Wiper and True are proud to celebrate Earth Day 2024 with a limited edition collaboration beer brewed with Yakima Chief Hops®. Our brewery was selected by the Yakima team as part of a world-wide celebration of hop innovation and work towards a more sustainable brewing future, and we’re honoured to have been part of the project.
The 3.5% Pale Ale, named ‘Earth Day’, is a soft and pillowy beer developed using hop products that place agronomical stability and unique flavours at the forefront. Expect notes of red berries, tropical fruits and citrus freshness.
About Yakima Chief Hops
Yakima Chief Hops® is a 100% grower-owned global hop supplier with a mission to connect brewers with family hop farms. The team at YCH invests substantial resources in developing techniques to reduce the environmental impact of their hops, and this year we’ve joined forces to mark Earth Day, and to put those innovations to the test.
So, how have we done this and what exciting new products have we used in our Earth Day beer?
Earth Day: The Beer
With the beer launching in springtime, we knew we wanted to create something soft, sessionable and packed full of flavour. After that, it was a question of getting creative with the innovative products that the experts at Yakima had on offer.
Whirlpool Additions
First up, we added two kilograms of DynaBoost™ (formerly YCH 702) Citra Enriched Whirlpool Extract to the whirlpool, at a temperature of 80 degrees. This incredibly aromatic concentrated hop extract offers a lower C02 footprint than the usual pellet hops we use in terms of both storage and shipping, whilst simultaneously contributing to a lower proportion of wastage of beer in the kettle by reducing the quantity of solid matter in the brew. Lower wastage means more beer, and more beer per batch brewed contributes to better water and energy utilisation: winner winner.
Dry Hop
For the dry hop, our brew team opted to play around with two brand new experimental hop varietals, fresh from Yakima’s rigorous trials: HBC 638 and HBC 586.
HBC 638 (the HBC is part of the naming protocol of the hop breeding trials) has been developed to allow hop farmers to embrace the evolutionary principles of agronomics to develop resilient hop varieties, which are poised to thrive amidst the challenges of climate change. In the long run, this helps us ensure a sustainable future for brewing - something we are extremely passionate about here at Wiper and True.
The positives of agronomic processes include using fewer inputs (water, fertiliser, labour), more efficient land use, and a reduction of the need for additional equipment. The approach can also contribute to a better financial return for the growers, making hop growing a more financially viable industry.
The second hop used is HBC 586, a trial hop developed to advance aroma evolution through innovative practices. This new hop has been bred specifically to showcase flavours of tropical fruit, especially mango, in line with the demands of brewers and drinkers globally.
Try Earth Day
Earth Day is available to drink now. You can order it online or enjoy it at the Wiper and True Taproom and Barrel Store.
Let us know what you think by tagging us on socials - @wiperandtrue and @yakimachiefeu.
Cheers!
