The Not-So-Secret Hops Garden

Hops are the female flowers of the hop plant, Humulus lupulus.  Depending on the strain, they can add flavoring and stability to different types of beer.  Wikipedia has a very good, extensive page on hops if you would like to learn more about them.

Here is a schematic of the hop leaves:

We have 3 different strains of hops growing at Bain Brewery, Wine, and Foods.

From left to right:  Nugget, Magnum, Willamette

The Magnum is for bittering typically for ales and lagers.  It has high alpha-acids.

The Willamette is for aroma and flavoring.  

Finally, the Nugget hops serve a dual purpose, bittering and flavoring.

Here is what a full grown hops garden looks like:

Germany

I'm sure Jeremy would love for this to eventually be our view from our porch over looking our back yard, but we'll settle for what we have for now.