What's Hoppin' this Week? 9/12

The hop harvest is in full swing and breweries all across the region a busily prepping their fresh hop beers. Several local spots, including 12 String, River City and Whistle Punk have already put out fresh hop IPAs this season and that number will only continue to rise. In light of this, I thought that a brief intro to fresh hops would be in order. For more info, talk to your friendly neighborhood brewer.

For those interested, this article provides a pretty good rundown of what the terms mean, but essentially because the Yakima Valley is the top producer of hops in the US, the Pacific and Inland Northwest breweries have the best access to right off the vine hop cones. These fresh hops can either be used "wet" - i.e. right off the vine, or kiln-dried. Either way, they expire very quickly and need to go from vine to brew within 24 hours. Fresh hops are less concentrated than traditional hop pellets, so more are needed in the brewing process and they generally have more grassy, floral notes and less bitterness than most traditional IPAs. Even if you aren't generally an IPA enthusiast, I suggest tracking down a fresh hop beer and giving it a shot because you really can taste the freshness and it's a wholly different experience than a traditional "hoppy" beer. These beers are only around while the harvest is going, so you'll see a lot of them between September and Mid-October.

I'll be re-posting any info I see from local breweries about their fresh-hop releases, so keep an eye on my Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Also, all of our favorite local beer bars and bottle shops are working hard to bring in fresh hop beers from around the region, so be sure to visit them as well.

Anyway, enough beer-nerd stuff. Here's what's hoppin' this week.

Thursday, September 13th

- The Lantern Tap House in the Perry district is kicking off their annual Sour-Fest by featuring several specialty, bottled, sours. Starting at 4 pm. You can purchase a $10 package, good for every day of the festival that includes a custom tasting glass and your first beer. For more info, including a beer list, check out their Facebook.

- Perry District brewery and bakery, The Grain Shed, is having a release party for their first fresh hop beer, a version of their Baronesse Pilsner brewed with Willamette fresh hops. The brewers and the farmers who grew both the grains and the hops will be there to hangout and answer questions. Everything kicks off at 5 pm. Facebook.

- The Bellwether "Sainted" beer release is a "very" dry-hopped IPA to honor the patron saint of hop growers, St. Hildegard of Bingen. Get down to taste it from 3 to 9 pm. Facebook.

Friday, September 14th

- Sour Fest brings the party to The Lantern's outdoor beer garden and will be sampling 11 different sour beers from 4 to 10 and will also feature live music. Facebook.

- Post Falls Brewing is doing a tap takeover at the CD'A Growler Guys. The brewers will be on hand and the event page promises "shenanigans." Facebook. 

- This week's Friday Night Flights in Riverfront Park features beer from Iron Goat. There are only a few weeks left of this event for the year, so get out there if you haven't checked it out. Facebook.

Saturday, September 15th

- The final day of Sour Fest features 11 additional sours for you to sample and live music. Facebook.

- Post Falls Brewing is hosting their Oktoberfest celebration all day in their tap room. They'll be releasing four new beers, live music all day and a couple food trucks. Facebook. 

- Iron Goat is hosting their 8th annual SPO HOP event where they are asking people to bring in their homegrown brewing hops and people who want to pick them. All donators and pickers will receive 50% off their SPO HOP pints in the tap room. Facebook.

- The Monroe Street Business District is celebrating the grand reopening of the street with a car show and block party. Bellwether is getting in on the fun and releasing a new beer to celebrate the reopening and the beginning of Fall. Facebook.