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“I personally see organic as the next logical step in the craft brewing revolution,” Goldman-Armstrong says. He explains that until 100 years ago, all barley and hops were raised organically, because the chemical pesticides used today simply weren’t available. For people who want to use traditional methods to make beer, it’s natural to want to use organic ingredients.

But it’s not just about tradition, there are environmental factors, too. “You can feel better about what’s gone into an organic beer. You know there haven’t been thousands of pounds of fertilizers and herbicides that have gone into producing it,” Goldman-Armstrong says. “When you’re drinking a non-organic beer, you’re still buying into that at some level.”

Organic beer is getting easier to find. Major breweries are introducing their own brands, including Wild Hop Lager and Stone Mill Pale Ale from Anheuser Busch. Organic is also growing at the microbrewery level: New Belgium Brewing Co. has a new organic beer called Mothership Wit, and more brewpubs are offering organic beers, too. Goldman-Armstrong says many breweries started by making just one organic beer, rather than going completely organic.

One brewpub that has wholeheartedly embraced organic beer is Ukiah Brewing Co. in Ukiah, Calif., the first certified organic brewpub in the United States. Not only do they make their own organic beer, they also serve organic wine. All their food is organic, as well. Brewmaster and owner Bret Cooperrider says that when his family decided to open the brewpub eight years ago, they were already dedicated environmentalists and committed to making the operation organic. “I feel that we have an ultra-clean, ultra-pure product,” he says.

Cooperrider says the biggest challenge of making organic beer is finding organic hops. “There are only about seven organic hops available right now, and that limits what you can do with beer.” The other main ingredient in beer is malted barley, and that isn’t always easy to find either. “I’d say that organic malt is more widely available, but it’s still pretty difficult to get,” he says. Ideally, he’d like to buy not only organic, but local ingredients, too. For now, he’s able to get enough organic hops from a local farmer to brew one special seasonal beer every year, a fresh hop ale named Spyrock Special after the part of the county the hops come from.

Goldman-Armstrong says that organic beer will become more available as brewers start working with local farmers to convince them that the demand for organic ingredients is there. In the same way, he says that more breweries will start producing organic beers when customers keep asking for them and drinking those that are available. “Vote with your pint glass,” Goldman-Armstrong says. “It does make a difference.”

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