Brewery Vivant is proud to announce the release of Hop Field beer, a new Farmhouse style IPA beer. Hop Field has so many different great qualities from where the ingredients are sourced, the flavor profile, and the different food pairings. We sat down with Kate Avery, who is the Beer Abbess and Director of Sales and Marketing from Brewery Vivant to talk with her about this great beer.
FM: What are the origins of this beer?
KA: This beer fits in with what Brewery Vivant has been doing for the past 7 years, it’s brewed in that farmhouse tradition, the yeast comes from Europe, it creates a unique flavor profile, that is approachable to the average American beer drinker, but it’s unique to the Michigan flavor profile too. Farmhand is the number one selling farmhouse selling beer in MI. We used the same structure and technique but with a lot more hops to get a nice hoppy IPA. All the hop flavors, which creates a subtle and balanced bitterness allowing the hops to shine. This hops in this beer create a fruity flavor and are nice and juicy. When you drink this, your mouth is packed with a punch of flavor.
FM: Are there any local ingredients that are used in this?
KA: That is an excellent question. Yes, we are using un-malted wheat that comes from farms here in Michigan and goes to a local malt store, which is Pilot Malt House in Byron Center, MI.
The hops we use in here are really all Michigan sourced. What I mean by that is that they are not just Michigan grown, but the hops are varieties that are indigenous to Michigan and to this area. They were cropped up and essentially born here in Michigan. These hops include a blend of Mackinaw Hops, Michigan Copper Hops, and MI Heritage Hops. It is special to this beer and to Brewery Vivant to source local ingredients and pooling our dollars into the local economy. Most of the ingredients in this beer are from Michigan, but we are hoping since Hop Field is a flagship beer and will be a year-round beer, this beer will soon be sourced completely from Michigan.
FM: How did Brewery Vivant came up with the name of this beer?
KA: We have been developing this beer for almost a year now. Throughout the process, we’ve been running different test batches, tasting the beer, and talking to our guests about what they’d like to see more of. This beer, being a farmhouse IPA, calls more attention to that farmhouse rustic appeal, and the name Hop Field goes right to the heart. There’s a field full of hops and that’s what we are putting into the beer and so the name goes well.