# Organic Hops In Melbourne (where Are They?)



## moonshine (1/4/10)

Hello AHB 

I've been looking to brew some a/g lager now the weather is cooling down a bit (haven't got a fridge in the brewery yet)

Anyhow have been looking for organic hops, found that gng can get some, but only in 5kg lots, was wondering if anyone knew of anywhere else to get smaller amounts (failing that i think i'll have to organise a bulk bye as 1kg is probably all i can afford)

i've lost the quote but it was about $450 quite cheap considering...

if there was interest and i couldn't find them in smaller amounts elsewhere would think about getting both the hallertau and the pacific gem. Although i've never used the gem before so would be interested in what other people's experiences regarding this hop were.




Cheers

(1st post)


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## Kleiny (1/4/10)

Whats wrong with normal hops?

By all accounts even breweries that are organically certified can use up to 5% non organic raw materials and that usually equates to their hops as it is hard to get a consistant supply.

Kleiny


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## moonshine (2/4/10)

nothings wrong with conventional hops (apart from the fact that there grown with the aid of a bunch of poisons)

and i fully intend on continuing brewing with them (while i can't get a hold of organic hops in the varieties and amounts i need) 

but i thought it would be nice to brew a WHOLLY organic beer.


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## bum (2/4/10)

How're you getting the poisons out of the water?


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## Brewman_ (2/4/10)

I like organic too, but drink alcohol, so must put things in perspective?

Edit spelling - either too much alcohol or not enough organics!


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## Bribie G (2/4/10)

Use NZ hops, our sister country has no hop diseases (yet) and therefore their crops would not be sprayed as much as US or Euro crops. Of course I'm assuming that this happy state of affairs is not due to merciless pre-emptive cluster bomb chemical strikes by the Kiwi farmers   

Maybe contact them for further info


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## moonshine (2/4/10)

The organic hops I was referring to are NZ hops (I'm hoping to find a melb source for amounts less than 5kg)

as for water that is another matter looking to move to Tas next year and use spring or rain water but until then am putting up with the alums and the Fluoride ions which are toxic: the lethal dose of sodium fluoride for a 70 kg human is estimated at 5–10 g (via Wikipedia "Recommended Medical Treatment for Hydrofluoric Acid Exposure" (PDF). Honeywell Specialty Materials. Retrieved 2009-05-06.)


But I digress I had no intention of discussing the virtues of organics nor my disagreements with the practices of Yarra Valley Water in this thread but was hoping to find a source of organic hops, other people interested in acquiring organic hops and the relative merits of NZ pacific gem.


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## Wolfy (2/4/10)

Most lagers ferment at about 10C and it's not that cold yet, so you may need to wait another month or few before you start. 

If you're in the Yarra Valley then there is no reason you can't grow your own hops, in general in small/home plantations they are usually free of bugs etc and so there is no need for chemicals etc.

Other than that Craftbrewer currently have stock of 3 different organic hops, and the postage price is probably the same as the petrol it will cost for you to get to your LHBS.


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## moonshine (2/4/10)

Wolfy said:


> Most lagers ferment at about 10C and it's not that cold yet, so you may need to wait another month or few before you start.
> 
> If you're in the Yarra Valley then there is no reason you can't grow your own hops, in general in small/home plantations they are usually free of bugs etc and so there is no need for chemicals etc.
> 
> Other than that Craftbrewer currently have stock of 3 different organic hops, and the postage price is probably the same as the petrol it will cost for you to get to your LHBS.


I'm in Melbourne, plan on growing my own hops (was a bit late last year and the hop rhizomes i put in late spring died at the beginning of summer), next year should be better.

Was planing on waiting a month or two to brew the lagers but wanted to organise everything prior to brewing

(have brewed with a wet towel b4 and it seemed to work well, also have brewed lagers at higher temps (up to 18) and seemed to work fine just needed longer in the bottle but the best larger i've done was btw 9 and 12 for 3 1/2 weeks in the primary so agree, 10deg bout perfect)

thanks for the heads up on craftbrewer, might have to oder some, seems a bit wrong getting NZ hops from QLD... but one to think about


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