date:Jun 10, 2014
Skyrocketing craft beer sales and increasing demand from drinkers are creating a shortage of a key ingredient: hops.
Hops give beer its bitterness, and craft beers use significantly more than commercially made brews, reports The Indianapolis Star.
Flavor is king in the beer boom. Ann George, administrator of Washington-based Hop Growers of America, said craft brewers average 1.2 pounds of hops per barrel, compared with just a fifth of a pound for the big production brewers.
Craft beer sales