DURHAM, N.H.—University of New Hampshire brewing science students are getting a jump on the summer ice cream season by brewing a strawberry frappe IPA using strawberries that are part of the NH Agricultural Experiment Station’s organic strawberry breeding program and strawberry season extension research.

The new brew, Strawberry Milkman, is the third to come out of the partnership between researchers with the NH Agricultural Experiment Station and the university’s brewing science program. Other releases include George Squashington and Artuga Sour.

Developed by undergraduate student Tim Fischer, Strawberry Milkman contains no bittering hops; New Zealand aroma whirlpool and dry hops are added. “These sweet, cloudy IPAs are quite popular. It is made with a lot of wheat to maximize the protein content of the beer and keep it cloudy. Lactose is added as a sweetness,” said Cheryl Parker, manager of the UNH Brewing Science Lab.

According to the national Brewers Association, the New Hampshire craft brewery industry has an economic impact of $353 million in the state, with more than 100,000 barrels of craft beer produced annually.

Some of the strawberries for Strawberry Milkman are from the experiment station’s organic strawberry breeding program which aims to develop the first varieties of seed-propagated strawberries specifically designed for organic agriculture in the United States. UNH is recognized as one of a very small handful of institutions worldwide working at the forefront of strawberry genomics and its application to strawberry breeding.

The new brew also includes fruit from the TunnelBerries project, a multi-year research project that aims to benefit both growers and consumers. New Hampshire’s strawberry season traditionally lasts only four to six weeks. Experiment station researchers harvested strawberries grown in low tunnels for 19 consecutive weeks from mid-July through the week of Thanksgiving. They also found that the low tunnels significantly increased the percentage of marketable fruit, from an average of about 70 percent to 83 percent.

In response to increased interest in the brewing industry, the UNH designed a brewing minor that provides students with a well-rounded understanding of the production and business of beer. The program covers everything from raw ingredients to quality control to distribution, with a focus on quality and consistency. Students gain hands-on experience on and off campus and learn from brewers, business owners, farmers, lab technicians and more. The lab also offers analytical testing services for the local brewing industry.

Strawberry Milkman and George Squashington will be served at the lab’s open house Tuesday, April 2 and Wednesday, April 3, 2019, from noon to 3 p.m. The laboratory is located at 34 Sage Way, Durham. Strawberry Milkman also is expected to be available soon locally on tap at Hop + Grind in Durham.  Keep up to date with the latest UNH brews and releases by following the UNH Brewing Science Laboratory on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UNHbrewlab.

This material is based upon work supported by the NH Agricultural Experiment Station, through joint funding of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award numbers 1013061 and 1006928, and the state of New Hampshire. The TunnelBerries research also is funded through the USDA NIFA Specialty Crop Research Initiative under Award Number 2014-51181-22380. 

Founded in 1887, the NH Agricultural Experiment Station at the UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture is UNH’s original research center and an elemental component of New Hampshire's land-grant university heritage and mission.