A local hop farmer has seen his own face on cans in over 100 Waitrose branches after being selected to feature on a limited edition line of craft beers.
Bromyard hop farm, Brook House Hops', farm manager, Henry Smith, said he was thrilled at seeing his image on the shelves including at his local Waitrose store in Worcester.
He was selected to be the face of the second craft beer in a line of limited edition Perennial beers by a London brewing company. Brook House Hops has supplied hops to the firm for around three years.
Gipsy Hill Brewing Co is choosing individuals to feature on cans to shine a light on the quality of the local ingredients that they use.
Mr Smith popped into his local branch and was proud to see himself representing Brook House Hops on the can's branding.
He said: “It’s a mixture of pride and embarrassment to be honest!
"At Brook House Hops it takes a massive team effort throughout the year to achieve the hop perfection that brewers need to create great beers like this.
"Hop growing has a proud history in our region and we’re determined to keep it going for the new generation of craft brewers.
"Seeing a quality product like Perennial on the shelf that really highlights the work we’ve been doing is hugely satisfying.
"We need more respected brewers and household brands like Waitrose to show their support for local farmers and producers in this way as we’re confident that their customers will love the beer and be proud of where it comes from.”
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Due to the beer being a limited edition, Mr Smith will only be appearing on Perennial cans for a temporary time and the line will then introduce a new face to their branding.
Alan Cole, head of beers, wines and spirits at Waitrose, London Road said: "I'm pleased that we're able to sell lines in our branch which support growers and suppliers who work within our local community.
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"I'm sure the line will be very popular with our customers."
Hops are the flowers of the hop plant and are used primarily as a bittering, flavouring, and stability agent in beer. As well as bitterness, they also impart floral, fruity, or citrus flavours and aromas.
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