The Curse of Plot 16

The green hopping experiment with Modern Art Oxford's fresh green hops was a happy accident.  The Fuggles from the Rose Hill project were picked and taken to the Berkshire Hop Company at Kingston Bagpuize to be dried so they could be used as part of our normal brewing programme.  Unfortunately they were destroyed by a major fire in the hop drier on Friday 17th September.  The volunteers had to go back to the allotment and scavenge for what flowers were left on the bines on the Saturday morning.  The 3kg of fine plump green cones they managed to gather were kept in a chest freezer overnight and introduced to the green beer (green hops in green beer!) on Sunday morning and had a two week infusion.  After a tasting or two from the conditioning tank MOA decided that 330ml bottles were the right size for this special beer.  Unfortunately the pallet of bottles collapsed in the delivery lorry and we ended up with 1800 bottles lying in wooden boxes outside the brewery.  Another group of emergency MOA volunteers spent a half day cleaning, sterilising and crating them ready for filling and we finally got the bottles into the conditioning room by 5pm.  This beer is truly unique.  Will the drama come through in the flavour -who knows?