Update 9/25: The online list has been updated, specifying some unknowns and revealing some last-minute changes. I have updated the list below and the hop counts accordingly.

As if you weren’t getting enough fresh hops-related posts from the site lately, it’s time to start talking up the Sisters Fresh Hop Festival! This is one of my favorite regional beer events, because this is one of my favorite times of the (beer) year, when I’m hunting down as many fresh hop beers as I can drink, and what better place to do that then at a festival dedicated to them?

The fest is taking place on Saturday, September 27, at the Village Green Park in Sisters (Oregon) from noon to 8pm. The details haven’t really changed from last year: $5 to get the tasting glass, $1 per four ounce taste. Beers will be pouring in the tent, and all ages are welcome. There will be food trucks/carts on site and live music as well.

This year is the biggest festival yet, with 24 breweries (many of them local) pouring at least one fresh hop beer. (All but one—Reverend Nat’s Hard Cider—are pouring two beers, and though they all have at least one fresh hop beer pouring, some only have the one, plus a regular beer.)

Here is the list of breweries in attendance, with their beers as well (I’ve marked the fresh hop beers in bold):

• 10 Barrel Brewing
  • The Boss Fresh Hop Ale (5.5%, Centennial hops from Umpqua Farms)
  • Big Daddy Fresh (6.1%, Centennial hops from Gooding Hop Farm)
• Base Camp Brewing (Portland)
  • Fresh Hop Gnar Gnar IPA (6.7%, Meridian hops)
  • Wet-Hop Dry Hopped Helles (4.9%, Cascade hops)
• BridgePort Brewing (Portland)
  • Mettle and Mash IPA (7%, Crystal hops)
  • Witch Hunt Spiced Ale (5.8%)
• Burnside Brewing (Portland)
  • Couch Select Lager (5%)
  • Fresh Hop Oatmeal Pale (5.6%, Crystal hops)
• Cascade Lakes Brewing (Redmond)
  • Farmer’s Choice Wet Hop (5.8%, Centennial hops)
  • Paulina Lake Pilsner (4.5%)
• Crux Fermentation Project (Bend)
  • Crystal Zwickle Belgian Pale Ale (6%, Crystal hops)
  • Off the Fence Estate Grown Fresh Hop Ale (5.8%, Cascade hops)
• Deschutes Brewery (Bend)
  • Fresh Hop Oktoberfest (5.2%, Willamette hops)
  • Fresh Hop Horse Ridge IPA (6.1%, Centennial hops)
• Fort George Brewing (Astoria)
  • Fresh Hop IPA (6.5%, Simcoe hops)
  • Cavatica Stout (8.8%)
• Full Sail Brewing (Hood River)
  • Fresh Hop Pale Ale (6.7%, Simcoe hops)
  • Session (5.1%)
• Gilgamesh Brewing (Salem)
  • Fresh Prince of Ales Double IPA (8.2%, Centennial hops)
  • Mamba Ale (6.5%)
• GoodLife Brewing (Bend)
  • 150 Hippies Fresh Hop Pale Ale (5.3%, various donated hops)
  • Sweet As Pacific Ale (6%)
• Groundbreaker Brewing (Portland)
  • Meridian Fresh Hop Pale Ale (Gluten free, 5.8%, Meridian hops)
  • Cascade Fresh Hop Pale Ale (Gluten free, 5.8%, Cascade hops)
• McMenamins Old St. Francis School (Bend)
  • Thundercone Fresh Hop Ale (6.19%, Brewer’s Gold hops)
  • Mr. Peacock’s Special Bitter Fresh Hop Ale (4.9%, Fuggles and Mt. Hood hops)
• Ninkasi Brewing (Eugene)
  • Jarrylo (5.3%)
  • 100 Years of Hopitude (Centennial hops)
• Old Town Brewing (Portland)
  • Cent’s and Censability Fresh Hop Pale Ale (5.2%, Centennial hops)
  • Sterling Kolsch (4.9%, Sterling hops)
• Portland Brewing (Portland)
  • McTarnahan’s Fresh Hop Amber Ale (5.1%)
  • Zig Zag Lager (5.1%)
• Rat Hole Brewing (Bend)
  • Blood Orange Fresh Hop Pale (5%, local “mystery blend” of hops)
  • Fresh Hop Rye IPA (6.7%, local “mystery blend” of hops)
• Reverend Nat’s Hard Cider (Portland)
  • Hallelujah Hopricot Fresh Hop Cider (6.7%, Cascade hops)
• Seven Brides Brewing (Silverton)
  • Fresh Hopped Emily’s Ember (5%, Cascade hops)
  • Fresh Hop Chinook Pale (5.25%, Chinook hops)
• Silver Moon Brewing (Bend)
  • Hoppopotamus Fresh Hop Ale (6.4%, Cascade hops)
  • Voodoo Dog ISR (5.5%)
• Three Creeks Brewing (Sisters)
  • Cone Lick’r Fresh Hop Pale (5%, Centennial hops)
  • Hop Wrangler Fresh Hop Red (5.8%, Chinook hops)
• Three Mugs Brewing (Hillsboro)
  • Big D’s Memorial Fresh Hop Imperial IPA (9.3%, Simcoe hops)
  • Firey Wench Imperial Red Ale (9%)
• Wild Ride Brewing (Redmond)
  • Journey to Planet Fresh Hop (6.6%, Nugget hops)
  • 3 Sisters American Red Ale (6%)
• Worthy Brewing (Bend)
  • Easy Day Kolsch (4.5%)
  • Big Sticky Fresh Hop Pale Ale (5%, Meridian hops from Goschie Farms)

For those of you hopheads keeping track, these are the hops represented (by my reckoning), in order of most to least:

• Centennial – 8
• Cascade – 6
• Crystal – 3
• Meridian – 3
• Simcoe – 3
• Chinook – 2
• Brewer’s Gold – 1
• Nugget – 1
• Fuggles – 1
• Mt. Hood – 1
• Sterling – 1
• Willamette – 1
• Unknown/variety – 4

Obviously Cascade and Centennial are big this year, but then again they are classic American aroma hops, so why not? But I would also make an effort to try some of the lesser-used hops; the Sterling Kolsch from Old Town is catching my eye simply because I cannot remember if I’ve had a fresh Sterling hopped beer before—and the Kolsch will be a good platform for it, I’m thinking.

Incidentally, this year it seems as though nearly all of the state’s fresh hop fests are taking place on the 27th; look here to see the list of them all. That is a lot of fresh hop beer pouring that day!