September 1998
Contents:
1998 Crop Report - Ralph Olson
UPS Guarantees Ground Service
Jennifer Davidson Joins CBS Team/Rochelle Anthony Moves into Accounts Receivables
New Organic Hops From Germany in Stock
Twenty Years Ago Today (1978-1998)
Cornelius Kegs Used to Preserves Hop Pellets
MBAA BREWORLD '98
Interest Charges on Past Due Accounts
Powdery Mildew
A Moment in Hop History
1998 CROP REPORT
By Ralph Olson, VP Purchasing and Market Development, VP Craftbrewing Sales
This article will deal with the 1998 crop harvest. While it touches on the powdery mildew (PM) situation, Dr. Greg Lewis is writing an article on this disease which will appear later in this "CBS Globe". It is currently September 8th, and we are seeing a quite varied harvest. The aroma hops are well on their way to being picked and there are some very long faced farmers. Aroma hops typically yield 6-10 bales per acre but we have seen anywhere from 1-9 bale crops this year. It appears the grower will experience an average of 15% yield reduction from normal. Unfortunately some growers will experience much more than this amount as in the case of Willamette and Perle varieties. The reduced yields together with the tremendous spray costs incurred this year to prevent powdery mildew are leaving growers in a difficult financial position. We are just starting to receive high alpha or bitter hops and are seeing the same problem with yields. Most of this problem is happening in the Yakima Valley but to some extent in other hop growing areas. In Yakima the grower had to spray his fields constantly for PM, and this put the plant into a stressed position which combined with a very hot summer stopped the plants from growing. The hop cones stopped sizing and thus the reduction in yield. The biggest problem lately has been an outbreak of spider mite brought on by the hot weather. Alpha levels in many aroma hops appear down from previous years, but preliminary alphas in high alpha hops look fine. We have looked at most of the aroma hops and would say the aroma is nice but mild.
On the positive side, there have been too many hops grown for a number of years, and as a result, we have seen large inventories that have been sold at depressed prices. The U.S. also saw a decrease in acreage this year as a result of the large inventories. Acreage for the U.S. in 1997 was 43,302 while in 1998 it was 36,634. We see an adequate supply of hops this year for most varieties, but would look for some shortages this coming summer. The European crop appears to be coming in all right, but they also are experiencing some yield and alpha problems. We will do another complete report when the crop is finished.
Effective immediately UPS will guarantee their ground service throughout the US. In the past UPS would only guarantee 2nd day and overnight service. Now you can be assured of the day your hops will arrive. If the order is delayed due to UPS service, you may be credited for your entire freight charge. Guaranteed day definite delivery for shipments originating in Yakima are:
WA/No.OR/No. ID 1 day
So.OR/So.ID/No.CA/No.NV/W.MT 2 days
So.CA/So.NV/W.MT/ND/WY/UT/CO/AZ 3 days
MN/WI/IA/SD/NE/KS/OK/MN/No.TX/ W.MO/No.IL 4 days
MI/IN/OH/NY/WV/KY/TN/AR/MS/AL/GA/LA 5 days
ME/NH/MA/CT/RI/PA/NJ/DE/VA/MD/NC/SC/FL 6 days
The above is published time-in transit, in business days. Does not include weekends or holidays. Subject to change. For information on other UPS services such as 3 day select, 2nd
Jennifer Davidson Joins CBS Team/Rochelle Anthony Moves into Accounts Receivables
Now when you call in to place your orders, Jennifer Davidson will be on hand to assist you. Jennifer comes to us from Nova Scotia with a background in computers and retail sales. Her talents run high in customer service and efficiency.
We also moved Rochelle Anthony into our Accounts Receivables Department. If you have a question concerning an invoice or your account balance, don’t hesitate to call Rochelle. She can bring you up to date on your account status. Rochelle was our primary associate dealing with Japanese customers. She was so good at this that we kept her on as our Japanese agent. If you are a customer of Rochelle’s, don’t worry - she’s still there to help process your orders.
New Organic Hops From Germany in Stock
We just received a new supply of German Organic hop pellets from Germany. Aside from our Australian Pride of Ringwood, and a couple of varieties from New Zealand, these are the only certified organic hops available here in the US. They are sourced through an organic cooperative of hop growers with a marketing office in Munich. The varieties in stock are:
GR. Hersbruck hop pellets 4.6% alpha
GR. Select hop pellets 7.2% alpha
The above is packed in 11 pound vacuum sealed cartons. Quality looks very good and comparable to non organic varieties. Samples available upon request.
Twenty Years Ago Today (1978-1998)
Ralph Olson's 20 Years Celebration Roast was held June 19th at the Flying Pig Brew Pub in Everett. There were about 100 in attendance with a good cross section of brewers, hop growers, suppliers, freight forwarders, co-workers, family and old friends . With an excellent selection of NW craft beers, fine food, and cigars this roast and toast was a fine tribute to Ralph and all he has done for the craft brewing world. Ralphs' wife Vicki and daughters Debbie & Lisa listened while MC Ralph Woodall led a parade of Hot And Cool Roasters in sharing their insightful experiences with Ralph over the past twenty years. A special thanks goes out to Tom Munoz the Head brewer and his staff for an excellent presentation at their fine brew pub.
Ralph also used this event to debut the new "I'm Hop Blooded" t-shirts and temporary tattoos which have already been a hot item with everyone who has had a chance to see them. The Hop Blooded theme will also be seen soon on new hats and a cool magnet.
Cornelius Kegs Used to Preserves Hop Pellets
Most brewers face the question, what is the best way to store hops of which the answer is in air tight oxygen free container kept in cold storage. A recent conversation with Mark Hastings of Montana Brewing Company gave us insight into his approach to storing hop pellets after the bags are opened. Mark uses cornelius kegs to store the pellets under C02 (Oxygen Free) pressure. We thought this was a great idea and thank Mark for his wanting to share this with other brewers. Cornelius kegs come in 2-3-5-10 & 15 gallon sizes, so depending on your pellet usage any one of these will work. Mark uses the 5 gallon ones which hold about 20 pounds of pellets. He has six to cover his different varieties and keeps them in the walk in cooler. He says an 11 pound bag will fill it up about half way. A general procedure description is as follows;
1.Hook up the C02 or Nitrogen container to the out valve (this will push the gas from the bottom of the container pushing the oxygen up through the pellets).
2.Build up pressure and pull release ring and hold open for short time to bleed off oxygen (repeating this procedure 2 to 3 times) and when complete the oxygen will be purged from the container.
3.Set the pressure gauge to 5-10 psi , remove the hose from the valve and set in the cooler until the next brew.
4.Repeat this procedure after each usage to keep your pellets from oxidizing.
Reconditioned cornelius kegs are available from most retail home brew shops so they are easy to find. You may even have a few around the brew house for test batches etc. so give it a try. Please feel free to call, write or e-mail us with other suggestions
Hopunion representatives from around the world will attend MBAA Breworld '98 The 18th International Brewing and Allied Industries Exhibition held September 21-23, 1998 at the Minneapolis Convention Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. For those attending please visit us at booth #321. We will have an excellent selection of hops, hop products and literature while featuring our refined products from both the US and UK. This is a chance to meet our technical staff and discuss these new products in depth. We'll see you there.
Interest Charges on Past Due Accounts
While we try to pass on only good news, occasionally we have to talk about things we wish we didn’t. On the next account statement you will notice Hopunion is now charging 1.5% interest monthly on all outstanding invoices. We know our customers are trying to succeed in a difficult beer market. The hop industry is not exempt from these difficult times. The interest charge is our attempt to encourage our customers to keep their accounts current. We hope this won’t cause you too many problems. Call us if you would like to discuss your account
Powdery Mildew
By Dr. Greg Lewis, CEO Hopunion USA Inc.
In an article written in mid-April this year I gave an account of the early season status of powdery mildew in the Yakima Valley and the efforts of the industry to combat it. At that time the incidence of powdery mildew was lower than originally anticipated and growers had three fungicides available for controlling the disease. The fungicides were Rally (myclobutanil) and Rubigan (fenarimol) together with sulfur. Since that time there have been a number of important developments as far as this disease is concerned. Most notable is that powdery mildew has been reported in the Willamette Valley, Oregon and in both hop areas of Idaho. The disease is now known to occur in all major hop producing areas of the USA. It has, therefore, assumed national rather than just state significance.
In Oregon and Idaho the disease was detected in late July and growers were prepared to implement control measures very rapidly. As such, in those areas, the incidence of the disease and its severity were both very limited in 1998.
In Washington, both disease incidence and severity increased during May and June. Growers responded by increasing the frequency of sprayings but despite this there were some real concerns that in some fields control measures were proving inadequate. A third fungicide, Folicur (tebuconazole) was registered for use in late June but this like our other fungicides has only contact action so was really only of limited benefit.
July saw the onset of a hot weather pattern which has continued more or less unabated to the present. July 1998 was the hottest July in Yakima for almost 60 years. These conditions were very effective in suppressing powdery mildew to the point where from early August fungicidal applications were greatly reduced. In fact since that time two-spotted or red spider mites have been of greater concern to growers than powdery mildew.
In another development over the season the industry has determined that the application of highly refined, food grade, mineral oils alone or with a fungicide can be very effective in reducing infection and sporulation of powdery mildew. Examples are stylet oil and superior oil. These materials saw use on a number of fields until the incidence of the disease was drastically reduced by the weather conditions. As a result of the control measures used combined with the favorable weather pattern, no hop fields were so badly affected with powdery mildew this year that they had to be cut and burned. If you remember, some 1,000 - 1,500 acres were destroyed prior to harvest in 1997. Overall, the spread of this disease to the other US commercial hop production areas was the most negative aspect this season. On the other hand the benefits of one full season’s disease control experience in Washington will be of tremendous help to all US growers as we approach the 1999 season. Most importantly the registration of more effective systemic fungicides should greatly assist control even in seasons where the weather pattern is less favorable.
A Moment in Hop History
Exerted from Tinged with Gold by Michael A. Tomlan, published by University of Georgia Press
Those were the days when the hop was king, and the whole countryside was one great hop yard, and beautiful. It was the hop that built many of the big farm houses, now abandoned. Many a farmer made the value of his farm out of a single good year’s crop. When the time came for harvesting the crop, the air of the town became tense; the housewives became worried as all the help insisted on a week off to go hop pickin’. There were rumors of great camps of tramps in the woods about to raid the town; the police force of two men, one with one arm and the other with one leg became worried and patrolled the town until one a.m. instead of the quitting at eleven p.m. as was customary. No one went abroad after dark unless armed with a pistol, more dangerous to the owner than to his enemy. They were the halcyon days for the boys and young men who tip-toed about the town looking for the invaders and listening to the tales of the police patrol, one with a club and one with a lantern. The street lamps burned until twelve instead of being turned out at eleven and the whole atmosphere was one of suppressed alarm and excitement. Thousands of tough pickers came from cities to earn the eighty cents a box for pickin’ and to enjoy the nightly barn dances given for their amusement.