Home Made Beer & Wine Kits

Wormella said:

If anyone does want to get into beer or wine making we've got some kit going spare - @Goldilox can tell you what exactly but it was a hobby he got bored with and now it's gathering dust when we could do with the space - PM me if you're insterested

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We had a go at making wine but soon got bored as well and now we just buy it either online or from the supermarket.

I grow multiple british hop varieties including fuggles and golding. I'm planning on relocating some of them this year and as a result will be digging some up.

If anyone would like a hop rhizome, please let me know since I can split the plant soon.

Here is a picture of the produce from the Rhizome I will be removing this year. (Dried hops not only makes great beer but if you have a whole plant you can make some nice garlands to hang over the mantle piece at xmas time)

hop said:

I grow multiple british hop varieties including fuggles and golding. I'm planning on relocating some of them this year and as a result will be digging some up.

If anyone would like a hop rhizome, please let me know since I can split the plant soon.

Here is a picture of the produce from the Rhizome I will be removing this year. (Dried hops not only makes great beer but if you have a whole plant you can make some nice garlands to hang over the mantle piece at xmas time)

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Ooo, I was toying with the idea last year of growing some hops and even joined a FB group that were sharing rhizomes but was unsure as a) I live in 'sunny' Stafford, and b) my garden is not south facing. I'm guessing you live in Stafford and judging by your picture above, the hops are growing fine and dandy here! I would be very much interested buddy if you're willing to share some out, thanks.

hop said:

I grow multiple british hop varieties including fuggles and golding. I'm planning on relocating some of them this year and as a result will be digging some up.

If anyone would like a hop rhizome, please let me know since I can split the plant soon.

Here is a picture of the produce from the Rhizome I will be removing this year. (Dried hops not only makes great beer but if you have a whole plant you can make some nice garlands to hang over the mantle piece at xmas time)

Click to expand...

Yes please, always wanted to hop my own malted extract. PM me where and when and I'll be there PDQ.

My Great-grandfather was a hop picker.

OK will see about removing them potentially this weekend. I have one at the front which is growing under a Daphne Odora and will never to amount to anything without a trellis or stake to climb. But is healthy and given ample chicken poo or blood fish and bone could thrive growing up a cane / pole / trellis.
I also have a few in the back garden, the wife wants to grow a wisteria up the pergola so I may split that one or there is another one which we were thinking of replacing with a winter Clematis to achieve a greater succession of flowers and year round flowering in that area if the garden.

Katniss said:

My Great-grandfather was a hop picker.

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Was he from the South East of England?

Sir BoD said:

Was he from the South East of England?

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The main Hop growing areas were Kent, Sussex, warwickshire and Herefordshire. Although Kent and Sussex produced the most.
The whole hop industry is truely fascinating particularly the oasts which I adore.
The style of the oasts changed over time as did the roofing. If you notice an oast with a black (tar covered) roof this generally indicates it was built after 1850 when then brick tax was repealed. A brick built roof with tar covering was more suitable for a roundel / kiln due to the flammability of wood and the fact there was a open fire in the base of the building to dry the hops.
Prior to 1850 the roof was wooden with clay tiles. The brick tax being in place to fund the Napoleonic war. Of course the brick tax wasn't that successful since it was based on a given amount of bricks, therefore buildings built in this period had larger bricks.
The majority of kentish and Sussex oasts being round, and the ones Worcester and Herefordshire often being insignificant or resembling a building closer to a malting.

I could talk about oasts, the styles, the differnces in cowls all day long. But I doubt many people would be interested in knowing the difference between a Kent or a Sussex cowl. Or which oast in what was Sussex sports a Kent invicta. Or how some villages changed counties due to playing arbitrage between hop rates across the border. Fascinating stuff to me, but probably very boring to most people.

Sir BoD said:

Was he from the South East of England?

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He was from Bromsgrove. I found this film on youtube about the area.

hop said:

OK will see about removing them potentially this weekend. I have one at the front which is growing under a Daphne Odora and will never to amount to anything without a trellis or stake to climb. But is healthy and given ample chicken poo or blood fish and bone could thrive growing up a cane / pole / trellis.
I also have a few in the back garden, the wife wants to grow a wisteria up the pergola so I may split that one or there is another one which we were thinking of replacing with a winter Clematis to achieve a greater succession of flowers and year round flowering in that area if the garden.

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We planted a Wisteria 7 years ago and it only started flowering last year. We had tried everything to get it to flower so it is a mystery why it suddenly started to last year.

My Grandfather told me his Father would take the whole family on a hop picking holiday (sounds fun)

I was just reading this.

Katniss said:

We planted a Wisteria 7 years ago and it only started flowering last year. We had tried everything to get it to flower so it is a mystery why it suddenly started to last year.

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You probably bought a small specimen which needed time to both establish its roots and grow to a flowering size.
Sometimes it is worth paying more for a more mature specimen but not always.
I have many hundreds of bulbs which I'm growing from seed to under plant some of my trees, most of these will take 3+ years to get to flowering size. But other bulbs I'm growing for my exotic area will take upto 7 years to reach flowering size.

hop said:

You probably bought a small specimen which needed time to both establish its roots and grow to a flowering size.
Sometimes it is worth paying more for a more mature specimen but not always.
I have many hundreds of bulbs which I'm growing from see to under plant some of my trees, most of these will take 3+ years to get to flowering size. But other bulbs I'm growing for my exotic area will take upto 7 years to reach flowering size.

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We only have a small garden so we are limited to what we can plant in it. Our last house in Shropshire had a large garden with an enormous tree in it and an owl used to sit in it most night hooting it's head off. Sometimes I felt like shooting it but if you live in the countryside you have to be tolerant.

Katniss said:

My Grandfather told me his Father would take the whole family on a hop picking holiday (sounds fun)

I was just reading this.

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There are still a fair amount of working hop farms and the sight of a field full of tall poles heavily laden with hops in full flower is something to behold.
Indeed the villages of the High Weald are delightful with some cracking architecture and delightful 15-16th century oak framed farm houses and cottages.
In terms of buying beer made from British grown hops the Westerham Brewery offers a good selection of cask ales in pubs around the south east as well as bottled beer which you should be able to find in Waitrose. A great deal of Westerhams hops being sourced from the hop farm at Scotney Castle (owned by National Trust). In buying these beers you are not old helping a British firm but also contributing to the National Trust and helping to preserve our architectural heritage.

Shephard Name also offer beers produced with British grown hops. If interested try and see if the label contains a BHA logo (British Hop growers association)

The reality is that the average British drinker would rather swill bland lager than appreciate the subtle aroma and exquisite flavours in a real beer.
The real paradox is that British sparkling wine is now some of the best in the world. With Denbies estate and Tenterden vineyard producing some cracking wine. The climate of Kent now being comparable to what North France used to be and the soil structure similar to the champagne region. English sparkling wines frequently win international awards and exceed the quality of French wine. In fact many French vineyards are now buying land in the south east of England because climate change has meant they are no longer able to successfully grown certain varieties of grapes.

I don't think I will click on your link again because I ended up on a weird looking site.