Brews News’ coverage of Brew Asia 2023 is proudly sponsored by HPA, the country’s leading hop grower and regional representative of the global BarthHaas group.

BarthHaas is the world’s largest supplier of hop products and services. Operating across all continents, BarthHaas is deeply embedded in the global hop and beer industry, and acutely aware of potential risks that could impact growers and brewers in future. One of the key areas of interest is variable harvests.

Our changing climate is affecting the growing conditions of most crops, with adverse impact on yield, energy use, land management, and more. This means brewers choosing the right mix of hop varieties and hop products will be essential for growers to effectively manage supply.

Selecting hops from a spread of geographic regions can significantly mitigate the threat of severe supply disruption. This was the theme of BarthHaas’ workshop at Brew Asia 2023: Global passion for hops collab series, where they worked with six Vietnamese breweries to make six unique beers.

Each brewery was allocated one of the major growing regions in the world and challenged to use the hops in a non-traditional way, with Rooster making a Pilsner with US hops, Overmorrow making a West Coast IPA with German hops, Pasteur Street making an Amber Ale with French hops, 5 Elements making a Hefeweizen with Czech hops, East West making an IPA with Slovenian hops, and Hoprizon making a Micro IPA with Aussie hops. These beers also featured a variety of concentrated or liquid hop products, another way brewers can remain efficient, adaptable, and well placed to face potential future challenges.

The Hoprizon Micro IPA featured Galaxy^®, Vic Secret^™, Eclipse^® and Ella^™. Their Head Brewer Phong Vu gave his impression of Aussie hops, and the highlights and challenges of using Spectrum for liquid dry hopping:

Hoprizon bring the essence of beer from around the world to the people of Vietnam. How would you describe Aussie hops and Aussie beer?  

Aussie hops are very tropical and citrus. They are favoured by Vietnamese breweries because the ability to liken hop flavours to certain foods (mango, passionfruit, pomelo) helps consumer remember our beers. We perceive Aussie beer as easy to drink with high levels of aroma and flavour thanks to the Aussie hops.

Your beers are made to enhance the dining experience in a way that honours Vietnamese cuisine. Which local dish pairs best with Aussie hops and Aussie beer styles?

Spicy food with bold flavours, as Aussie hops and Aussie beer styles help to cleanse the palette between bites.

In your own words, how would you describe a Micro IPA?

A low alcohol IPA that is easy to drink but still full of flavour.

Was this collaboration with BarthHaas your first time brewing with Aussie hops? Or do they feature in some of your other beers too?

We use Galaxy^® in our core range beer Mat Bao (Storm Eye IPA).

What were the highlights and challenges of using Galaxy^®, Vic Secret^™ and Eclipse^® SPECTRUM for liquid dry hopping?

SPECTRUM really enhances the hop aroma and flavour, but it was a bit challenging to keep the beer hazy. It came out cleaner than we were expecting.

After brewing your Micro IPA for Brew Asia 2023, which is your favourite Aussie hop and why?

Galaxy^® is, and always will be, our favourite Aussie hop because it is an important part of our core range beer Mat Bao (Storm Eye IPA).