Farm to Pint is a small batch series brewed in direct collaboration with Hop Farmers across the globe. All hops come from farms, right? So what makes Sixpoint, and Farm to Pint, different? The key differences here are that we got the hops directly from the farm, and each beer highlights a single farm.
Therefore, there is an emphasis on both the relationship and the terroir. Generally speaking, breweries buy their hops from brokers/wholesalers, who have blended the harvests from multiple farms. For the majority of our hops, we go directly to the farms themselves instead. This affords some awesome advantages:
1) Ensure quality
When working with a middleman hop contractor, the product sample they give you isn’t necessarily indicative of the hops you’ll receive. With the middleman, they amalgamate tons of plots from various farms… so the sample could be completely different than most of hops you receive. Think of it like a hop sausage. When you work directly with a farmer, you can go inspect a field, look at certain plots of bines, and say, “I want these ones, right here.” This way you get only the best cones. The prime cuts!
2) Collaborate on harvest times
Hops have different characteristics when harvested at different times. By working directly with farms, you can ask the farmers to harvest on specific days, and they can share their expertise. One example is Simcoe, which contributes to the peachy aroma in SWEET ACTION. Harvested early, it’s fruity. Late, it gets dank and onion/garlic-y. We harvest early, you drink the juice.
3) Get the best
Farmers are also breeding hops to create brand new flavors, and our relationships get us access to the newest stuff they’re working on. So keep an eye out in this series for hop strains, and as a result, flavors and aromas, that you’ve never experienced before!
ABV: 7%
Style: Hazy IPA
Hops: El Dorado, Centennial
Availability: April-May
Farm: Cornerstone Ranches
Farm Location: Yakima Valley
Hop Grower: Graham Gamache
About the Beer: This stuff is like straight candied oranges, with a sweet perfume that’s dank at the same time. The El Dos we got from Graham are just insane, and the Centennials provide resinous backnotes. Light haze, smooth feel, barely a sting of bitterness.
ABV: 6.1
Style: IPL
Hops: Calista, Mandarina Bavaria, Huell Melon
Availability: June-July
Farm: Hopfengut
Farm Location: Germany
Hop Grower:
About the Beer: We’re amped about this one. Our hop partners in Germany are awesome, and hooked us up with Calista, a 2016 release, on top of some of our very favorite strains. Complex aroma from direct-sourced, top notch hop cones, with a clean finish from cold lagering.