9 6 



Picking, Drying, and Packing Hops. [may, 



In loading the oast, care must be taken to spread the hops 

 lightly and evenly over the "hair"; lightly, so that the hops 

 may offer as little resistance as possible to the passage of the 

 draught, and evenly, so that the fire may dry all the hops 

 regularly, and not leave patches of undried hops where -.the 

 hops lie thicker. 



The depth to which hops may be loaded upon a kiln depends 

 upon the ripeness of the hops and upon the draught obtain- 

 able in the oast. If the hops are ripe and there is a good 

 draught, they may be loaded to a depth of 10 or n in.; this- 

 is equivalent to three-quarter bushel of hops per square foot 

 if "good measure" is taken by the booker. In the case of 

 Fuggles and other very large hops, the depth may be even 

 greater. If the hops are not fully ripe or if the draught is 

 bad, smaller quantities should be loaded. 



The operation of loading should be carried out quickly, 

 so that the walls and roof of the oast cool as little as possible 

 during the operation. The draught always starts better in 

 a warm oast, because the air is warmed instead of being 

 cooled by contact with the walls. For the same reason a 

 good fire should always be lighted in an oast a few hours 

 before hops are to be dried, and especially before the first 

 oasting of the season. 



Turning. — In order to hasten drying, it is usual to turn 

 the hops one or two hours before the finish. The actual' 

 time at which the turning is done is determined by the state 

 of the hops. The bracts are the first part of the hop to dry; 

 when these are dry and the hot air begins to act on the strig, 

 a marked change takes place in the hop — the bracts all 

 open out and the hop is said to have "feathered," since it 

 presents a resemblance to the plumage of a bird in frosty 

 weather. Finally, as the strig dries, the bracts close up 

 again. The time at which the hops are turned is when* the 

 top layers of hops are well "feathered," and the hops feel 

 warm and dry to the touch. If turning is done before this, 

 the top wet hops falling among the dry hops cause dis- 

 coloration. 



Finish of Drying. — It is somewhat difficult to determine 

 the exact stage at which hops are dry. They must not be 

 unloaded too soon or the hops will turn sour in the pocket ; 



