Breakside Brewing release dates/info for 8 Fresh Hop beers this season

Perennial fresh hop masters Breakside Brewery are at it again in 2022 with 8 new seasonal releases over the coming month. The consistently award-winning masters of pale ale produce fresh hopped versions of some of their favorite seasonal and year-round beers for blink and their gone moments that make the hop harvest season in the pacific northwest so special. This year they are bringing back 6 previous annual fresh hop releases, and have 2 brand new ones and tentative release dates below.

Catch them at the Breakside night at the 17 days long Fresh Hop Pop-Up Beer Fest on N. Mississippi in Portland.

As they do every year, Breakside unlocks undried whole cone hops greatest potential by first spray freezing them with liquid nitrogen, and then shattering them by hand so that their lupulin powder is more accessible.

“We continue to use shatter open unkilned hops using liquid nitrogen, as we have since we first implemented the technique in 2014,” reports Breakside brewmaster Ben Edmunds. “Over the years, we have refined our processing, including how we handle the hops, our rate per barrel, and our contact time, but the basic process of flash freezing hops and crushing them open remains fundamentally the same. By exposing the lupulin glands, we are able to increase contact between beer and aroma-bearing parts of the hop, which improves hop varietal expression and minimizes many of the negative vegetal/chlorophyll flavors that can come from using 'wet' hops.”

Fresh Wanderjack - Available Now in 16oz Cans/Draft

Recently named one of the hottest IPA’s in the country by Thrillist, Breakside’s collaboration with Barley Brown’s Brewpub resulted in a phenomenal merging of styles in Wanderjack IPA’s first release in 2020. The beer was so popular it’s made a comeback numerous times since. But only once a year can you get a fresh hop version that plays off of the regular recipes love affair of the Oregon developed hop variety Strata.

Fresh Trade Secrets - Scheduled for release 9/4 in Cans/Draft

Fresh Hops: Simcoe

One of the new releases of the 2022 fresh hop season is this special edition of the occasionally made @ Portland IPA collaboration with local clothing brand Portland Gear. The main recipe for Portland IPA is itself a special variant of Breakdide’s flagship IPA recipe with double the dry-hops by splitting the aroma charge into two separate additions and adding in some extra varietals and weight to give the beer even more punch than normal. Fresh Trade Secrets ups the ante with fresh Simcoe hops from Oregon’s Coleman Agriculture. Simcoe hops are known for their strength and orange fruity, yet earthy herbal and piney aroma.

Fresh Hop Pilsner - Scheduled for release 9/8 Draft Only

Fresh Hops: Sterling

A fresh hop version of Breakside’s year-round Pilsner that is hopped with wet Sterling hops from Goschie Farms in Silverton, Oregon. Sterling Hops have characteristics of flowers, peppery spice, and the occasional hint of red grape. Sterling can mimic her Czech Saaz heritage, but like many cultured arrivals to New World soil has become a little louder. This is an annual favorite that won a silver in the fresh hop category at the 2021 Oregon Beer Awards, it is sadly only available on draft in 2022.

Fresh Hop IGA - Scheduled for release 9/11 Draft Only

Fresh Hops: Crystal

First created as a collaboration with Ninkasi Brewing, Breakside’s IGA (India Golden Ale) has been a favorite seasonal release for the last 10ish years. The base beer is big but light, carrying a deceivingly strong 8.3% abv. The fresh hop version features shattered Crystal whole hops from Goschie Farms. Draft only this year. Crystal hops are low alpha acids, but still popular for their woodsy, green, floral and fruity with herb and spice notes of cinnamon, nutmeg and black pepper.

Fresh Hop Wanderlust IPA - Scheduled for release 9/15 in Cans/Draft

Fresh Hops: Mosaic

One of Breakside Brewery’s two most well known beers, Wanderlust IPA is made with five different hops and golden in color. The regular version carries intense grapefruit and dank notes with a crisp finish that carried it to a bronze medal at the 2014 Great American Beer Festival. The fresh hop version of Wanderlust features Mosaic hops which are known for being dank and sweaty with savory notes of chives and onions, but also tropical herbs and stone fruit. Mosaic is the first daughter of Simcoe and Nugget hops. This years fresh crop of Mosaic in Wanderlust is from Coleman Agriculture.

Fresh Hop Breakside IPA - Scheduled for release 9/17 in Cans/Draft

Fresh Hops: Chinook

Breakside Brewery’s most famous beer their flagship IPA which won a prestigious gold medal at the 2014 Great American Beer Festival will be fresh hopped with Chinook this year. The base beer is copper, with a hint of caramel malt sweetness to balance the citrus, tropical fruit hop flavors with hints of perfume and pine, and flavors of apricot, guava, and orange. The regular flagship IPA is already built around Citra and Chinook hops, so the Chinook fresh hops from Goschie Farms should really play into it well and provide a fun contrast you can taste alongside the regular version.

What Fresh Beast - Scheduled for release 9/20 on Draft only

Fresh Hops: Idaho 7

Based on Breakside’s year-round balanced take on hazy NE-style IPA What Rough Beast is a fresh hopped version featuring Idaho 7 hops from Coleman Agriculture. The base beer is a showcase for Mosaic and Columbus hops that give it a tropical, fruity, dank, soft, and balanced hop flavor so it should be interesting what a completely different fresh hop does to it. Idaho 7 is a late-maturing aroma hop dripping with juicy tropical and stone fruit character, supported by sticky pine and fainter notes of earthy black tea. It’s perfect for late additions, though also has high enough alpha acids for good bittering.

Fresh Starstruck IPA - Scheduled for release 9/22 in Draft/Cans

Fresh Hops: Talus

Starstruck IPA was originally a one-off Breakside 10th anniversary collaboration with Ecliptic Brewing released in 2020. The can label featured an illustration of Crater Lake at night and the likeness of Ecliptic’s legendary founder John Harris hidden in the rocky island in the middle. We are glad to see Starstruck is back and with fresh hops! This West Coast IPA features the very distinctive NeoMexicanus hop variety Talus, which is a relative of Sabro. While not as strong in oak and coconut flavors as Sabro, the Talus hops do carry some of those flavors but more balanced with notes of cedar, pineapple and mango for a real Pina Colada of flavor. Starstruck also showd off Cashmere and Eldorado, plus Mosaic hops for a real wide spectrum of flavors that left you starstruck. The fresh hop version features hard to find Talus fresh hops from Coleman Agriculture.