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For the second time in five years, hop production across Europe has tumbled as a result of an intense heat wave and below average rainfall.

– The Association of German Hop Growers estimates they will harvest 33,779 metric tons (about 75 million pounds), compared to 43,141 in 2025. As a result, the industry expects the value of the 2026 crop will fall €80 to €100 million short of expected revenue of about €300 million.

Reacting to shrinking demand for hops worldwide, German farmers strung 5.8% fewer acres in 2026. Lower yields are to blame for most of the 22% drop in production. That mirrors 2022, when farmers harvested 34,406 metric tons.

– The Czech Hop Growers Union estimates production will be down about 25% from 5,207 metric tons in 2025. That works out to about a bit less than 4,000 metric tons and is not as disastrous as the drop from 6,662 MT in 2021 to 3,127 in 2022. The official results of alpha screening by the Czech Chmelarsky Institut show historically low alpha values of 1.8% for Saaz.

– In Slovenia, in addition to the heat repeated hailstorms damaged about half 4,000 acres strung for harvest, with losses in yield between 10% and 100%.

– In Poland, frost damaged hops in some fields at the beginning of the season and the area suffered through the same high heat and low moisture conditions as the rest of Europe.

In Germany the temperature topped 30℃ (86℉) during 45 days. There has not been a heatwave of such duration and intensity in at least 25 years. During the crucial growth period between mid-June until mid-August precipitation at Hüll (in the Hallertau region) amounted to only 105 mm (4 inches), about half the long-term average.

HVG, the German hop cooperative, reported the persistent heat impaired flowering and cone development of the early varieties. For the first time, individual shoots in the upper section of Herkules, which accounts for about half of German production, died back due to the heat, and bines struggled to reach the top of the trellis.

The conditions made the differences between irrigated and non-irragated fields (the latter are more common in Germany) apparent. Heat-resistant varieties such as Polaris and Mandarina Bavaria appeared much healthier and more productive in many locations than numerous classic varieties.

John I. Haas suggests the “future of alpha is Terra.”

I’m focused on the ASBC and CIBC Meeting in Seattle this week to I will let this lightly edited press release do the heavy lifting.

Hop Breeding Company (HBC), together with partners John I. Haas and Yakima Chief Ranches, today announced the launch of Terra Alpha Hops, a new series of high-alpha hop varieties bred for reliable performance in both the field and the brewhouse.

The TerraFlux name brings a new identity to the established variety HBC 682, commercially grown since 2018. With more than 36 million pounds produced to date, its impressive history makes TerraFlux a natural complement to the newly introduced TerraSurge.

Should you be confused, TerraFlux/HBC 682 was given the name Pahto when she was released. However, her named was officially changed back to HBC 682 a few years ago. The name Pahto is the word indigenous people used for Mount Adams, which is prominent in the Yakima Valley.

Monday, the Oregon Hop Growers Association issued a press release that began:

“Next week, many of Oregon’s hop growers will begin the first round of harvest, with fresh hop beer season soon to follow as brewers pick up fresh hops from local farms for a once-a-year beer experience unique to the Pacific Northwest. Growers and brewers say Oregon beer drinkers should be especially excited about this year’s batch, as favorable weather yielded high-quality hops.

“’After a few tough years with hop acreages declining as beer sales dipped, Oregon hop growers are especially excited about this year’s hop harvest. The mild spring resulted in ideal growing conditions for the hops, meaning we’re expecting great flavor and aroma,’ said Michelle Palacios, executive director of the Oregon Hop Growers Association.”

What could go wrong?

Smoke, as growers and brewers learned with the 2020 harvest.

Wildfires in Central and Eastern Washington triggered an air quality alert in the Yakima Valley this week. It is also higher today in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, although forecasts are for more favorable conditions soon.

If you want to worry about this on a daily basis, a few links:

– Washington smoke blog.

– Yakima Valley air quality information. Scroll down for map.

– Willamette Valley air quality information. Scroll down for map.

West Coast Hop Breeding today announced the release of Celeste, formerly known by experimental names WCHB-102 and 2B. She is named for heavenly beauty, and features bright, sweet, and clean notes of passion fruit, honeydew, and pine.

Celeste (10-12.8 alpha acids, 6-7% beta acids, 1.5-2.3 mL/100 grams total oil) is the second hop from WCHB, established by five Oregon hop farming families in 2016 to ensure that Oregon hop growers have a sustainable future by developing excellent aroma varieties. Pat Leavy, one of the farmers in the collective, does the breeding, making crosses from germplasm he has collected during the past 20 years. Celeste has “heavy downy resistance plus powdery tolerance for production in organic systems.” The hops Leavy grows are certified organic.

Ben Smith at WCHB member B&D Farms adds, “Celeste yields well with a minimum of inputs.”

Celeste is available now through The Hop Guild, Charles Faram Canada and US, and direct from West Coast Hop Breeding.

At this moment, The Hop Guild has enough 2025 crop for full batch brewing. Chris Holden, director of sales and marketing, made it clear he his a fan while talking to brewers at the New York State Brewers Conference. He first smelled what was then called WCHB-102 sitting in bales at the mill while THB was producing Citra Hopsauce, its proprietary flowable extract. “The bales overpowered the Citra Hopsauce,” he said. “That told me that the she was a winner.”

He describes Celeste as a small but mighty bulldog. She “has the potency to brew fun beers and sit at the big boy table with the big sexy hops,” he said. “My favorite is the lime and passion fruit combo that hits you in the face and carries through to the finished product.”

In a press release announcing that the experimental hop previously known at HPA-033 will be called Luna, Hop Products Australia states, “Just like our customers, our hops are big characters. When choosing a name, we like to consider both the hop’s flavour profile and its position in our portfolio. Luna seemed like the obvious choice for a hop that is distinguished by lush mango, dark berry and spicy citrus characters, alongside a high polyphenol content that elevates the flavour profile and mouthfeel.”

One more sentence from the press release to give you an idea which other varieties Luna is like to hang out with: “With an aroma intensity akin to Krush, and a biotransformation potential similar to Galaxy, Luna is a joy to experience in the whirlpool and dry hop.”

HPA suggests that a late whirlpool addition of 1-2g/L (0.4-0.7lb/bbl) accentuates spicy citrus characteristics, which can present as marmalade when interacting with darker malts. A dry hop of 4-10g/L (1.3-3.3lb/bbl) elevates the lush mango and dark berry character.

Luna is the result of a 2003 cross between a high alpha Australian male and Liberty, herself a cross made in Oregon between Hallertau Mittelfrüh and a German male. She contains 13.2-15% alpha acids, 7.5-8.2% beta acids, 1.9-2.5 mL/100 grams total oil.

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