Growers join forces to promote the humble hop

If you thought that hop picking was the preserve of the Kent countryside, then you might be surprised to learn that more than half of the hops grown in the UK are produced in Worcestershire, Herefordshire and Shropshire – otherwise known as the ‘Hopshires’.

Archive footage of city dwelling families heading south on a hop-picking vacation, coupled with the television series ‘The Darling Buds of May’ certainly put the Garden of England on the hop-growing map, yet Charles Faram, the only solely English-owned hop merchant, is actually right here in Newland, Worcestershire.

Now, the growers and brewers from within the Hopshires, are joining forces to promote the region’s hop producing prowess at this year’s Malvern Autumn Show (27 & 28 September).

The Show’s Orchard & Hopyard Pavilion will host a brand new section dedicated to the humble hop, and visitors can learn about its history and its use in modern, industrial scale production where machines harvest it as the essential ingredient for a pint of the brewer’s best.

There are many varieties of hops, each with a different scent which changes the flavours in beer. During the hop harvest in September and October, local brewers will each produce at least one beer using only hops grown in the Hopshires, and some of these will be available to sample in the Show’s Pavilion.

Show organiser the Three Counties Agricultural Society sponsors Nuffield scholar and hop grower, Ali Capper, of Stock Farms, Suckley, which produces enough hops to brew 46 million pints of beer on 100 acres, and the new Hopyard is a result of that connection.

Simon Parker, who grows 40 acres of hops at Munderfield in Herefordshire, says there is a definite upturn in the hop market. “There is something of a real craft beer renaissance at the moment and micro-brewers are springing up everywhere.

A lot of the revival is led by our exports too, which can only be good news for local growers and merchants.”

The Hopyard is just one of a whole host of attractions at this year’s Show.

The event is a celebration of food, gardening and nostalgia, and boasts one of the largest gatherings of amateur growers in the country. Each year it takes delivery of some of the UK’s largest produce and is now home to the UK National Giant Vegetables Championship.

The Good Life Pavilion features beautiful feature gardens, and there’s a stage with special guests Monty Don (Sunday only), Joe Swift, Jim Buttress and Mark Diacono.

Other attractions include a Vintage Village with jive lessons, grow your own demonstrations, a Royal Horticultural Flower Show, an Orchard and Hopyard Pavilion with local beers, cider and perry, an artisan food market, native livestock and country pursuits and crafts. Family entertainment includes spectacular stunts from the BMX team ‘Savage Skills’, free-style bi-plane aerobatics and animal parades, and there’s a chance to do some early Christmas shopping, courtesy of around 600 quality trade stands offering retail therapy for all.