Hop 360°: What We Shared, Learned, and Look Forward to in 2025

On July 7th, we hosted another edition of our Hop 360° Webinar — a live, in-depth conversation with brewers, growers, and technical specialists from across the industry. These sessions aren’t just about presenting data or trends. They’re about sitting down, virtually or otherwise, and sharing what we know moves the needle in modern brewing.

At Hops Company, this is the core of what we do — and honestly, it’s what we live for. We don’t just work with hops, we live with them. We walk the fields, talk to the farmers, taste the beers. We’re there during harvest, at selection, when the lots are still green and full of promise. And then we’re there again months later, on the brewhouse floor, talking with the brewer who’s using that same lot. It’s not just logistics or selection — it’s relationship. From the first conversation in the field to the final pour in the glass, we’re in it with you. Because great hops are only great if they make it to your tank the way they left the bine.

The webinar covered a wide range of topics, always with that idea in mind: technical clarity meets real-world brewing. Guided by Victor Marinho, award-winning brewer and consultant, Estevão Chittó, gold-medal brewer and head of Hops Company Brazil, and Thiago Galbeno, co-founder and hop selection lead at Hops Company, the session kicked off with a deep dive into our selection model — explaining how we prioritize brewer’s cuts: lots selected directly at origin, pelletized well ahead of industry timelines, shipped cold, and stored properly to preserve their full sensory expression.

From there, we dove into the current market landscape. We’re seeing a shift: lower alcohol, lower calorie, greater emphasis on shelf life, foam retention, and stability. And a growing need for beers that are technically sound but also cost-efficient. This is particularly true for hop-forward styles that rely on aroma and flavor precision.

We shared insights on how to reduce hop loads without compromising impact, focusing on key survivable compounds like geraniol, linalool, 3MH, and 2MIB. We also broke down the role of thiols — 4MMP, 3MH, 3MHA — and how brewers can unleash their potential through enzymatic reactions and careful process design.

On the practical side, we looked at two hop addition strategies that continue to deliver great results:

  • Whirlpool hopping, with a focus on temperature control (70–90ºC), contact time (around 40 minutes), and key varieties like Mosaic, Nelson Sauvin, Idaho 7.

  • DIP hopping, developed by Kirin, which allows the brewer to add hops to the fermenter before wort is transferred, protecting volatile compounds like linalool and geraniol.

We also introduced the Abstrax® lineup of natural extracts and showed just how easy dosing can be — using small quantities inline or directly into the tank, enabling consistent flavor expression with less vegetal load and better control. Products like OMNI, Quantum, Brewgas and Skyfarm were discussed not just as tools, but as opportunities to rethink how we build aroma in modern brewing.

One of the most exciting parts? Sharing some of the brewer’s cut lots from 2024 that are already in use by our partner breweries. From Columbus Citrus from CLS Farms and Strata from Indie Hops, to a bright tropical El Dorado and a stunningly refined WA358 Saaz from Virgil Gamache Farms — these hops weren’t just described, they were brewed with. And the results spoke for themselves.

We closed the session with real recipes — beers created using these selected hops and extracts:

  • The Omni/Brewgas IPA, a West Coast-style IPA that brings together El Dorado, Columbus, and Brewgas Pineapple Express.

  • The Skyfarm Strawberry Sour, brewed with strawberry puree, natural extracts and a tailored salt profile for better balance in hop waters and light sours.

  • And a full discussion on hop water formulation, including dosing rates, carbonates, and how Abstrax fits into these new high-margin, low-alcohol formats.

In short, it was an afternoon of learning, sharing, and staying sharp — together.

If you missed it, don’t worry. The next Hop 360° Webinar is already in the works, and we’d love for you to be there.

📲 Follow us on Instagram [@hopscompany] to stay in the loop.

Let’s keep brewing smarter, fresher, and more connected — from the farm to the brewery, and all the way to the glass.

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