I haven’t really blogged at all yet about fresh hop season (except here)—one of my favorite times of the beer year—even though everybody seems to be pointing out that (some of) the crops are coming in early this year and there are already a few fresh hop beers in the marketplace. But Deschutes Brewery issued a press release today that brought the fresh hops front and center to my attention: the brewery’s fresh hop release schedule (excluding the packaged offerings like Hop Trip and Chasin’ Freshies) that will be hitting the taps at both the Bend and Portland pubs as well as the Tasting Room (brewed on the pilot system).

Here’s the full release; it’s long but packed with information. Read it and commence drooling:

The rush is on at Deschutes Brewery to get batches of freshly picked Pacific Northwest hops from vine to kettle within that magical window of only a few hours.

It’s fresh hop season, and the craft pioneer’s brewers are stoked to share 13 fresh hop brews currently underway. This year’s lineup includes a brew made with Sabro, a fresh hop rarely available.

The Sabro hop is described as citrusy and fruity, with a touch of mint, cedar and dill pickle. It is used in Black by Hopular Demand, a Black IPA to be available at the Portland Public House.

Deschutes’ fresh hop beers will be available in draft only at Bend and Portland pubs and at the Bend tasting room just as soon as they’re ready to be poured. Eager drinkers can follow each location’s Facebook site (links below) to learn exact release times.

Both Bend and Portland public houses will hold a Fresh Hop Fest on Saturday, Oct. 6, featuring fresh hop beers from all three locations. Tuesday, Oct. 9, the Portland Public House will hold a coursed Chef Dinner focused on fall harvest food and fresh hop beers. Tickets can be purchased at deschutesbrewery.com.

Here’s what’s coming on tap at each Deschutes Brewery location:

Deschutes Brewery Portland Public House, 210 NW 11th Ave.: Portland Pub Facebook

• Black by Hopular Demand – This Cascadian Dark Ale uses the Sabro hops, rarely available in fresh hop form! The beer is known outside the Pacific Northwest as a Black IPA.
• Fresh Hop City IIPA – This is a fresh hop take on one of Portland’s favorite pub beers. Crisp and clean, the Imperial IPA is brewed with 200 lbs. of fresh Centennial-A hops from Goschie farms. It has a light malt body with a tropical nose and huge citrus character.
• Fresh Hop Mirror Pond – The pale ale fans know and love is boosted by cold side fresh Cascade hops. The floral, citrus aromas and flavors are complemented by a bright melon character found only in wet hops.
• Fresh Hop Hazy IPA – Showcasing El Dorado fresh hop flavors and aromas of pineapple, mango and melon, this is a hazy in a traditional suit with subtle bitterness to help fans get their juice on.

Bend Public House, 1044 NW Bond St.: Bend Pub Facebook

• Fresh Centennial Pale Ale – Featuring all Oregon and all salmon-safe ingredients from Mecca Grade Malt and Goschie Farms, this brew’s light malt character helps highlight the delicate fresh Centennial hops. Added in the kettle and hopback (hot side,) these hops smell like the green vines they were picked from and have light grassy and fruity notes.
• Fresh Santiam Lager – This is a very light lager featuring beautiful Goschie Farms Santiam Hops. Fresh hops are added on cold side (a process of “dry-hopping,” but with wet, fresh hops), which provides a distinct melon aroma. One gets a real sense of walking through the hop field when tasting and smelling this beer.
• Fresh Strata Gose – Gose, a kettle soured beer with a touch of salt, works so well with cold side use of fresh Strata hops because they naturally impart a salted melon character. This year’s Chasin’ Freshies seasonal features this same hop but used on the hot side. Deschutes’ brewers encourage fans to compare the two!
• Fresh Chinook IPA – Chinook hops have a very distinct grapefruit character. Pub brewers have combined the use of traditional hops in the kettle with fresh hops on the cold side to combine the flavors and aromas of this excellent varietal. This beer features an old-school malt backbone to help offset the big bitterness found in an IPA.
• Fresh Crystal Cream Ale – Hot side use of fresh hops is generally less impactful than cold side use but can be more indicative of the varietal characteristics. To help bring that hot side Crystal hop character to the foreground, they are used in a very light cream ale. Expect light floral and fruity notes to shine in this light bodied, highly drinkable beer.

Bend Tasting Room/Pilot Brewery, 901 SW Simpson, Ave.:  Tasting Room Facebook

• Black Rye IPA – This brew uses fresh Sorachi Ace hops. Deschutes’s Bend brewers wanted to see how the hop’s flavors and aromas would play with the spiciness of rye malt and slight roast character in a hop forward Black IPA.
• Just a Hobby Pale Ale – Homebrewers represent! This SMaSH (Single Malt and Single Hop) beer is brewed with Maris Otter malt and fresh Simcoe hops. These two ingredients are popular in the homebrewing community and are the reason for the name. Many people like to poke fun at homebrewers saying that it is “just a hobby,” so our brewers decided to throw a little good-natured shade with a delicious fresh hop beer inspired by the many tasty homebrews that use these ingredients.
• Fresh Hop Farmstand Fresh (x2!) – These are hazy pales – one using fresh Simcoe and one with fresh Strata hops – that use a yeast strain with orange and pineapple aromas. Deschutes’ experimental brewers wanted to see how juicy candied orange from the Simcoe and uber-dankness from Strata would tango with this yeast strain.
• Fresh Hop Pale – Simplicity is the name of the game with this pale, which will come out as two separate brews. A simple malt bill and clean yeast strain will set the stage for both the fresh Mosaic and fresh Amarillo hopped brews. The fresh hops will be added as dry hops in hopes of really letting that fresh hop character shine. No muss, no fuss. Just a super clean, crushable pale ale.

I guess I need to start up my “Fresh Hops Watch” post again, for Central Oregon. For instance, I know RiverBend Brewing here in town is planning six(!) fresh hop beers this year.