Harvest is officially in full swing — the most magical time of year for us hop heads. It’s fresh hop (or some might say wet hop) season! Recently I had the opportunity to travel with three of my beer peers — Jackie Mallory the Beeroness, Kendall Jones of Washington Beer Blog and Ezra Johnson-Greenough, New School Beer — for an outrageously hoppy adventure to the hop capital of the world, The Yak, the Palm Springs of Washington, Yakivegas or some just call it, Yakima.
There are stories within stories from our visit which we’ll have to delve into later, but I wanted to share with you an expertly curated 48-hour itinerary to get the absolute best experience this time of year.
The coolest thing about visiting Yakima during hop harvest is the vast number of breweries and brewers in town for hop selection. Everyone is in town from our local favorites to the big guys like Miller Coors, Budweiser, Heineken and more. You are sure to run into so many characters at every spot around town and on the outskirts.
Day 1
9:30 a.m. | Departure from Seattle
It’s an easy two-hour drive to Yakima. And for our friends down south in Portland, it’s about three-and-a-half-hour trip.
12 p.m. | Lunch at Cowiche Canyon Kitchen
A favorite restaurant of ours, always our first stop in town to grab a bite to fill our bellies before a long day of imbibing. Start with the potato taquitos. You can’t go wrong with the crispy chicken sandwich or the Hong Kong Chicken Chop salad for the main. Pro tip: Try whatever rotating beer is on draft from Haas Innovation Brewery. This is only one of a handful of locations that offer this highly sought after beer.
cowichecanyon.com
1 p.m. | All aboard the Little Hopper
There’s nothing better than having a designated driver in hoptown and the Little Hopper will get you around safely so you can imbibe and tour around town responsibly. If you’re lucky enough to get Wendy King, owner/founder of Little Hopper as your tour guide, know that you’ll have a lifelong friend after this excursion. Her passion and knowledge for the valley’s beer industry is unsurpassed. With these tours you don’t have to be beer media to get a look behind the curtains. Launched this year is the “Fresh Hop” tour that we are on and that is available from August to October each year. Tours can also be customized based on your party’s preferences.
ridelittlehopper.com
2 p.m. | Varietal Beer Company
First stop of the tour is one of our absolute favorites and one of the most collaborative breweries … might I say in the world? Case in point, we walk in and the first person we are greeted by is Colin Lenfesty, brewer/owner of Holy Mountain Brewery. He and Chris Baum, award-winning brewer and owner of Varietal are pulling wet hops out of the kettle for their fresh hop collaboration.
There is always a vast array of rotating beers on draft but you can never go wrong with Twine Climber West Coast IPA and Sup Cuz Hazy IPA. Also if you need a quick nosh, grab a smash burger (child size, single patty) from their resident food truck Triple C’s.
varietalbeer.com
3:30 p.m. | CLS Farms
Welcomed by co-owner Shelley Desmarias, CLS is a fifth-generation hop farm and the largest producer for that little known Centennial hop you might be familiar with. As we step into the facility we’re also greeted (and a bit star struck) by two heavy hitters in the brewing industry, Mallorie King of Human People Beer and GABF award-winning brewer Alex Nowell, formerly of Three Weavers Brewery and current co-founder of Mellotone Beer Project. Both just happened to be working harvest for Shelley to gain access and further knowledge about the process of farming and harvesting hops. I felt like Willy Wonka in the chocolate factory here — we were so lucky to be able to see the whole process from bine to bins. Shelley doesn’t just open up her facility for the general public, so the only way you’ll be able to get a tour is if you are one of her brewery clients or on this very special Little Hopper Tour.
clsfarms.com
5 p.m. | Hilton Garden Inn
Check in at the Hilton Garden Inn. A staple hotel in Yakima, also one of two, including Hotel Maison, privately owned by the Morrier Family, another fifth generation hop farmer in the valley. Rest assured they have one of the very best beer draft lists in their lobby bar featuring Single Hill, Varietal, Bale Breaker and of course, Haas.
6-9 p.m. | Outskirts Brewing
Fairly new on the scene, having opened in Spring 2023, this brewery set between Yakima and Selah offers an idyllic and also family-friendly venue to the area. We happened to go for Way out Wednesday, which is their summer concert series that goes from June through mid-September. They offer a full dining and bar menu with something for everyone.
I recommend their arancini, steak frites or the bison burger. For longevity, you can’t go wrong with the very sessionable 4.7% Bush Popper Light, an American light pilsner. Cap off the evening with Irish I was a Cowboy Irish stout on nitro.
outskirtsbrewingco.com
Day 2
8 a.m. | Caffe 11th Avenue
Family-owned and operated this is the spot to fuel up for the day. Bennis of all kinds, perfectly hand-dipped French toast and a Bloody Mary that could satisfy a table of four.
caffe11thavenue.com
10 a.m. | Yakima River Canyon Cruise
We take a regularly scheduled beer break to enjoy the beauty of the Yakima River. Red’s Fly Shop and Fishing just outside of Yakima, a part of the highly acclaimed Canyon River Ranch, offers a three-hour guided eco-tour. We set out with our guide Ashton for a stroll down the river complete with mountain goats, baby deer, birds galore and even a coyote sighting. We did cap off the last leg of our tour with a delightfully refreshing can of Silver City Ridgetop Ale.
redsflyfishing.com | canyonriver.net
12 p.m. | EZ Tiger
When asking around to our local friends about lunch options, this was always one of the two spots recommended — every time. A dim sum and noodle house in Yakima? Color us intrigued. The restaurant sits in the heart of downtown across the parking lot from beloved Cowiche Kitchen. The cocktail menu was thoughtful and vibrant. The cuisine was delicious and interactive with the Stone Bowl Fried Rice served and mixed tableside. A few other can’t misses on the menu were the pork belly steamed buns, soup dumplings and kung pao chicken. We couldn’t help but sip on one another’s cocktails all of which paired perfectly with the dishes. The cocktails were The Rolls, The Garden and the Seoul Sipper.
ez-tiger.com
1:30 p.m. | Single Hill Brewing
Off to the Mecca of freshies, the home of the annual Fresh Hop Rodeo. A series of collaboration fresh-hop beers made with breweries from across the Northwest. Although we were just a tad bit early for any fresh hops on draft, their tasting room and production facility was full of buzz with breweries in town throwing wet hops into the kettle and talking through recipes for this year’s batches. There is always a huge selection at the brewery, so best to grab a tray full of tasters and share with the table so you can get a taste of everything! Our go-tos were the Lateral A IPA (oh hey, that’s our Sip collab with Single Hill), Eastside IPA, Sightglass Hazy IPA, Czech-Style Pilsner and the Gratitud.
singlehillbrewing.com
3 p.m. | Bale Breaker Brewery
Hands down the absolute best place to grab a pint with friends during hop season. Again, we were a bit too early for any fresh hops on draft, but I can say as a fresh hop beer judge for over a decade, most of their beers on tap taste as fresh and hoppy as a majority of fresh hop beers you can find. Hop growers first, the Quinn family has created the most unique and authentic atmosphere and culture you are lucky enough to find. To be able to sip on a pint while surrounded by a beautiful and fragrant hop farm I’m not sure it gets any better than this. Also, go for the beer, leave with the swag! I’m not sure I have ever visited the brewery without getting the coolest jacket, hoodie or hat around.
balebreaker.com
7 p.m. | Crafted Restaurant
This twice James Beard-nominated chef Dan Koommoo and his wife Mollie opened this farm-to-table restaurant in downtown Yakima in 2016. Everything is sourced within a 100-mile radius of the restaurant. There’s always something new and unique with the seasons. I think we had almost one of everything, but our standouts included the heirloom tomatoes, fresh oysters with mixed pepper mignonette, steak tartare and the shishito peppers. Capping off the evening with the decadent Dora’s Cake and Miso Corny desserts. Just like their locally sourced ingredients, they have a phenomenal wine and beer list from all our favorite producers around the valley. This was an exceptional dining experience and we’re all looking forward to our next visit.
craftedyakima.com
Normally we’d cap it off with a nightcap cocktail somewhere but it’s been a very busy two days and our livers are asking for forgiveness.
Next time we’ll head over for a cocktail at The Distillarium, a distillery in town that serves up a rotating craft cocktail menu and spirit flights using their award-winning spirits.
Until next time, Yakima!
Photos courtesy of Jackie Mallory Dodd, Kristin Bacon and Visit Yakima
Read more about the freshies in the article: Fresh Hop Beer – A Passion Shared Between Farmers and Brewers
