Flavorful suds poured by Nebraska’s craft breweries are rooted in meticulous, demanding processes, including the drying and storing hops. Research from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln is aimed at better understanding those hops-related processes and helping producers make the most of their flavorful harvests.
Small-scale hops farmers inherently face harvesting challenges due to the sensitive nature of the crop. Grown on 20-foot trellises, hops are harvested at 80% moisture content and need to be dried to 10% moisture content — a process that requires precise drying and storing. Through a $116,000 grant from the Nebraska Department of Agriculture, David Mabie and his advisers studied the best hops drying and storing processes for small farms to maintain valuable aromatics.
“How we dry the hop cones affects what type of aromatics and flavors they contribute to the beer when they’re used,” said Mabie, assistant professor of practice in biological systems engineering. Continue Reading...