Yakima Chief Hops & an Idaho-grown IPA, Seven Samurai

Yakima Chief Hops & an Idaho-grown IPA, Seven Samurai

Yakima Chief Hops–a 100% grower-owned global supplier of premium quality hops–is at the heart of our Seven Samurai IPA story. Here at Pure Project we believe that ingredients matter, and we love the stories behind the ingredients we use. The Seven Samurai story comes from Idaho–the birthplace of all the good things that went into this delicious IPA.

It was our relationship with Yakima Chief Hops that connected us to Jackson Hop Farm in Wilder, Idaho where they grew and selected the Idaho 7® that went into this west coast double IPA. We also used Columbus Cryo Hops® which were grown by Hopland USA in Idaho and produced by Yakima Chief Hops.

“Relationships with our ingredients producers help us in our commitment to sustainability, quality, and the creation of a unique product,” says our head brewer, Winslow.

As a 100% grower-owned network of family hop farms in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, Yakima Chief Hops is uniquely positioned to establish strong relationships between the growers who supply the premium hops and the brewers who brew with them.

“When Yakima Chief Hops is invited to collaborate on a brew day, it brings our mission full circle of connecting the multi-generational family farms of the Pacific Northwest with brewers across the globe,” says Yakima Chief Field Marketing Manager, Kelly Lohrmeyer. “This brew was exciting for me because Pure Project wanted to use all Idaho-grown hops. The popularity of Idaho 7® is growing fast and we are thrilled to add it to our portfolio of hops.”

Idaho 7® was developed by Jackson Hop Farm, a first generation hop farm started by Nate Jackson and his family in 2008. Located in Southern Idaho, Wilder’s climate and growing conditions are similar to Yakima, Washington (which is where approximately 75% of the nation’s hops are grown). Inspired by what was happening in Yakima, Nate wanted to contribute to the industry and try to put Idaho on the map for hops, so he developed a new and complementary product. Idaho 7® is a hop known for exhibiting a pungent, bold aroma with notes of pineapple, peach, mango, and black tea. Needless to say, Idaho 7® has become a real hit in the brewing industry, and is now being grown in Washington, too!

To round out this collaboration brew, Kelly at Yakima Chief Hops turned us on to some recent research from their R & D team: using 10-20% of Columbus Cryo Hops® pellets in the whirlpool or dry hop can enhance the aroma impact of brews due to the high concentration of a certain essential oil. This sulfur-containing compound, 3MH (or 3-Mercaptohexan-1-ol for those chemistry geeks amongst you), is believed to be the key to those tropical flavors so revered in IPAs today. Considering Winslow’s (not-so) secret crush on Columbus hops, it was inevitable that this hop, from HopLand in Wilder, Idaho, would also make its way into the Seven Samurai brew.

The hops in this brew are not the only ingredients from Idaho; we built the beer on 100% Pure Idaho malt, too! Grown in the golden barley fields between the Sawtooth Mountains and Grand Tetons, this pilsner-base malt is really light in color and clean–perfect for a double IPA.

The end result? A beer created to showcase the terroir of Idaho, this west coast double IPA is extra pale in color with a light hop haze. The combination of Idaho 7® and Columbus Cryo® hops together create aromas of papaya, cantaloupe and spruce tip, and flavors of grapefruit and pine resin. A dry mouthfeel and fine bubbles will leave you longing for more Idaho-grown goodness.

Seven Samurai will be released Thursday, February 11th at 9am.