is the earliest of the English high-alpha hops and a sister to Bullion. See bullion (hop). It was selected by Professor Ernest S. Salmon of Wye College in 1919 from among wild American hop genotype BB1 seeds that were pollinated by an English male hop. The genotype BB1 was discovered near Morden, Manitoba, Canada, and cuttings were collected in 1916 by Professor W. T. Macoun, Dominion Horticulturist for Canada, and sent to England. There, the wild hop was established in the Wye Hop Nursery in 1917, but it died during the winter of 1918–19. After extensive testing, Brewer’s Gold was released in 1934. A large number of modern hop cultivars and breeding germplasm, particularly in bittering hops, are descendants of Brewer’s Gold. Although still grown commercially, Brewer’s Gold has largely been replaced by modern high-alpha cultivars with better disease resistance and more desirable agronomic properties. Brewer’s Gold yields are about 2,000 to 2,700 kg/ha (roughly 2,200 to 2,600 lb per acre) and cones typically contain 9% to 10% alpha acids and 5% beta acids. Essential oil content is fairly high at approximately 2.0 ml/100 g of dried cone, with myrcene (67%) being the dominant component. It is largely considered a bittering hop, and few brewers seem to feature itas an aroma hop in their beers. One of the problems associated with Brewer’s Gold is its poor storage potential, and bales must be refrigerated quickly.
