262: Eric, Claire, and Alex of CLS Farms Discuss the Past, Present, and Future of Hop Farming

The current hot market for hops that has persisted for about a decade now is a bit of a historical blip. From the 60’s through the 00’s, the hop market experienced structural decline as reduced demand for bittering hops and increased alpha acid levels and extraction methods hit growers from both sides. But the craft brewery acceleration around 2012 ushered in a new set of demands and opportunities for hop growers. In the ten years since, growers have planted roughly 18,000 new acres of hops in Washington State, higher prices mean growers finally have the resources to make significant upgrades to farm operations, and the outlook is far different than it appeared just a decade and a half years ago.

But with this comes challenges. The lifespan of fields has shortened dramatically, the cost involved with turning over fields has increased, and the market has become more dynamic than its ever been.

In this episode, Eric Desmarais, his daughter Claire Desmarais, and technical advisor Alex Nowell, discuss the state of the farm right now, including:

• changes in harvest timing strategy
• the impact of picking time on aroma and flavor
• evaluating hop readiness for harvest
• the challenging state of the 2022 harvest and what that means for brewers
• managing risk in planting new varieties
• dialing back speculation on new varieties like Sabro
• how to be effective as a brewer when selecting hops
• getting through the lag between initial brewer experiments with new hops and sustainable farming volumes

And more.

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