several years ago, and did a quick 1 year trial where I took some rhizomes and grew them at home and mad a trellis for some in the wild.

After one year, the hops at home that were fertilized and watered regularly were way different than the hops from the trellised wild plants; larger, more lupulin, better aroma, etc.

Take some rhizomes and grow them at home, with proper care, and you'll know more about their usefulness.

Cheers

 

[Robar]

I live in GR as well and harvested a friends that he had growing up his 2 story deck. You might be getting pretty close to harvest on those wild hops around here.

Never think to look for wild plants when I'm out and about in the woods around here. Will have to keep an eye out more often!

Was thinking about checking on them tomorrow (Monday- labor day) I live in Muskegon now so it's a bit of a drive, but I can always combine it with a trip to Siciliano's and get a mix and match 6-packfor the afternoon cook-out.

I was told by a gal working at Siciliano's about four or five years ago that wild hops grow all over the GR area. I only know of one patch though.

Hope your harvest was fruitful

 

[DPDISXR4Ti]

hop farming moved from Massachusetts to upstate NY in the late 1800's and the variety that was grown is Cluster.

Any idea how far south into "upstate NY" the Cluster hops were grown? Reason I ask is that I just found some unknown hops growing in the wild in Orange County NY.

 

[Robar]

Well got out and harvested those hops. Unfortunately many were starting to brown, but I still got many that are green or slightly browning at the edges. I chewed a few and have been burping something very reminiscent of centennial hops for half the day.

 

[DPDISXR4Ti]

Well got out and harvested those hops. Unfortunately many were starting to brown, but I still got many that are green or slightly browning at the edges.

Wow, how far north are you? I figured ideal harvest time was a couple weeks away yet, but I'm only about 35 miles north of the city.

 

[alane1]

Any idea how far south into "upstate NY" the Cluster hops were grown? Reason I ask is that I just found some unknown hops growing in the wild in Orange County NY.

Chances are, if found near an old farmhouse or railroad they're probably cluster.

 

[Robar]

Wow, how far north are you? I figured ideal harvest time was a couple weeks away yet, but I'm only about 35 miles north of the city.

I'm in lower michigan. Maybe weather patterns, elevation, or being close to lake michigan makes a difference. We've gone hot to cold to hot to cold and back again this summer. I don't know a lot of the particulars when it comes to the hops life cycle and how it can be influenced.

 

[DPDISXR4Ti]

Chances are, if found near an old farmhouse or railroad they're probably cluster.

Ironically enough, they're about 100 feet from the old rail line, and 20 feet from the last remaining miner's house.

So you're thinking they were indeed planted (not so much "wild"), yes?

 

[alane1]

Ironically enough, they're about 100 feet from the old rail line, and 20 feet from the last remaining miner's house.

So you're thinking they were indeed planted (not so much "wild"), yes?

Near a railroad, I wouldn't say so much planted but they used to fall off railcars and plant themselves.

 

[DPDISXR4Ti]

Near a railroad, I wouldn't say so much planted but they used to fall off railcars and plant themselves.

Ah, but that theory wouldn't hold up too well in this case. This was an 8-mile spur that dead-ended at the mine a few hundred yards away.

 

[Hounds]

Most hops in NYS were grown in the Mohawk Valley ( nice rich, well drained soil ) or Central New York ( sandy loam/clay ) in Oneida, Herkimer, Madison counties to the East of Syracuse seems to be from reading history.
Theres no telling what I have here, I bet there were several varieties grown? Not just one. But who the hell knows. The one I found is definitely old; I have found a lot of old bines that are dead sticking out from the rock wall that are 3 and 4 inches in diameter with just a hint of new growth, but with virtually no sun they never got hold. Just the one I dug up was 30 ft. in the tree so I traced that down and took the rhizome out and immediately dipped in water and put in the fridge. I have planted it this FALL. Yes, in the FALL. I have hopes it will start to take hold before the frost and then will cover all my plants with several inches of wood chips. I have had good success digging and planting rhizomes in the Fall. I had a 1 yr old plant that just produced 2.2lbs.

Hoppy trails to all. Thanks for the remarks and stories.

 

[DPDISXR4Ti]

I have had good success digging and planting rhizomes in the Fall. I had a 1 yr old plant that just produced 2.2lbs.

Thanks for the input. Once the vegetation dies off a bit I may go dig up some root and plant it elsewhere in the woods. Well, a sunny section of the "woods".

Worse case, it doesn't take and I just try again in the Spring.

 

[Hounds]

I have harvested all of my plants here just to the East of Lake Ontario about a week ago.
Wrobel Farms also harvested their hops for Saranac ( F.X. Matt ) last Sunday as I went for the party.