Turns out there is some good news coming out of Washington, D.C., these days, but you have to be a homebrewer. Two recent happenings—a competition and a harvest—in the nation’s capital in the past few weeks have helped highlight homebrewing.
On a visit to the Smithsonian Museum of American History’s Victory Garden on the National Mall earlier this year, homebrewing legend Charlie Papazian spotted the bines of Cascade hops that grow on the grounds and remarked that it would be fun to brew with the crop, according to a media release.
As a gift to Papazian, who will retire from the Brewers Association next month, the museum sent him the entire harvest, ten bags’ worth, to brew a special beer. After sharing the bounty with some friends and colleagues, Papazian needed to figure out just what to brew.