Perhaps the most beneficial aspect of Davali Ridge’s mesoclimate is being in the backyard of the nation’s foremost agricultural research institution.
With the perfect combination of terrain, soil, and crop management, Davali Ridge was an ideal candidate for the University of Wisconsin-Madison to partner with on several hop-related research initiatives. For these same reasons, we have also been selected as a participant in USDA-funded research.
We worked with the University of Wisconsin to test the viability of “certified disease-free” hop plants as they are subjected to real-world conditions in our hop yard. The plants were grown from cell culture techniques developed by the University’s Plant Pathology Department. Varieties included Willamette, Galena, Fuggle, Cascade, and Hallertau Tradition.
Our hop yard was utilized by a UW Plant Pathology graduate student as she conducted a multi-year research project focusing on hop diseases.
Our hop yard participates in field studies coordinated by UW-Platteville researchers to determine optimum nitrogen application rates for maximum economic hop cone yields and quality.
As part of a WHEx/USDA-funded research grant, we worked in cooperation with UW-Extension, UW-Madison Food Science Department, Advanced Analytical Research Lab, and the Midwest Hop & Beer Analysis Lab to determine the influences of harvest and post-harvest processing factors that affect hop quality, with an emphasis on hop flavor and aroma.
Check out the current varieties in production at Davali Ridge.