Hogs back managing director, Rupert Thompson, in the brewery’s hop garden
Having reached a new audience with an appearance on Countryfile a couple of years back, Hogs Back Brewery will be back in the TV limelight on Thursday, January 18, in an episode of BBC One’s daytime series, The Farmers’ Country Showdown.
The programme an interview with Hogs Back managing director, Rupert Thompson, who will talk about the brewery and, in particular, its hop garden, with footage of the Farnham Food Festival, where he gave a talk on hops.
Also featuring local gamekeeper and butcher, Jack Smallman, the programme was filmed in September, around the time of Hogs Back’s third annual hop harvest.
Rupert said: “We were delighted to welcome The Farmers’ Country Showdown team to the brewery. The hop garden, which we planted in 2014, is a great example of brewing tradition and innovation working hand in hand and an excellent fit for the series, which looks at a wide range of farmers and producers.
“Growing our own hops, including the Farnham White Bine, a traditional local variety which we have revived, is a great story and we’re always happy to tell it. We look forward to seeing the final programme later this month and hope viewers enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed the filming.”
The Farmers’ Country Showdown celebrates the hard-working, devoted farmers who are the backbone of the rural economy. It illustrates the changing face of farming as well as the traditional ways of working the land they live on. It first screened in 2017 and a second series of 20 45-minute programmes started on January 2.
