In 1982 the Ludwig family established Edgewood Farms, a 50 acre plot of land in Newton, NJ (Sussex County). Throughout the years, the family has raised sheep and cows, run a chicken coop so the family can enjoy fresh eggs, and grown its own fruit and vegetables. We're a growing family of farmers, craftsman, and home brewers. We've followed a simple creed: try to live off of the land simply and sus
tainably as much as possible. And like many Americans, after a hard day of work the family often reaches for a cold beer - and increasingly, a cold home brewed beer. As many family members brewed their own beer, we've experimented with growing a small amount of hops in the gardens (just a few vines) and have had great success. Typically, craft and home brewers use "pelletized" hops - little green pellets of dried compressed hops that won't spoil for many months. It's the backbone of the craft beer industry. Yet, the experience of tasting our own fresh, off-the-vine, "wet" hops in our home brew has been very satisfying and personal - we've taken the same care and attention given to the farm and brought it to the beer we drink. With the knowledge and experience gained by growing a garden and running a small farm we want to bring the same personal satisfaction to other brewers in the region. We want to give them a fresh, local option to supplement their pellet hops with fresh wet hops. Whether it's for a special batch at a microbrewery or for the brewmaster striving to only use locally-sourced products in his or her beer, our product is the perfect fit. As a result, we began constructing a hop yard on a small parcel of the family Edgewood farm in early 2015. The yard is located beside the majestic walnut tree that, as kids we found perfect for our rope swing - hence the name of our product, Rope Swing Hops. We provide a quality, fresh, local ingredient to brewmasters and chefs from all over that they can be proud of, found here in Northern New Jersey. Thank You, from all of us at Rope Swing Hops for helping us meet our Kickstarter Goal! We are well on our way to an amazing first harvest. This fall 2016 we will have quite a variety of established hops. We are about to be deemed the largest Hop Farm in NJ in just our second year of business! Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy! ~ Ben Franklin
