Hunting the Wild Hop

With all the focus on the commercially cultivated hops used in our favorite beverages, and the shortage of same, it's interesting to note that the common hop plant, Humulus lupulus, is found growing throughout the United States and Canada. The United States Department of Agriculture PLANTS database distribution map shows this perennial vine as being found in 45 of the lower 48 States. Three native varieties, along with one introduced form, are listed. Here in Virginia, the distribution covers much of the center of the state.

I'm not aware of any home brewers harvesting native hops, nor do I know what flavors would be imparted. However, it would seem probable that early colonists might have used the native plants in their beers. Brewers and brewsters throughout history have made use of native flora to flavor their fermented beverages.

PLANTS Profile for Humulus lupulus (common hop) at USDA PLANTS

Illustration from USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An illustrated flora of the northern United States, Canada and the British Possessions. Vol. 1: 633

Antique Botanical Print - Humulus lupulus

I purchased this print of the hop plant recently on Ebay. The print is an original hand color engraving from English Botany: or Coloured Figures of British Plants, With Their Essential Characters, Synonyms, and Places of Growth. This periodical publication, published between 1790 and 1814, included 2,592 beautifully coloured illustrations of British plants. Most of the illustrations were drawn and engraved by James Sowerby. The engraved image of Humulus lupulus measures 6-1/2" x 3-l/2". The page is imprinted Humulus Lupulus, London: Jas. Sowerby, January 1796.

If you think about the time period when this publication was being produced, beer was an essential part of everyday life. The hop plant was probably familiar to more of the population than it is today. These hand-illustrated publications provided some of the only botanical literature available to the average person of the time. We own several botanical prints and find them to provide an interesting contrast to today's computer-reproduced illustrations.