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Update on Hop
availability |
Update 1/6/2008
Dear Midwest Customers,
Things are finally starting to fall in to place for our 2008
selection of hops. The varieties that we thought we were going to be
able to get changed almost on a weekly basis. The one thing that we
do know for sure is that we will have plenty of hops for all of
2008. The homebrewing industry is still trying to figure out if hops
will be available by the pound early in 2008. There is some panic
buying of hops by some homebrewers. There is concern that if hops
are sold by the pound in early 2008 that panic buying might affect
the availability of some varieties by summer time.
Here is a list of pellet hops that we fell confident we will have in
stock for all of 2008.
Cascade, Clusters, Columbus, Glacier, German Tradition, Liberty, Mt.
Hood, Perle, US Saaz, US Spalt, US Goldings, Sterling, Vanguard and
Willamette.
Leaf hops for 2008 include: Glacier, Perle, US Goldings, Sterling
and Vanguard.
Hops that will not be available or in short supply include:
Amarillo, Centennial, Challenger, Chinook, Fuggle, Hallertau, Kent
Golding, Northern Brewer, Nugget, Czech Saaz, Styrian Goldings,
Target, Tettnang, Yakima Magnum, Simcoe, Horizon, Progress, First
Gold, and Bramling Cross.
Hop Plug Update coming by the end of January.
This might have been worse if not for the kind folks at Hop Union in
Yakima, Washington. Ralph and his crew kept the homebrew industry in
mind when allocating their hops. Their commitment to the homebrewing
industry help save 1000's of jobs this year.
Thanks Hop Union, the crew and customers from Midwest Homebrewing
Supplies. |
| Update 11/29/07
Dear Midwest customers.
This letter is to inform you of the current situation of hop
availability for the rest of 2007 and 2008. The hop harvest
typically occurs during the middle of September. This year’s hop
harvest will not yield enough hops to meet the world’s demand for
hops. Factors include farmers changing to more profitable crops,
farmers selling land to developers, lower than anticipated 2007
harvest, and demand for particular hops in the Craft Brewing
Industry. There are two things that will affect the home brewing
industry. One is that prices are going up immediately. Second is
that the selection of hops will decrease by almost 30-40%. High
alpha hops will be in the shortest demand.
The hop industry has already reacted and has increased the amount of
hops planned for planting in 2008. Things should be almost back to
normal by next year at this time. The bottom line is that the cost
of hops for a 5 gallon batch of beer will go up $1.00 - $2.00.
Things could certainly be worse. Midwest will have plenty of hops
available for 2008. The only thing different will be the decreased
selection. There is already a little scare amongst the homebrewing
community. Please don’t over react to this hysteria.
We will be sure to keep you updated on this situation. Currently we
do not have pounds of hops available. We are only offering ounces of
hops. We have a limit of 4 oz. per variety for each order. Some
customers are trying to stock up. Once again we have been reassured
by several distributors that we will have more than enough hops for
2008, however they will cost a little more and the selection will
not be as large.
We will put any updates regarding hop availability on this page.
Stay calm and have a homebrew.
The crew at Midwest |
Update on 11/20/07
Dear Midwest Customers,
We have learned a few things since our last update. One thing is
still true; Midwest is going to going to have plenty of hops for
2008.
We do know that the following hops will not be available through
Midwest for 2008. US Fuggles, US Northern Brewer, Horizon, Simcoe,
Yakima Magnum and Tettnang. The status of (Slovenian) Styrian
Goldings, German Hallertau and Czech Saaz are uncertain at this
point. We will update this page as soon as we find out.
Midwest will be offering the following new hops in 2008. Sterling,
Vanguard, Glacier, German Northern Brewer, German Perle, Hallertau
Tradition, US Goldings, US Spalt, and Millennium. Our new Hallertau
Tradition is a great substitution for Fuggle and Tettnang. Vanguard
is substitute for German Hallertau.
We know the average price for an ounce of hops has already risen
from around $1.00 - $1.50 to $1.90 - $2.75. European varieties have
seen the largest increase. The average price of a Midwest recipe kit
is going up by $1.20 to $2.40 a kit.
We will have an update on our leaf and plug hops soon.
The crew at Midwest |
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