hop varieties

Our hop farms are located in the Nelson region of New Zealand. There are many different types of hops, but our Nelson hops are renowned internationally for their unique aromatic and flavour characteristics. At Clayton Hops NZ we grow and sell six of the most popular hop varieties:

  • Motueka™ hops

  • Nelson Sauvin™ hops (note that deliveries will not commence until after our harvest in March 2022)

  • New Zealand Cascade™ hops

  • Pacifica™ hops

  • Rakau™ hops

  • Riwaka™ hops

types of hops and their hop profiles

Here is a brief summary of the types of hops we grow and supply and their hop profiles and characteristics.

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Motueka™ hops

Motueka™ hops are a crowd favourite aroma hop (but can easily be used as a dual-purpose hop). Have a distinctive fresh crushed citrus ‘mojito’ lime character and are known as lively or zingy with notes of lemon-lime and some tropical fruit. AA 6-8%.

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Nelson Sauvin™ hops

Nelson Sauvin™ hops are a ‘rock star’ aroma/dual purpose hop variety. Have a distinctive gooseberry and ‘new world’ white wine character that is very noticeable and distinctive in beer. AA 10-13%.

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New Zealand Cascade™ hops

New Zealand Cascade™ hops are a lovely aroma/dual purpose hop. Have a grapefruit/lime character. AA 5-6%.

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Pacifica™ hops

Pacifica™ hops are a lovely aroma hop. Have a spicy ‘dried fruit’ or orange marmalade with delicate citrus blend character. AA 5-6%.

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Rakau™ hops

Rakau™ hops are a popular aroma/dual purpose hop. Ripe fruit (particularly peach) with bright notes of grapefruit and stone fruit, along with excellent bittering qualities. AA 10-11%.

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Riwaka™ hops

Riwaka™ hops are in our opinion the king of all hops with insatiable brewer demand. Very unique aroma hop with powerfully fueled tropical passion fruit character. AA 4-7%.