Story of a Nation

At the Food Truck Rally last Saturday, I was standing in line at Hop Nation, waiting for a beer. It was a busy day—kegs were going up and down the basement ramp, people were chewing, quaffing and talking. The sun was shining, the food was hot, and the beer was cold.

All in all, a good time. It got me to wondering while I was standing there, what’s the story of Hop Nation? We decided to stop by in the off hours so that we could have a little one on one with owner Ben Grossman.

In the middle of a weekday afternoon Ben greets us in the tasting room. As they weren’t open yet, the lights were low and the space was filled with afternoon sunshine flooding in through the double glass front doors. One of the most noticeable things in the midday glow was the shiny bar top. He explains that it’s made of wood reclaimed from an old hop kiln that burned down many moons ago. A bonus of brewing in the American hop belt is having finds like that available for the thirsty and ambitious.

We chit chat leaning on this great bar and find out that Ben isn’t just some beer lover that decided one day to make his own, he has deep roots in the industry. A scientist, he began working at Coors straight out of grad school over twenty years ago, where one day a woman asked him if he was one of those guys that makes his own brew, and right there, a seed for Hop Nation was sown. With stops at Bert Grants, which initially brought him to Yakima, and Lagunitas along the way, it was inevitable that beer would be in his future.

From the bar top we move down the giant ramp into the basement where the brewing takes place. They’re just hopping some Cream On, their oat infused Pale Ale, when we arrive. While it’s clear that lots and lots of hard work is required to brew successfully, the creative and playful side of things is evident in the tank names—because life is too short for a mere 1,2 and 3, why not Doh, Ray, Me? Or Oompa, Loompa, Chong, Darwin, and The Freak for that matter?

Ben tells us that all of his ingredients are from Washington and the Pacific Northwest, because living in such an amazing area, we can get it all right here. This is where Ben’s passion really begins to shine through. He says just as wine makers are trying to express what the grape is presenting when it comes out of the earth, making beer is trying to express the symphony occurring between all the different elements of the beer—grain, hops, yeast and water.

He loves the fact that all the ingredients are working together in concert, creating something in total that is far superior than their individual parts. His logo represents this nicely. What from a casual glance looks like a powerful bird with its wings outstretched, actually has a hop for a body, and grain, water and fire for wing tips.

Opening last year on April 2, Hop Nation just celebrated its first birthday. Right now there are eight beers on the menu, with the Daily Weiss recently bringing home the Best Wheat Beer award at the Leavenworth Ale-Fest. With retro-game night Monday, trivia night Wednesday and live music every Friday, there’s a little something for everybody, and families are always welcome. Hoptown Pizza operates out of the space Wednesday through Saturday providing some great eats.  So come belly up to the kiln wood bar, get a fresh pour of true craft beer, and have some terrific pizza pie. Be a part of the story of a Nation.