March 4, 2016 · Team HG
Due to a poor harvest, there is a shortage of hops. Hops are an indispensable ingredient in the production of craft beer in particular. Anyone who is very attached to a specific craft beer would be better off stocking up just to be safe.
The last harvest was poor, and small brewers are feeling the impact particularly. They often miss out, because they lose out to large brewers who have signed multi-year contracts with hop producers.
Due to an increase in the number of brewers, the demand for hops has risen in recent years. Selected Brewing Ingredients (SBI) is a company that purchases raw materials for beer and resells them to small brewers. They, too, are noticing the enormous demand for hops.
Hops are imported from Germany, England, and the US. Due to a dry summer in Europe and the US and a plant disease in England, less hops have been produced than in previous years.
Experts expect that some specialty beers may taste slightly different in the near future (due to less hop) or temporarily disappear from shelves.
