ALL GRAIN BEER

When Pride of Ringwood was released in 1965, it had the distinction of being the hop with the highest alpha acid content in the world, but now, of course, has been far surpassed. At one time it comprised 90% of the hops grown in Australia. Too late harvest for the U.S., it was at one time grown in Kashmir, India. Good storage stability. It is primarily used in Australian lagers, but in the U.S., Buffalo Bill Brewery uses it in its Tasmanian Devil brew. Carlton and United Breweries in Australia bitter all of their beers with PoR. Australia is fairly disease free for hops, but when grown elsewhere, it is susceptible to downy mildew.

Aquila was developed in the U.S. and established in 3-acre commercial trials throughout the Northwestern US in 1988. However, due to its overly high cohumulone content, its use is considered quite limited, and it is not available commercially at this time. Anheuser Busch lost interest in the variety due to its harsh bittering, which spelled a death knell for the variety’s commercial usability.

Banner has not fared well on the commercial market. Bred from a Brewer’s Gold seedling in the 80’s, open pollination, its first test plot was discontinued due to severe mildew. It was finally released, along with its sibling, Aquila, in 1996. It caught the interest of Anheuser Busch who, after several years of evaluation, eliminated it from further testing. It appears to have moderately high alpha acids and a pleasant aroma. It has a good yield, but poor storageability, which, along with its mildew susceptibility does not make it very popular.