With its sunny climes and dedicated growers crafting some of the best hops in New Zealand, Nelson has earned itself an enviable reputation when it comes to the art of hop growing. Paula Hulburt discovers more about the ancient craft and the people who make it so special.
Seas of green stretch as far as the eye can see as the bine stems twist their way skyward. An earthy, pine-tinged tang fills the air as the day warms and work gets underway.
Voices call out in greeting and slurps of caffeine are hurriedly taken on the go; it is the busiest time of year for hop growers as harvest is underway.
It is 7am on a Tuesday morning and the papery, light cones are ready for picking; post coffee and some sleep, the team are ready to swing into action. For Hinetai Hops grower Dean Palmer, it is the busiest yet most rewarding time of the year.
He rolls his neck from side to side, shaking off the residue of the six or so hours of sleep he’s managed.
From mid-February until the end of March, Dean leaves his home and family behind in Motueka and heads to oversee harvest in Tapawera. This year, he has a caravan on site.
“Just in case I have to isolate,” he explains.
Like the rest of the world coping with a pandemic, harvest for the Hinetai Hops team means making some changes. “It’s always frenetic,” Dean explains “but more so this year. There’ve been extra challenges with staff but we’ve been particularly lucky. “We’ve got a great crew.”
Worries over possible staff shortages for harvest may have proven unfounded but Dean is nonetheless grateful for those workers whose help is so invaluable.
This year, the industry offered better wages and free accommodation to entice workers in to help, he says, as he pays tribute to the RSE workers and regular local workers who make up this year’s crew. “We even had a Kiwi from Auckland show up because they wanted to help with the labour shortage.”
For fellow grower Colin Oldham from New Hoplands, also in Tapawera, harvest is going well. Not affected by staff shortages, Colin says he has kept things the same as always on his 38 hectares of hop gardens.
The 50/50 mix of local staff and RSE workers get free accommodation as usual, he says.
Colin, wife Alana and sons Hayden and Thomas took on New Hoplands from Colin’s father, David, in the mid-1990s. The hops are an obvious passion and Colin’s voice fills with warmth and enthusiasm as he describes how well harvest is going. “I’m only overseeing though, not putting in the hard yards physically,” he is quick to explain.
“I’m only doing around 10 hours a day, seven days a week.” For a man whose relatively small hop gardens once caught the eye of America’s Budweiser beer baron, August Busch III, Colin is certainly humble about all he has achieved.
Like Dean, Colin too is expecting a good harvest. The mix of rain at the right time and plenty of sunshine has been kind to growers he says.
“We got plenty of rain at the right time for the hops,” he points out, “just as they were coming into flower. The only problem with heavy rain is a lot of weight goes on the hop garden, but that didn’t happen on my farm.”
As the cones and varieties mature at different rates, harvest is naturally a long process, spread out over about five weeks.
Dean and his team are bracing themselves for the most hectic part of harvest as several varietals become ready at the same time. At that point he can say goodbye to his one day off a week.
“They become ready between 15 and 25 March and I’ll be working every day at that point.”
Dean’s fascination with hops began as a boy when his grandfather and then father grew hops. He has clear memories of running around the hop shed as dust motes spiralled and the air filled with the enticing aroma of lupulin.
“Running around the hop shed are some of my earliest recollections, he smiles. “I’d collect hops that fell on the road, bundles of them, and just keep them, as kids do.”
Decades on and while his passion for the plant hasn’t waned, he no longer keeps the flowers stashed in a bag in his room, he laughs. The romanticised image he built up in his mind as a child has broadened both with time and experience though.
While days during harvest can stretch to 10 and even 12 hours long, both Dean and Colin have no qualms about putting in the time. “It’s really full on but genuinely very exciting. The people, the sense of community and the good yields make it worth it,” Dean says.
“It’s quite rewarding, working so hard together. You get a real variety of people, and while there’s not much of a chance to chat during harvest, there’s always the after party.”
His sentiments are echoed by Colin who says he looks forward to welcoming back familiar faces every year. “If they’re still in the country, they come back. We make sure they have a good time,” he says.
For Dean, hops were something he grew up with, a legacy passed down through the generations. From land bought in Waimea West by his great, great grandfather, John Palmer, to the 63 hectares the family use for hops today.
Ten varieties include an organically-grown garden of the highly sought-after variety, Nelson Sauvin. Across Nelson and Tasman, the bines have done well this year, both men agree.
“We had such a good summer and then rain in early February and that was perfect, the farm is so lush and the hops are looking really good. Everything is on track,” Dean says.
At New Hoplands, where the organic gardens now make up 10 hectares overall, there is a buzz in the air, a sense of purpose. For self-confessed beer lover Colin, it is a sight he and his family have worked hard to achieve.
Row upon row of abundant green cuts through the landscape in clean lines. From above the fields are a swathe of colours, gently undulating as the bines twist and flex in the breeze. The flowers hang almost ready for picking. It is a sight that never fails to gladden, Colin says.
“It’s difficult to put into words, but I’ve always been passionate about hops. I love the way they grow so fast.”
A third generation hop grower, Colin believes Nelson is perfect for growing. His sons do too and are coming on board as the fourth generation to turn their hand to the craft. It is very much a family concern.
In 1990 Hoplands turned over some of their land to grow organically, and at one point were the only organic grower in the world, before a Belgian business also made the switch ten years later. “Nelson is a great place to grow hops as we’re disease-free here and have very cold winters,” he says.
For an Order of the Hop recipient for his work with organics, Colin is a bit shy about what he’s achieved. He does, however, enjoy extolling the many virtues of the gardens.
“Social media means people can know more about it than ever before but there are lots of people who don’t have a clue. We had 25 dairy farmers here the other day. “They wanted a break from dairy farms so came to see us and had a tasting, they had a great time and left with smiles on their faces.”
Dean too is rightly proud of all that the team at Hinetai Hops have achieved. In 2016, and again in 2018, Hinetai Hops earned the ‘NZ Hops Grower of the Year’ title.
“I believe in doing some of the simple things well to develop our industry and produce really great hops,” Dean says. “I’m proud of our family history, too. Over 100 years of collaboration, sharing knowledge, Tasman’s growers working together – that all makes for a strong group of growers, producing a really great product.”
