French hop growers are small fish in a giant pond. With 2.2 million kilos produced in 2023, France is the Tenth-largest hop-producing nation on the earth, representing lower than 1 % of world rising areas. Compared, 15.4 million kilos had been produced in Czechia that very same yr, 90.9 in Germany, and 104.9 within the U.S.
The oldest documented proof linking hops with brewing comes from northern France in 822, the place hop tradition turned a flourishing commerce eight centuries later, earlier than Alsace, in japanese France, entered the sport within the nineteenth century. Rising hops in France isn’t a brand new enterprise, however it has all the time been a tough one.
In 1929, whereas the manufacturing quantity was reportedly sufficient to cowl the nation’s wants, hop growers had been struggling to promote their crop and brewers had been primarily shopping for from Czechia, Poland, or Yugoslavia.
A newspaper from the time said that customs charges needs to be elevated to compete with the decrease costs and cheaper workforce of these nations (those self same taxes had been lowered within the Eighties, taking a toll on gross sales for French producers).
Growing taxes didn’t assist a lot and, in 1937, an Alsatian senator even prompt limiting the usage of international hops for the advantage of French hops, asking that two-thirds of the hops utilized by French breweries come from France and the remaining third from overseas.
The truth is that, regardless of good soil high quality, an sufficient local weather, and plentiful agricultural expertise, French hop growers have been competing with way more established nations on the subject of beer, and taxes or laws had been by no means actually capable of change that.
Philippe Martin, answerable for microbreweries at Hop France, France’s largest producer and provider, believes that French hops are nonetheless ready to be placed on the map. “Our noble varieties like Strisselspalt aren’t actually featured in conventional beer recipes together with Saaz or German hops,” he says.
Now the competitors additionally comes from throughout the Atlantic. The craze for American beer kinds within the French beer scene closely influences uncooked supplies, particularly hops. (A research from 2018 exhibits that 35 % of French breweries use American hops and 20 % use French hops.)
Historic French producers are placing forth their finest efforts to persuade brewers to provide their hops a strive by creating varieties designed to suit the most recent traits, whereas new producers have emerged from across the nation with a variety of American hops to satisfy demand.
Not on the IPA Bingo Card
It’s in Alsace that 80 % of French hops are produced, with Strisselspalt the bestseller. Grown since at the very least 1885, this conventional selection is usually utilized in bottom-fermented beers similar to Kronenbourg 1664.
However being related to macro lager manufacturers hasn’t helped Strisselspalt thrive in a craft beer scene thirsty for hoppy recipes. Whereas Hop France sells 60 % of its manufacturing in France, microbreweries symbolize solely 15 % of their French shoppers.
Martin thinks this has to do with French hops’ total profile. “French hops are right here to easy issues out and enhance drinkability. It’s more durable to promote as a result of we’re not promoting an aroma,” he says. “The craft phase desires hops for IPAs—fragrant bombs.”
Since 2009, Hop France’s analysis program has developed new varieties to satisfy this demand. Elixir, launched in 2016, has particularly been designed to fill the IPA bingo card, with a citrusy taste profile. Francis Heitz, Hop France’s export supervisor, calls it essentially the most American of European hops.
Nonetheless, as French beer lovers have a tendency to connect significance to the hops utilized in NEIPAs, hazy IPAs, and different hop-focused recipes, a mix of French hops can seem much less interesting and marketable than utilizing well-known combos similar to Citra, Mosaic, and Simcoe.
However, some famend American breweries have discovered an curiosity in French hops’ distinctive profiles (the U.S. represents 3.8 % of Hop France’s gross sales). Oskar Blues’ Mama’s Little Yella Pils and Russian River’s STS Pils each include Aramis, a spread extra bitter than Strisselspalt, launched in 2010. Created in 2018, Barbe Rouge and its ripe crimson fruit aromas have made their approach into New Belgium’s Fats Tire Ale recipe.
At City Chestnut Brewing Firm in St. Louis, Missouri, founder Florian Kuplent says he fell in love with French hops a very long time in the past.
“Strisselspalt is a kind of traditional hop varieties that has a really good natural, delicate, however very distinct character that basically works properly in our Pilsner,” he says, because the hop options in Stammtisch, a German Pilsner. “It’s very low in alpha, so the bitterness stage is comparatively low, however the aroma and taste impression are fairly excessive.”
Kuplent makes use of Aramis in a number of recipes as properly, similar to Zwickel Gentle, a light-weight lager, but in addition Fantasyland, an IPA. “We don’t use it a lot for particular IPA taste or aroma, however that hop gives a pleasant, clear, very easy bitterness,” he says, echoing Martin.
An Act of Assist
In France, some breweries are decided to show that French hops can discover their place in IPAs. At La Dilettante in Brittany, head brewer and affiliate Frédéric Favennec says his one situation when engaged on a double IPA recipe was utilizing French hops solely.
“It was a problem as a result of folks now anticipate sure issues from this fashion, one thing actually juicy and fragrant,” he says. “We used Elixir and Mistral from Alsace and Chinook grown in Brittany. Because the beer was launched in March, the response from our shoppers has been enormous.”
By way of the years, the brewery has been changing U.S. hops with French ones. Favennec says he doesn’t wish to cease utilizing American hops totally, however wishes to be much less reliant on them. “We’re an natural and native brewery, so shopping for uncooked supplies that haven’t arrived right here by aircraft makes extra sense.”
However the substitution isn’t all the time profitable and Favennec continues to be looking for an acceptable hop for the brewery’s bestseller, a single-hop Session White IPA. The hop in query, Citra, isn’t the sort that may be changed simply.
“We tried to alter the recipe, utilizing much less Citra and including some Elixir,” Favennec recollects. “However each time we tried one thing, folks complained. They know the beer too properly and prefer it that approach. I could also be caught with utilizing Citra on this one.”
It could be a mistake to imagine that the American affect has solely been damaging for hop manufacturing in France. The rise of microbreweries within the nation (from 500 in 2013 to greater than 2,500 in 2023) echoing the U.S. beer market produced a brand new buyer base for French hop growers like Hop France, who used to export greater than it offered in France.
Different producers began rising throughout the nation, even in areas not traditionally linked to hop tradition. In Brittany, Erwan Jouan began producing natural American and British varieties 4 years in the past at his hop farm, Le Hangar à Houblon.
Whereas he struggles to promote British varieties similar to Fuggles (he says he’s at present tearing them out to get replaced with Triumph), Jouan has good suggestions on his American ones. “Cascade and Chinook are positively the hops I’m promoting essentially the most, which is nice as a result of they actually like Brittany’s local weather. They’re sturdy with good alpha acids.”
A number of years in the past, Favennec changed U.S. Cascade with these grown on Jouan’s hop farm and says he hasn’t seen any distinction between the 2 recipes, and neither have his shoppers.
Hop France additionally grows American varieties, however doesn’t wish to depend upon them. “When there’s too many Cascade produced within the U.S., costs are low and other people gained’t purchase ours,” Martin says. “And we’re not pretending that our Cascade is best than the one grown within the U.S. anyway. It’s with our personal varieties that we’ve been capable of differentiate ourselves and be much less dependent. Analysis saved us.”
Although they consider within the high quality of their product, Jouan and Martin each suppose that for small breweries, shopping for French hops is before everything an act of help.
“Some breweries aren’t natural however purchase our hops as a result of we’re native hop growers. They settle for to pay a bit bit greater than with typical hops to help us,” Jouan says. “When it comes to aromas and value, we will be aggressive, if breweries are curious sufficient to provide our hops an opportunity.”
CraftBeer.com is totally devoted to small and unbiased U.S. breweries. We’re revealed by the Brewers Affiliation, the not-for-profit commerce group devoted to selling and defending America’s small and unbiased craft brewers. Tales and opinions shared on CraftBeer.com don’t indicate endorsement by or positions taken by the Brewers Affiliation or its members.
