2018’s first commercial wet hop beer (that we’ve seen) is being brewed today by Nickel Beer Company in Julian, featuring 70 pounds of Cascade hops from Star B Buffalo Ranch & Hop Farm in Ramona. Standing Eagle IPA will be on tap in about two weeks.
This year, Tom Nickel and co. are planning to brew 12 wet hop beers in-house, plus five collaborations fermented elsewhere, working with the aforementioned Star B as well as Julian’s Hopportunity Farm and Valley Center’s Nopalito Farm. Last year, Nickel ended up crafting around a dozen of the nearly 40 wet hop beers in San Diego County.
Tomorrow, Nickel brews in Del Mar with Viewpoint Brewing — a session IPA with Star B Cascade hops.
Here are some more upcoming Nickel brews and collabs:
- “Next week we have a collab with Doug Hasker [of Gordon Biersch Mission Valley] — Wet Hop Kölsch with Nugget hops that we are calling Ted Nugget.
- “August 10th we will be brewing at Agua Mala with Mexican grown fresh hops from Miguel Loza.
- “August 24th we will be doing a 100% wet hop brown with South Park Brewing up here.
- “We are trying to schedule a brut wet hop IPA with Bitter Brothers.
- “Not sure on a date but we will do the Room 101 with Neo Mexicanus hops with Burning Beard again.
- “We are also doing a collab with Newtopia Cyder.”