Southern Cross™ Hop Pellets
A hop with distinct tropical fruit and citrus aromas with pronounced lemon and lime notes and a hint of pine.
Aroma Profile
Ancestry
Technical Specifications
Switch Variety
TYPICAL BREWING VALUES
TOTAL OIL BREAKDOWN
Sensory Notes
What is Faster, Fresher, Better?
It’s all about taking quality to the next level.
We target having our T90 hop pellets made and packaged within 3–7 days of harvest, setting a new benchmark for hop pellet quality at scale. This fast processing locks in freshness—unlike traditional systems which can take months and lead to oxidation.
Faster Our modern and high-capacity on-farm harvesting systems, combined with our cutting-edge advanced hops pelletising complex, ensure that our hops are picked in their prime and pelletised quickly. This exceptional infrastructure is unique in NZ’s hop industry.
Fresher Our hops are pelletised and packaged within days of harvest and stored in temperature-controlled environments to preserve freshness.
Better Processing hops quickly in a sealed, clean environment ensures superior quality with minimal exposure to oxygen or contaminants.
HOW ARE
THEY MADE?
Clayton Hops is the proud operator of New Zealand's premier hop processing facility.
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HARVESTHop cones picked off hop plant in Tasman, New Zealand.
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DRYINGHop cones dried in kilns on-farm.
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BALINGDried hop cones baled and driven a short distance to the pelletising and packaging facility.
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MILLINGDried hop cones milled into hop powder.
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PELLETINGHop powder is then made into pellets in a pellet press.
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PACKAGINGPellets are put into nitrogen flushed (oxygen purged) foil bags and packed in boxes/cartons.
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STORAGEHops ideally stored between 0–5°C.
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SHIPMENTHops shipped to customers around the world.
'TRUE-TO-VARIETY'
EXPRESSION
T90 hop pellets bring 'true-to-variety' expression in beer:
| VARIETY | AROMA PROFILE |
|---|---|
| CIP014 | Passionfruit, intense tropical, pineapple, stone fruit, pink grapefruit |
| CIP076 | Citrus, orange blossom, ripe peach, creamy vanilla, tropical |
| Green Bullet™ | Resinous, subtle floral, crisp lemon, dark and dried fruit, slightly peppery spiciness |
| Motueka™ | Fresh lime, lemon zest, mojito, orange spice, juicy, tropical |
| Nelson Sauvin™ | Gooseberry, lychee, passionfruit, sauvignon blanc, tropical, spicy |
| NZ Cascade™ | Lime, grapefruit, peach, pineapple, passionfruit, hint of pine |
| Pacific Sunrise™ | Orange, lemon, mango, melon, red berry, ripe and jammy apricot, subtle flower and pine |
| Pacifica™ | Orange, tangerine, clementine, apricot, blackberry cannabis, floral, spice |
| Rakau™ | Apricot, peach, mandarin, tangerine, pink grapefruit, pineapple, floral |
| Riwaka™ | Passionfruit, pink grapefruit, pineapple, lime, orange, citrus, blackberry candy |
| Southern Cross™ | Lemon, lime, hint of pine, clean spiciness |
Grown and Made in New Zealand
The New Zealand government has certified the New Zealand grown and made provenance of our T90 hop pellets by giving them the FernMark seal of approval.
Clayton Hops has a strong commitment to both growing and processing locally as this results in better quality product and is environmentally responsible.
Doing everything in-house also means a secure and stable product supply.
WHERE TO USE
Kettle
T90 hop pellets can be used throughout the kettle stage. Hop varieties with a low cohumulone % (e.g. <25%) tend to produce smoother, more rounded bitterness.
Whirlpool
T90 hop pellets can be added directly into the whirlpool as a flavour and aroma addition. To maximise flavour and minimise IBU pick-up, chill the wort to <85°C before adding.
Dry Hop, Active and Post Fermentation
T90 hop pellets are commonly used at various stages of fermentation, including VDK rest and maturation. Active fermentation is believed to support biotransformation. Thiol-rich varieties are especially effective when paired with yeast strains that support this transformation.
Brite Tank
T90 hop pellets should not be used in the brite tank. Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is better suited here.
TYPICAL
BREWING VALUES
The following values are for guidance only. Actual alpha, beta and total oil values will vary from harvest to harvest.
| Variety | Alpha Acids % | Beta Acids % | Cohumulone % | Total Oil (mL/100g) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CIP014 | 12.0–14.0 | 4.5–6.0 | 25–35 | 0.8–1.3 |
| CIP076 | 8.5–10.0 | 5.0–6.0 | 34–37 | 1.4–1.8 |
| Green Bullet™ | 11.0–14.0 | 6.5–7.0 | 38–43 | 1.0–1.5 |
| Motueka™ | 6.0–9.5 | 5.0–6.0 | 28–32 | 0.6–1.0 |
| Nelson Sauvin™ | 9.0–13.0 | 5.0–8.0 | 20–30 | 0.8–1.5 |
| NZ Cascade™ | 6.0–9.0 | 4.0–6.5 | 35–39 | 0.8–1.3 |
| Pacific Sunrise™ | 12.0–15.0 | 5.0–7.0 | 27–30 | 1.5–2.5 |
| Pacifica™ | 4.0–6.0 | 5.0–7.0 | 22–28 | 0.5–1.2 |
| Rakau™ | 9.0–13.0 | 4.0–6.0 | 22–30 | 0.8–1.5 |
| Riwaka™ | 4.5–6.5 | 3.5–6.0 | 32–36 | 0.8–1.0 |
| Southern Cross™ | 11.0–14.0 | 5.0–6.0 | 25–28 | 1.0–1.3 |
CARBON FOOTPRINT
– THE PATH TO LOWER EMISSIONS
Our Hop Pellets have been independently assessed by BX of London to have a carbon footprint of 3.18 kg CO₂e.
Putting 3.18 kg CO₂e into context, when producing 100L of pale ale using 500g of Hop Pellets, the pellets themselves have a carbon footprint (farm to packaged product) of 3.18 kg CO₂e.
This value was based on our March 2024 harvest. As our hop gardens are still maturing – some of the hop plants have not yet reached full yield potential – there will be improvement over the years to come.
These emissions reflect real-world farming practices. With ongoing improvements, we are confident that our emissions will come down over time.
We will continue to work with BX to lower our carbon footprint and we are committed to transparency.
BX is a leading independent environmental farm management platform and is working with Clayton Hops to ensure hops are grown and processed with sustainability at the core.
HOP PELLETS COMPARED WITH OTHER PRODUCTS
DOWNLOAD COMPARISON TABLE| Feature | Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil | Amplifire™ Concentrated Lupulin Pellets | T90 Hop Pellets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Form | Flowable liquid | Pellet. More lupulin (acids and oils) than T90s | Pellet. Less lupulin (acids and oils) than Amplifire™ Pellets |
| Plant material | None | Yes. Less plant material and higher levels of acids and oil compared to T90s | Yes. More plant material and lower levels of acids and oil compared to Amplifire™ Pellets |
| Process | Made through a patent-pending extraction process where the oil is extracted directly from the lupulin glands of ‘wet’ farm-fresh hop cones | Made through a patent-pending process by cryogenically separating the lupulin from the dried leaf and stem material of hop cones and concentrating and compressing the lupulin | Made by milling whole dried hop cones (leaf, steam, lupulin) and compressing them |
| Raw material | Fresh, undried whole hop cones | Kiln-dried whole hop cones | Kiln-dried whole hop cones |
| Name origin | Amplifire™ is Clayton Hops’ advanced hop products range, aimed at boosting flavour and aroma and reducing beer loss | Amplifire™ is Clayton Hops’ advanced hop products range, aimed at boosting flavour and aroma and reducing beer loss | T90 is from the principle that 90% of the original hop material is retained after pelletising |
| Processing time from harvest | Less than 24 hours | Weeks | Target of less than one week |
| Preservation of hop volatiles | Very high (no kilning of raw material) | Medium to low (kilning loss) | Medium to low (kilning loss) |
| Bitterness contribution | None | Yes (variety dependent) | Yes (variety dependent) |
| Flavour/aroma impact | High. Delivers cleaner, more vivid aromatics | More intense and reduced vegetal flavours compared to T90s | Moderate and increased vegetal flavours compared to Amplifire™ Pellets |
| Use rate (dry hop T90 replacement) | ~50:1 (by weight). For instance, 100mL of Amplifire™ Fresh Hop Oil is equivalent to circa. 5kgs T90s | ~2:1 (by weight). For instance, use 500-600g of Amplifire™ Pellets instead of 1kg of T90s | Baseline |
| Beer loss in whirlpool and dry hop | Minimal | Low to moderate | Moderate |
| Solubility | Fully water and beer soluble | Requires mixing/rousing | Requires mixing/rousing |
| Ease of use | Simple liquid dosing. Highly flowable product at cool, room and warm temperatures | Similar handling as T90s | Standard handling |
| Recommended storage | Cold storage (ambient is permitted) | Cold storage (ambient is not permitted) | Cold storage (ambient is not permitted) |
| Shelf life | 2 years commercially sealed | 3 years | 3 years |
| Carbon footprint | Very low – no kilning of raw material and made in New Zealand | Low – New Zealand made and ultra-concentrated, reducing total inputs and shipping needs | Moderate – New Zealand made but less concentrated so more volume and packaging per batch compared to the other two products, but a foundational brewing input |
| Light stable | Yes | No | No |
| Hop creep potential | None | Low | High |
| ‘True-to-type’ variety expression | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Recommended applications | Dry hop, brite tank (can also use in whirlpool) | Kettle, whirlpool, dry hop | Kettle, whirlpool, dry hop |
HOP PELLETS PRODUCT OVERVIEW
DOWNLOAD PRODUCT OVERVIEW