BC Hop Farms in Woodburn, Oregon.
Hood River Hops Fest
  • Saturday September 29th
  • Noon- 9pm
  • 20 and under free until 5:30 p.m.
  • 21 and up from 6p-9p
  • 21 and over $6.00, includes tasting stein
  • $4.00 for wine drinkers and designated drivers
  • Tokens are $1 each. 4 tokens = a full beer, or 1 token = a taste.
  • #hrhops12

Fresh hop beers are on their way to Hood River for the 9th Annual Hood River Hops Fest. 51 fresh hop beers will be pouring at the festival this year! 51! But before our brains explode, let's talk about fresh hops.

Fresh hop—or wet hop—beers are made the almost exactly the same way as regular beers. The only difference is that during the annual September hop harvest, a brewery will run out to their respective hop supplier, pick fresh hops, stuff them in giant sacks, and haul them back to the brewery to get them into the kettle as quickly as possible. Bragging rights usually go to the brewery that has the shortest time from vine to kettle. During the hop harvest, hops are picked and then kiln dried before being packed and shipped. Removing the moisture is essential to preventing mold growth and other biological nuisances on the hops. However, with so many hop farms in this region of the world, beers brewed with fresh hops are just one of the many ways we celebrate in the Northwest.

Hops can add both subtle and dramatic flavors to beer: floral, citrus, spice, herbs, pineapple, and many others depending on how they balance with the yeast and malt notes of each beer. Even with so many flavors already produced by hops, adding fresh hops to the kettle can add yet another dimension to many styles of beer. Wet hops add characteristics such as cut grass, sweet earth, resinous pine, fresh flowers, and many other nuances that can only be found in freshly picked hops.

But why explain it when you can experience it by wrapping your mouth around one of 51 fresh hop beers at this year's Hood River Hops Fest? IPAs, Pilsners, Farmhouses, Saisons, Ambers, and other styles from 37 breweries will be available for you to try. Other amenities include:

  • Local cuisine from woodfire pizza to American pub grub to vegetarian style dishes.
  • Unique arts and crafts vendors from around the Northwest including beer inspired soaps, unique jewelery and handmade pottery.
  • A selection of Gorge wines.
  • A Kids Zone with face painting and other child friendly activities.
  • And a day-long lineup of live music.

But you came here for the gigantic beers list didn't you? Here we go:

Hood River Hops Fest: 2012 Beer List   ** Fresh Hop Beers

10 Barrel Brewing   Bend, OR
Crosby Fresh Hop**
Strong Pale Ale
Fresh Hop: Centennial
5.5%
Simple malt bill built to let the fresh Centennial hops from Crosby Hop Farm shine through. Bright lemon notes running along grapefruit notes are the highlights.
DUB
Double IPA
9.25%
Come on...You don't need another Double IPA description. Ingredients...Chinook + water + simcoe + malt + magnum. Brewed by Big Daddy Kelso
Amnesia Brewing Portland, OR
Mother Plucker**
Fresh Hop Pale
Fresh Hops: Amarillo
5.5%
A light pale ale with an 80% Maris Otter and 20% Vienna malt base. 50lbs of Amarillo hops, picked and trucked down ourselves from the Gamache farms in Yakima Wa. And stewed in the final minutes of the boil and whirlpool for a delightfully delicate fresh hop aroma and flavor.
The French Connection**
Autumn Saison
Fresh Hops: Tardif De Bourgogne
5%
A light, golden, copper coloured, fall Saison brewed with Caramel Pilsner malts, an Heirloom French hop varietal derived from the Burgundy region of France and fermented using a Fench/Belgian yeast strain acquired from Upright Brewing.
Beer Valley Brewing   Ontario, OR
Leafer Fresh Hop**
Double IPA
Fresh Hops: Chinook
9%
Fresh hopped version of Leaver Madness, Double Pale Ale
Tri-State Fresh Hop Ale**
Fresh Hop Ale
Fresh Hops: Chinook
5%
All fresh hop beer brewed with fresh hops from ID, OR, WA
Big Horse Brewpub   Hood River, OR
Paragon**
Imperial IPA
Fresh Hops: Simcoe, Amarillo, Citra
8.5%
Classic west coast style Imperial IPA. Brewed with everyone's favorite "newschool" hops.
Nightmare
Coffee Stout Oatmeal Stout
5.5%
Creamy Oatmeal Stout brewed with english chocolate and roast malts. Cold steeped in 10 Speeds Columbia coffee.
Block 15 Brewing   Corvallis, OR
Heliotropic**
Pale Ale
Fresh Hops: Nuggets
Pale ale brewed with floor malted barley and 100% organic fresh hop nuggets in the hop back.
Breakside Brewery   Portland, OR
Fresh Hop Citra Double IPA**
Double IPA/Wheatwine
Fresh Hops: Citra
8.5%
Wheat Double IPA with fresh Citra hops
International Way IPA**
American IPA
Fresh Hops: Amarillo
6%
American style moist hop Pale Ale. Moistened with a special proprietary technique that Ben learned from the team at Kinky Kabin Brewing Co.
Bridgeport Brewery   Portland, OR
Hop Harvest**
Imperial Pilsner
Fresh Hop: Tettnanger
8%
Hop Harvest is a Fresh Hop beer using Austrian Aurora hops in the kettle and 45lbs of green Oregon Tettnanger Hops in our hop jack.
Burnside Brewery   Portland, OR
Sterling Pub Draught**
Pub Draught
Fresh Hops: Sterling
4%
English-style pub draught beer brewed with 130lbs of fresh Sterling hops
Lime Kolsch
Kolsch
5.4%
A Kolsch brewed with hand zested limes, Kaffir lime leaf and Lemongrass
The Commons Brewery   Portland, OR
Fresh Hop Farmhouse**
Farmhouse Ale
Fresh Hops: Meridian, Cascade
6%
Tart golden farmhouse ale with meridian and cascade hops
Cascade Lakes Brewing   Redmond, OR
Harvest Ale**
IPA
Fresh Hop: Santiam
5.8%
Just a super perfect fresh hop beer
Deschutes Brewery   Bend and Portland, OR
King Cone**
Pale Ale
Fresh Hops: Centennial
6.4%
This Pale Ale features two different crystal malts which form the rich toasted caramel body. The aroma and hop flavor is 100% fresh from the vine, Centennial hops. 175lbs in all, these hops offer notes of citrus and pine. One sniff and you're transported directly to the beauty of the Willamette valley during Hop Harvest.
Fresh Hop Bitter**
English-style Bitter
Fresh Hops: Tettnanger
5%
Offers a deep copper color, rich malt body and classic English East Kent Golding hops. For this batch we finished the beer for 6 days on Tettnang hops fresh from the vines at Gayle Goschie's hop farm in Silverton, OR.
Double Mountain   Hood River, OR
Brewery Killer Green**
IPA
Fresh Hops: Brewers Gold
Classic strong IPA featuring dank, herbal fresh hoppiness.
Hood River OR Killer Red**
Red IPA
Fresh Hops: Perle
A strong Red IPA loaded with fresh hop flavor.
Everybody's Brewing   White Salmon, WA
Head Stash**
Pale Ale
Fresh Hops: Centennial
5.5%
Hoppy, clean, fun and fresh
Country Boy IPA
IPA
6.2%
Grassy, grapefruit hop character with a light clean body.
Falling Sky Brewing   Eugene, OR
So Fresh So Green**
Lager
Fresh Hops: Centennial
5.8%
100% wet Centennial Lager, 172 lbs of hops from Goschie Farms
Whoa Dang Pale Ale**
Pale Ale
Fresh Hops: Centennial, Nugget, Crystal
All wet hops locally homegrown around Eugene. A blend of Centennial, Nugget, Crystal and others.
Flat Tail Brewing   Corvallis, OR
Home Grown**
Saison
Fresh Hops: Cascade
3.9%
Petit Saison with cherries, fresh cascade hops, wild yarrow. Massive resiny nose from Agrarian Farms pigmy Cascades and fermented with Brett F. and Saison yeast.
Rough Cut IPA
IPA
6.8%
Crisp pale malt, Cascade and Zythos hops.
Fort George Brewery   Astoria, OR
CoHoporative Ale**
Amber
5.8%
The Fort George Brewery was founded on the idea that many hands make light work. We extend this philosophy to the creation of our seasonal fresh hop beer. The call went out to all of the Fort George fans to bring in their hops that were growing on fences, barns, and houses. People from all over our county and even from Portland came and donated their hops for our Co-Hoperative Ale. We then spent a day picking them off the vines not knowing what some of the hops were. The next day we combined all of freshly picked hops into a delicious amber beer. It smells like teamwork and tastes like unity. Enjoy this light, crisp amber beer and take note of its harmonious spirit.
Fresh Hop Vortex IPA**
IPA
Fresh Hops: Simcoe, Amarillo, Centennial
7.4%
We brewed our flagship IPA using nothing but fresh hops to give our fans the chance to taste the difference. Whether brewed with fresh hops or with hop pellets, we now know that the Vortex is always delicious.
Full Sail Brewing   Hood River and Portland, OR
Hopfenfrisch**
Lager
Fresh Hops: Perle
5.7%
IPA
6%
Gigantic Brewing   Portland, OR
The Most Interesting Beer In The World**
FN Legit Fresh Hop Beer
Fresh Hops: Cascade
5.5%
The only beer Will Smith and Doug E. will drink. Stay hoppy my friends
Gigantic IPA
IPA
7.3%
Cascade, Centennial, Crystal and Simcoe create a citrusy hop confluence that continuously embiggens with each drink.
Golden Valley Brewing   Mcminnville, OR
Crystal Fresh Hop**
Style: Pale Ale
Fresh Hop: Crystal
5.6%
Tasty!!
Hale's Ales Brewery   Seattle, WA
Fresh Hop IPA**
Session IPA
Fresh Hops: Amarillo
5.8%
A "session" (lower abv) IPA with a simple malt profile to enable the showcasing of generous amounts of fresh hops.
Fresh Hop Supergoose**
IPA
Fresh Hops: Amarillo
7.1%
A fresh dry-hopped version of the popular Supergoose IPA with 2lbs of fresh Amarillo's added to each keg.
Hopworks Urban Brewery   Portland, OR
Give Me Liberty**
Best Bitter
Fresh Hops: Liberty
4.6%
Session Bitter made with Liberty Hops
IPX - The Freshmaker**
IPA
Fresh Hops: Cascade
6%
Single Hop Cascade IPA
Lagunitas Brewing   Petaluma, CA
TBA Fresh Hop**
Laurelwood Brewing   Portland, OR
Fresh Hop Free Range Red**
NW ESB
Fresh Hops: Cascade
6%
This is a fresh hop version of our popular Free Range Red.
Logsdon's Ales   Hood River, OR
Fresh Hop Seizoen**
Saison
Fresh Hops: 12 different fresh hops
7.5%
Belgian-style beer with locally grown Organic fresh hops
Seizoen Bretta
Farmhouse Saison
8%
Farmhouse saison with Brettanamyoces
Mcmenamins Edgefield   Troutdale, OR
Thundercone Fresh Hop**
Fresh Hop Ale
Fresh Hop: Cascade
6.19%
Fresh (or wet) Cascade hops were frantically delivered straight from the hop fields to every McMenamins Brewery and each batch of "Thundercone Fresh Hop Ale" was brewed within hours of the hops being picked off of the vine. The resulting beer is an absolute fresh hop showcase. This beer starts with a smooth foundation and just a slight maltiness. The real star of this show is the fresh Cascade hops used for both flavoring and aroma. Five pounds of fresh Cascades per barrel were added in three different additions in every batch.
New Belgium Brewing   Fort Collins, CO
Trip 14 Imperial Fresh Hop**
IPA
Fresh Hops: Tardiffde de Bourgogne, Bullion
8.5%
Imperial IPA brewed with the Gamache Family and Dick Cantwell (Elysian Brewing), featuring wet Tardif de Bourgogne and Bullion hops harvested the same day from the Gamache hop farm in Toppenish, WA. Also blood orange peel.
Red Hoptober
NW Red
6%
A cupful of sweet fig, tropical fruit, toffee, roasted nuts and hoppy bitterness. None of which overwhelm, they simply meet in the middle to attempt balance.
Ninkasi Brewing   Eugene, OR
Smells Like Purple**
Pale Ale
Fresh Hops: Meridian
A Meridian fresh hopped Pale Ale
Total Crystallization**
IPA
Fresh Hops: Crystal
6.7%
Our dedication to the hop harvest by brewing Total Domination using fresh hops. We brew the beer by adding hops as normal but instead of final hop addition the wort is run through 960lbs of fresh picked Cyrstal hops. Super hoppy, for super happy harvest!
Oakshire Brewing   Eugene, OR
100 Hops**
Pale Ale
Fresh Hops: Centennial
5%
A golden colored Pale Ale made with wet Centennial Hops from Oregon's Crosby Farms
Ask The Fish**
American Red Ale
Fresh Hops: Chinook
6%
Inspiration: Leftover Salmon. (Listen to Ask the Fish:Live, you won't be dissapointed)
Pelican Brewery   Pacific City, OR
Elemental Ale**
IPA
Fresh Hops: Sterling
5.8%
Brewed only once a year at the peak of hop season, this beer was made with 450 pounds of freshly picked, "wet" Sterling hops from Goschie Farms in Silverton, Oregon. The hops were only 3 hours from the vine when they went into the kettle. The mash tun was also used as a hop back, holding 300 pounds of hops! This beer features an emphatically floral, spicy, grassy aroma with a firm malt background and an assertive, snappy hop finish. Produced using Oregon-grown barley malt, one hop variety sourced exclusively from Goschie Farms, one yeast strain from Wyeast Laboratories in Hood River and pure coastal water, this is truly an all-Oregon, elemental beer!
Silverspot IPA
English-style IPA
Fresh Hops: Sterling, Fuggle, Meridian
6%
Silverspot IPA holds a permanent slot in the Pelican lineup with its brilliant gold color and assertively complex hop aroma. Brew Master Darron Welch selected the blend of Sterling, Fuggle and Meridian hops, focusing on herbal, floral, spicy and tangerine-like characters to create this highly drinkable
Pfriem Family Brewers   Hood River, OR
Fresh Hop Belgian Blonde**
Belgian Blonde.
Fresh Hops: Amarillo
6.5%
A hybrid between a Belgian Blonde and a IPA made with fresh Amarillo hops.
Belgian Strong Dark
Belgian Strong Dark.
10.25%
Belgians say, "Op uw gezondheid" when toasting, but you don't have to speak Flemish to appreciate the bold, complex flavors of fig dipped in dark chocolate, ripe fruit and toffee in this immense Ale. Op uw gezondheid!
Rock Bottom Brewery   Portland, OR
Fresh Hop**
Pale Ale
Fresh Hops: Centennial
6.3%
Centennials fresh from the picker at BC Hop Farm in Woodburn give this Pale Ale an aroma replete in peonies.
Rogue Ales   Newport, OR
Chatoe Rogue Wet Hop Ale**
Fresh Hop Ale
Fresh Hops: Freedom
6%
Brewed with 100% GYO certified Freedom Hops grown on the Rogue Farms Hopyard in Independence, OR. The hops are picked, bagged and immediately driven 77 miles to Newport for Brewmaster John Maier to pitch into the brew kettle.
Schooner Exact Brewing   Seattle, WA
Amarillo Fresh Hop**
NW IPA
Fresh Hops: Amarillo
7%
Delicious!
Sierra Nevada Brewing   Chico, CA
Estate Homegrown Ale**
IPA
Fresh Hops: Chinook, Cascade
6.7%
Slightly sweet honey-like malt contrasted by a strong hop presence with earthy green notes of pine, peppered spice and grapefruit like citrus.
Northern Hemisphere**
IPA
Fresh Hops: Cascade, Centennial
6.7%
Bold, earthy green hop flavors with hints of citrus, fresh herbs, and pine, balanced by a slightly sweet toasted malt body.
Silver Moon Brewing   Bend, OR
Hoppopatamus IPA**
IPA
Fresh Hops: Cascade
5.5%
100% Oregon grown Cascade Fresh Hops
Solera Brewery   Parkdale, OR
Kwazy Wabbit**
Double IPA
Fresh Hops: Simcoe, Citra
A medium bodied DIPA brewed with an absurd amount of fresh Simcoe hops in the kettle, hop back, fermenter and brite tank.
Peche Bier
Fruit Wheat
4%
A light, tart wheat based ale aged on fresh local peaches.
Upright Brewing   Portland, OR
Kiln 'Em All**
English-style Pale Ale
Fresh Hops: Tettnanger
5.8%
Strong Pale Ale with British Ale yeast
Walking Man Brewing   Stevenson, WA
Cent's and Censability**
Fresh Hop Pale
Fresh Hops: Centennial
5.2%
An easy drinking pale made with over 160lbs of freshly picked Centennials from BC Hop Farms. Grassy and resiny hop flavors, with a fresh Centennial aroma.
Double Dry Hopped ISA
India Session Ale
Fresh Hops: Glacier
5%
Special for Hood River Hops Fest we dry hopped kegs of our Northern Alliance India Session Ale with whole Glacier leaf hops. This is a medium bodied session ale bursting with great hop flavor and aroma.
Widmer Brothers Brewing   Portland, OR
Columbia Common**
Common Ale
Fresh Hops: Mini Magnums, Columbia
4.7%
An easy drinking Common Ale that used wet Mini Magnums for buttering and freshly kilned Columbia Hops for bittering.