Hopshire Farm & Brewery combines beer-making with a small market garden and a Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) program. The Freeville, New York, business opened in 2013 as the fifth farm brewery in the state of New York.
Hopshire is a family business operated by Diane Gerhart and Randy Lacey, a husband-and-wife team. The farm and brewery prioritize working with local businesses for ingredients, including grains, honey, ginger, and maple syrup, ensuring all processes are as sustainable and healthy as possible.
On the brewery side, Hopshire offers numerous beers on tap with unique names like Haze in the Hollow (a New England IPA), The Barley Stone (an Irish dry stout), Brambles (a raspberry wheat ale), Beehave (a honey ale), Zingabeer (a Belgian pale with ginger), and Ithaca is Oranges (a blood orange sour). Their popular Hoopenbeck Cider is a collaboration with Hollenbeck’s Cider Mill in nearby Virgil, ensuring that the brewery uses 100% local apples for its beverage.
Photo Courtesy Hopshire Farms and Brewery
In 2019, The Farm at Hopshire opened on the brewery property as a small market garden and CSA. The farm, owned and operated by female farmers Estelle Waterman and Megan Moore, practices an organic method of farming focused on minimizing soil disturbances.
The operation puts the community at the top of the priority list, offering a 20-week-long annual CSA program from June to November.
CSA participants receive a weekly box filled with various seasonal veggies, along with recipes on how to use the produce in the kitchen and a recommended Hopshire beer pairing.
The CSA prices are based on a sliding scale, so participants get to choose what they pay. The farm hopes this scale will improve access for lower-income households, which often struggle to pay growing food prices. The public can attend the farm’s garden tours, which are offered during the growing season.
Photo Courtesy Farm at Hopshire
Like the brewery, Hopshire’s farm also partners with businesses in the region. Angus cattle located two miles from the farm are fed spent grains left over from the brewing process. All of the cheeses Hopshire sells in their store are from creameries in the area, one of which is made using Hopshire’s Shire Ale beer.
There’s no doubt Hopshire works to engage the community not only by choosing local and sustainable products and partnerships but by offering numerous events throughout the year. The business features live music, trivia nights, Sunday brunches, and yoga.
Photo Courtesy Hopshire
“The two words people use often to describe Hopshire are ‘vibe’ and ‘community,’” the business said on its website. “The two go hand-in-hand. The people who come to Hopshire form a community and collectively create the good feeling (vibe) that results. As a business, we simply put together the ingredients of great beer, live music, [and] local food vendors and let the magic happen.”
