CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PLA^T. 49 



cent., as at present, the difference between English and 

 foreign grown would be infinitesimal." 



BREWERS' VIEWS IN BUYING HOPS. 



[Quoted from The Theory and Practice of the Prepara- 

 tion of Malt, etc.] 



"The brewer, in determining the value of hops, is forced 

 to take into consideration certain external qualities, far more 

 so than in barley, for he can reach a conclusion as to suit- 

 ableness of the- hop for the fabrication of beer from exter- 

 nal appearances alone. We will here give the good as well 

 as the bad qualities of hops. 



"1. The cones of the hop should not be too large; the 

 carpels should ngt be thick and leathery, but tender, and 

 their ribs should be thin. The color of the cones should be 

 yellowish green and not light green, red, or reddish brown. 

 The peduncle should not be stripped of leaves and 

 loose carpels should not be mixed with the hops in large 

 quantities, but the cones should appear closed, with the car- 

 pels lying tightly above each other. Cones of a light green 

 coloring and open are frequently proof of unripe hops, which 

 contain less flour and have a weaker aromatic smell. A 

 light red coloring and a very shiny surface of the carpels is 

 an indication of the hops having been allowed to become 

 overripe. The consequence of overripeness is a loss of the 

 valuable flour, yet this is not so injurious as when the com- 

 ponent parts of the hops have suffered injury from having 

 been heated during drying, and the hops have acquired a dull 

 brown color in consequence. This appearance is called 

 'ground red' (botlenroth). The hops have a similar appearance 

 when they have been baled too damp and have become 

 heated in the hop bale, when they largely lose their agree- 

 able aroma and very frequently become entirely useless. If 

 the hops have been dried too much, or have been frequently 

 repacked, for whatever reason, the carpels become detached 

 from the peduncle, the cones appear to be torn, and they have 

 lost some of their flour. If the hops have been dried by 

 artificial heat, at too high a temperature, the flour assumes 

 an orange color and the hops acquire an empyreumatic smell. 



"2. When a few cones are torn to pieces, as large a 

 quantity of hop flour as possible should be seen on the inner 

 surface of the carpels. The richer the hop is in flour, which 

 is the bearer of its most valuable component parts, the more 

 valuable will it be, if it also possesses the other good quali- 

 ties. The flour of fresh hops is a light yellow color. The 

 fruit, situated on the base of the carpels, should be as small 

 as possible; large granules which weigh heavy are an indi- 

 cation of a not very fine hop. 



"3. A fine, strong aromatic odor should be perceptible 

 when the cones are rubbed between the hands. Hops of poor 



