Hogs Back Brewery hosted their annual Hop Harvest Party at the weekend with nearly 4,000 revellers flocking to their Tongham home.
Photographs: Dave Pullinger
The entertainment started on Friday night with a sold-out roots concert. On Saturday, Howard Smith, mayor of Guildford, attended the sold-out festival to see six bands play. On Sunday, families joined in the fun of the TEA Party, with entertainment for children of all ages in the Kids Zone.
Across the weekend, guests enjoyed the full range of Hogs Back beers, including the flagship Tongham TEA, Hogstar Lager, and limited editions One Planet Passion Fruit Lager, Toffee Apple Ale, and Utopia 8000, celebrating the brewery’s 8,000th brew. More than 14,000 pints were enjoyed by party-goers.
Food was prepared and served by members of the Tap team, with products sourced locally where possible. In line with Hogs Back’s continued aim to increase its sustainability, there were no single-use plastics, replaced with reusable glasses or compostable items.
The weekend raised money for the National Autistic Society, Hogs Back’s chosen charity this year, and 125 (Godalming) Squadron Air Cadets. Volunteers from the organisations were on hand to help party-goers decorate their hats with fresh hops, taken from the brewery’s hop garden. The newly restored, customised Hogs Back Beer Engine motorbike was also on display.
“The annual Hop Harvest Party Weekend is always a much-anticipated highlight, and this year’s three-day celebration was no exception,” said Miles Chesterman, managing director of Hogs Back Brewery. The weekend brings a real sense of community, and we’re delighted so many of our supporters were able to join us.
“It is huge effort by the team, led by operations manager, Mark Frogley, to host the event each year, and it is testament to all their hard work and planning that the event runs so smoothly.
“The weather was not so kind to us this year, but it didn’t dampen the enthusiasm for our best-ever line up of live music. So much so, we’ve already set the dates for next year’s Hop Harvest celebrations, which will run on 11th, 12th, and 13th September.”
Hop harvest celebrations have a long tradition in the Farnham area, which was historically one of the country’s most important hop-growing centres. The hop harvest at the brewery’s eight-and-a-half-acre hop garden will continue next week.
