(Chico, CA) – Sierra Nevada Brewing continues to update its labels with Southern Hemisphere Harvest Fresh Hop Ale the latest to don a new image. In the past, the beer has been released in early May.

Label description: “Each fall, hops reach their peak flavor, bursting with aromatic oils that give ales layers of complex flavor that can only happen at harvest time. For us, fall comes twice a year- once in each hemisphere. This Harvest Ale features fresh hops from New Zealand- where fall occurs during out spring. These fresh whole cones are picked, dried, and shipped to the brewery within days of the harvest.”

Here’s an excerpt from a 2008 press release when the project first came to fruition:

“To make this project happen, Sierra Nevada traveled to New Zealand to harvest fresh hops, and then transported them from the southern hemisphere to Chico where they were immediately used in brewing. Like their award-winning Celebration Ale, the fresh hops in this beer are dried right after being picked then shipped immediately to Chico for brewing, so that they retain their peak aromatics and flavors. Freshly harvested hops are richer in hop oils so they impart more hop aroma and hop spiciness into beer.

‘We love fresh hop ales, but until now fresh hops were only available here once a year – during the fall hop harvest,’ said brewery owner and founder Ken Grossman. ‘So we journeyed to the southern hemisphere to catch their hop harvest, which occurs during our spring.’ The result is the North-by South fusion of fresh-picked New Zealand Pacific hops with the finest North American malts. Southern Hemisphere Harvest will feature fresh Pacific Hallertau, New Zealand Motueka and New Zealand Southern Cross hops, all from New Zealand.”