Fascinating blog post from Mark Dredge, English beer writer, on the National Hop Collection (NHC) at Wye College where there is over 780 hop varieties collected since 1908. Some of these were used exclusively for breeding without checking their aroma qualities. One such is the hop OZ97a which in trials in 1960 was seen as too “American” for British brewers. Apparently the hop has apricot, pineapple, lychee, grapefruit, melon and tangerine aromas and flavors. Hop should be ready by 2015 harvest for small commercial brewing. Apparently there are other hidden gems in the NHC.
Read more at http://www.pencilandspoon.com/2013/02/hop-oz97a-rejected-in-1960-rejoiced-in.html