Orest Lyzhechka / Getty Images Usually imported, the cones of this vine give beer its bitterness, aroma, and flavorOrest Lyzhechka / Getty Images
Every glass of Brazilian beer contains at least one imported ingredient: hops. The plant, imported almost entirely from Germany or the USA, gives the drink its bitterness and other characteristic aromas and flavors. Farmers from the Brazilian states of Rio Grande do Sul, Paraná, Santa Catarina, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Mato Grosso, and Bahia have spent years trying to adapt this climbing plant that is only native to regions with a temperate climate (see Pesquisa FAPESP issue no 251). In 2019, pharmacist Fernando Batista da Costa of the University of São Paulo in Ribeirão Preto (USP-RP), started an experimental plantation of four hop varieties—three North American (Cascade, Chinook, and Triple Pearl) and one European one (Saaz)—in Ribeirão, a city known for its hot climate. Two of them, Cascade and Chinook, developed satisfactorily (European Journal of Agronomy, November 2023). “We concluded that it is viable to grow hops in the tropical climate conditions of São Paulo,” Costa told Agência FAPESP. An analysis of the chemical compounds found in the two varieties of hops identified 55 volatile oils, associated with aroma, flavor, and alpha and beta-acids, responsible for the bitterness (Química Nova, October 10, 2023). The researchers produced craft beers with the two hop varieties from Ribeirão Preto and the USA and gave them to 100 people for a taste test. The beers made with locally grown hops received higher scores than the others (International Journal of Wine Business Research, June 2023).
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