Grainswest - Spring 2024

Spring 2024 Grains West 34 FEATURE “We realized this variety wasn’t going to do what we hoped. It didn’t fit our customer profile.” Farmer John Hamill had similar experiences with Lowe. He chose to grow the variety because his son, Matt, owner of Red Shed Malting, thought it would be a good fit for his microbrewery customers. John thinks he may have been the last farmer to grow Lowe, and he’s 90 per cent sure he won’t sow the variety in 2024. There were challenges in the field, including lodging and harvest issues. A taller plant, Lowe would wrap around the feeder and jam it. “We were willing to put up with those agronomic problems if the craft brewer wanted it,” he said. “But we’re just not getting the interest from the brewers. They’re not as concerned about varieties as we thought they might be.” Lowe isn’t the only variety to have shown great promise only to disappear. CDC Meredith, a two-row malting barley variety, created similar buzz when it was supported for registration in 2008. A moderate-enzyme, low-protein variety, it outyielded older varieties by as much as 20 per cent. SeCan licensed Meredith soon after the CFIA approved its registration. “Meredith was going to revolutionize the barley industry,” said Sich with a chuckle. “When it came out it just blew the socks off, agronomically.” Results weren’t bad in the malthouse either, and farmers expressed interest in growing the variety. “Meredith was making life exciting in the malting industry again because farmers wanted to grow it.” The first sign of trouble appeared when Rahr technicians reported inconsistencies in the malting process. John Hamill may have been the last farmer to grow a crop of Lowe malting barley. While it showed promise as a craft beer variety, problems emerged in the field and at the malthouse. Photo: Courtesy of Red Shed Malting. “But we’re just not getting the interest from the brewers. They’re not as concerned about varieties as we thought they might be.” —John Hamill