ABSTRACT
Over the last three decades, the American brewing industry has undergone significant change. Starting in the mid-1980s, the industry witnessed the gradual emergence of an increasing number of small-scale, independently owned, craft breweries. In this chapter, the authors examine the impact of the growing popularity of craft beer on the demand for hops. From a style perspective, the growing popularity of craft beer is responsible for a shift in demand, away from alpha to aroma and dual-purpose hops. The increasing popularity of craft beer, particularly since the early 2000s, has changed, in significant ways, demand for hops. The authors highlight three of the major changes – demand for more hops, demand for different styles and a greater diversity of hop varietals, and demand for locally grown hops. Demand for local hops has resulted in farmers outside of the crop’s Pacific Northwest core region starting to grow hops.
