Fresh Hop Beer Toolkit

Craft Brewers Conference 2026: Educational Session

The Fresh Hop Beer Toolkit:
Brewing, Logistics, and Consumer Insights

Fresh-hopped beers are among the most distinctive seasonal offerings in the craft beer industry, delivering intense, vibrant aromas and flavors while evoking a strong connection to the hop harvest.

A practical, brewer-focused playbook for getting the most out of fresh hops with firsthand perspectives from growers, brewers, and researchers, covering everything from hot-side vs. cold-side applications to storage and shipping logistics. We'll share lessons learned from a brewing trial with four Oregon craft breweries, and data on what drinkers actually notice, prefer, and expect from a fresh hop beer.

We’ll link to the CBC session resources as soon as they are available online!

Session Presenters

Man wearing black jacket and baseball cap standing in front of brick wall, holding a glass of dark beer.

Jeff Alworth
Executive Director, Celebrate Oregon Beer

A man wearing a brown hat and black T-shirt with a logo, standing in front of a brewery sign that reads "Fat Head's Brewery" and displays the number 25.

Matt Cole
Co-Founder & Brewmaster,
Fat Heads Brewery

A smiling man with short hair wearing a black sweatshirt with yellow text, standing in front of a chalkboard menu at a brewery or bar.

Ben Edmunds
Brewmaster, Breakside Brewery

A middle-aged man with glasses and a beard holding up a glass of beer in a social setting.

Dr. Thomas Shellhammer
Professor, Oregon State University

A young man with curly hair and a beard smiling outdoors.

Garrett Weaver
Program Manager, Coleman Agriculture

Thank you for your interest in
Fresh Hops and Fresh Hop Beer!

We’d love to hear from you and keep you updated, if you wish.

Want to learn more about hop harvesting? Download our

Hop Harvesting Brochure [PDF]