Yakima Chief Hops announces 2021 Pink Boots Hop Blend
Global hop supplier Yakima Chief Hops (YCH),have announced their custom 5th annual Pink Boots Blend of hops. This custom blend of hops changes annually, and helps to fund the international non-profit Pink Boots Society (PBS) with a stated mission to assist, inspire, and encourage women in the fermented and alcoholic beverage industry. Pre-sales of the 2021 Pink Boots hop blend will be used in beers across the world for International Women’s Day on March 8th, 2022.
The Pink Boots Blend is an annual hop blend and part of YCH’s pursuit of promoting inclusivity in the industry. Each year, women in the beer profession across the globe collaborate with YCH on a new blend recipe through an extensive virtual selection process. This year, the selection included women from 37 different PBS chapters across five different countries. This resulted in more than 60 kits being delivered to multiple countries, including Czech Republic, Canada, Australia, South Africa and the USA. Each chapter conducted their own sensory analysis on multiple hop varieties and submitted the recipe for their “dream blend.” With those submissions, our sensory and planning teams strategically compiled the information on the most frequently selected hops and at what percentages. YCH created three final blend recipes that best represented the overall information gathered and the PBS chapters were asked to cast their vote!
Each team then submitted their top choice for the final blend, resulting in an overwhelming 50% of the teams choosing Blend A! Blend A consists of Idaho Gem™, HBC 630, Talus™, Triumph and Loral®. The expected brewing values are 12.5% alpha, with expected aromas of citrus, sweet aromatics and berry. Stay tuned for the official blend description in early January!
The blend is then released for presale to commercial brewers and a portion of the sales proceeds are contributed to the PBS scholarship fund. This helps provide educational opportunities to women in the industry with the goal of assisting with career advancement and leadership skills. To date, more than $381,000 has been contributed.
This year, YCH and PBS have reached an important milestone with the 5th anniversary of the Pink Boots Blend, which will reach brew kettles worldwide in early 2022. This occasion is made even more special with the upcoming 15th anniversary of the Pink Boots Society next year. In celebration, they have set a goal of selling 50,000 pounds and reaching an overall total blend contribution of $500,000.
The deadline to order is Dec. 15, allowing time to ship and brew by International Women’s Day on March 8 when PBS hosts their Pink Boots Collaboration Brew Day. Brewers are encouraged to register their Pink Boots Blend brew day and join the global movement in the craft beer community. Visit www.yakimachief.com/commercial/hop-wire/5th-annual-pink-boots-blend to learn more and pinkbootssociety.org for brew day registration.
Yakima Chief Hops
YCH is a 100% grower-owned global hop supplier with a mission to connect brewers with family hop farms. Operating for more than 30 years, we have become more than a hop supplier. We are leaders of innovation, quality and customer service. We are a resource for brewers, providing solutions-based products and industry leading research. We are advocates of sustainability and meaningful social causes, working to support the environment and communities around us. https://www.yakimachief.com/