Fort Hill Brewery has a close relationship with the hop farmers of Goats Peak Farm and Vineyard in Easthampton. Including the hops grown at the brewery, growers Dave and Luke Lepine led the planting of over 1000 Cascade, Nugget, and Chinook hop plants in 2013 and 2014.
The vines will produce one to two pounds of hops on the third year of growth. These perennial plants are hardy and have not been sprayed with pesticides or herbicides.
We are very fortunate that the Pioneer Valley has such exceptional soil. Although now famous for the delicious asparagus, Western Massachusetts and upstate New York produced most of the nation's hops pre-prohibition.
