Houston’s Saint Arnold Brewing Company, Texas’ oldest craft brewing operation, just announced the release of its latest and greatest beer, Saint Arnold Icon Green – 7220 Pale Ale. The new beer has been described as American/German pale ale hybrid and it features an interesting, experimental hop obtained from the Hop Research Center in Huell, Germany. The new hop is now known as Ariana,but until a few weeks ago, it was nothing more than a number- Hop No. 2010/72/20, to be exact, hence the name of the new Saint Arnold beer.
Saint Arnold Icon Green – 7220 Pale Ale is the newest Icon beer and, like with all of the Icon releases, it will appear in stores, taverns, and restaurants as the present Icon beer, Saint Arnold Icon Blue – Coffee Porter, gradually runs out. This beer is in limited supply, due to the very small amount of hops harvested. The total stash was a few hundred pounds in weight and Saint Arnold Brewing was able to grab about half, which was enough to produce one batch of beer but no more. Saint Arnold Founder/Brewer Brock Wagner plans to secure more of these experimental hops each year when he and other Saint Arnold personnel visit Germany.
“We look forward to rubbing experimental hops every year when we visit Germany,” said Wagner. “When we rubbed 2010/72/20 last October, we loved the tropical, fruity nose and immediately started imagining what we would brew with it. We used it in the kettle for bittering and finishing as well as for dry hopping in the fermenter, contributing notes of citrus, tropical fruit, and a hint of mango to the aroma and flavor.”
Many might be surprised to learn that The Hop Research Center in Huell has been developing hop cultivars for ninety years. The process has been perfected and enhanced during the past ten years, likely as a result of the craft beer boom in the United States and elsewhere. New breeding efforts have developed several experimental lines of hops that will impart a myriad of flavors and aromas to beer, including the floral, fruity and citrusy characteristics commonly associated with hops, but in different concentrations and combinations than those associated with established hop varieties. This new hop, Ariana, was one of a pair of Special Flavor varieties chosen for large-scale field trials. The positive results in the field convinced the Society of Hop Research to apply for registration of Ariana as a new cultivar.
Saint Arnold Icon Green is more than just another tasty beer to sample. Because the beer is brewed with these experimental hops, researchers are curious about consumer reactions to the taste and they encourage those who sample Saint Arnold Icon Green – 7220 Pale Ale to complete an online survey. The survey contains just five quick, simple questions and can be accessed at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1HnqdPH5ZNsz_uGzB7XZuyPkuLWBP77vToHWZLw5coUQ/viewform.
This Saint Arnold Icon beer is available only until supplies run out, so grab it while you can. For more information on the Saint Arnold Icon Series, visit http://www.saintarnold.com/beers/icon.html
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