Ground Breaker Fresh Hop Season Begins With Four New Beers
Story by:
Bil Corcoran
Ground Breaker Fresh Hop Season:
Ground Breaker Brewing is celebrating the 2026 fresh hop season with four gluten-free beers showcasing the distinctive character of freshly harvested Oregon hops. The Portland brewery has brought fresh Centennial, Lórien, Strata and Crystal hops into a diverse lineup that ranges from a West Coast IPA to a West Coast Pilsner and Pale Ale.
The 2026 lineup began with a fresh hop version of IPA No. 5, the brewery’s popular year-round beer, before expanding with Thelma Fresh Hop West Coast Pilsner. The brewery is now adding Epoch Fresh Hop West Coast IPA and Gayle Fresh Hop Pale Ale, giving gluten-free beer drinkers several different ways to experience fresh Oregon hop varieties.
Ground Breaker’s fresh hop releases also highlight its long-standing relationship with Goschie Farms and Oregon’s hop-growing community. The beers will reach multiple distribution markets while a special fresh hop tap takeover at the Ground Breaker Brewpub in Portland will bring together the brewery’s releases with additional beers from other regional producers.
Here is the complete announcement from Ground Breaker Brewing about its 2026 fresh hop beer lineup.
| Fresh hop beer releases are bigger than ever for gluten-free beer drinkers. Ground Breaker Brewing, the award-winning dedicated gluten-free craft brewery out of Portland, Oregon, is offering four fresh hop beers for the 2026 season in a variety of styles.On August 26th the brewery released a fresh hop version of their most popular beer, IPA No. 5. Head Brewer Gloria Zeiger selected fifty pounds of fresh Centennial hops from Goschie Farms. “We had to do it again,” said Zeiger. “It was so good last year, the aromatics that the Centennial hops bring really highlight this hop which is one of our favorites.” |
| Ground Breaker Fresh Hop Season |
| Fresh Hop IPA No. 5 West Coast IPAA year-round classic brewed with fresh Centennial hops from Goschie Farms |
| “There’s no season like the fresh hop season,” said Brewery Manager Jesse Bufton. “We really wanted to expand the variety of styles available to beer drinkers while highlighting some of the unique qualities of these hop varieties.”The newest entry into the brewery’s fresh hop lineup is Thelma, a fresh hop version of their popular West Coast Pilsner recipe. “We changed Louise a little bit this year to highlight Lórien hops, which is a variety we’ve really fallen in love with,” explained Zeiger. “We were so happy with it that we decided to showcase Lórien even more with a fresh hop version of the beer.” Thelma Fresh Hop West Coast Pilsner is available now in 16-ounce cans and on draft. |
| Ground Breaker Fresh Hop Season |
| Thelma West Coast PilsnerA fresh hop release of our popular West Coast Pilsner featuring Lórien hops |
| Ground Breaker is still delivering their classic and ever-popular fresh hop beers. Epoch, a West Coast-style India Pale Ale brewed with fresh Strata hops, was released on September 16th in 16-ounce cans and on draft. Strata, first released in 2018, was developed by Indie Hops in partnership with Oregon State University.“This beer is for the people that like those bold, dank IPAs,” said Brewer Tyler Kueber. “It’s a great hop that leads with the tropical and pine aromas.” |
| Ground Breaker Fresh Hop Season |
Epoch West Coast IPABold, tropical, and dank flavor and aroma from fresh Strata hops |
| Gayle, a Pale Ale brewed with fresh Crystal hops, joined Epoch on September 16th in cans and on draft. Named after Gayle Goschie, the President of Goschie Farms. Gayle’s family business has grown hops in Oregon for 130 years. The beer highlights the subtle floral notes that make Crystal hops popular in so many different styles of beer.Ground Breaker’s fresh hop beers will be distributed across several states including Oregon, Washington, Colorado, California and Massachusetts. They will also be available for purchase on their website for customers in Oregon, Ohio, Vermont, Kentucky, Virginia, New Hampshire, and D.C.Fresh Hop IPA No. 5, Epoch, Gayle, and Thelma will be on draft at the Ground Breaker Brewpub for a special fresh hop tap takeover event from September 17th through September 20th. Ground Breaker will have five fresh hop beers of their own as well as a fresh hop beer from Bierly Brewing, Evasion Brewing, and a fresh hopped cider from Bauman’s Cider Company. |
| Ground Breaker Fresh Hop Season |
| Gayle Pale AleFresh Crystal hops create subltey floral notes for the delicate pale ale drinker |
| About Ground Breaker Brewing Ground Breaker Brewing opened as the first dedicated gluten-free craft brewery in 2011. Ground Breaker is dedicated to crafting 100% gluten-free beer; using ingredients that are naturally gluten-free and allowing no gluten in their facility. Ground Breaker has won seven medals in the Gluten-Free category at the Great American Beer Festival®. The pub is located at 2030 SE 7th Ave. in Portland, OR. Ground Breaker’s beers are distributed in the following territories: OR, WA, CA, CO, MI, MA, RI, NY, NJ, and CT. Ground Breaker ships directly to customers in OR, OH, VA, KY, NH, VT and DC throughthe online beer store.https://www. facebook.com/ |
Ground Breaker Brewing has been featured several times on MyBeerBuzz.com, including coverage of the return of Louise West Coast Pilsner, the brewery’s Love Your Body Mexican Lager, its previous Fresh Hop & Oktoberfest releases, and the expansion of its gluten-free beer distribution. Read more: Ground Breaker Louise West Coast Pilsner Returns, Love Your Body Mexican Lager Enters Ground Breaker’s Seasonal Lineup, Ground Breaker Brewing Drops Fresh Hop & Oktoberfest Beers, and Ground Breaker Brewing’s Gluten-Free Craft Beer Is Now Available in NYC and New Jersey
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