KENTISH brewers are going hopping mad in the race to make the freshest pint in England.

Ramsgate brewer Eddie Gadd is leading the charge of beer brewed with fresh hops straight from the bine.

The brewery’s Green Hop Ale has become a fixture of their year in beer since its 2010 debut.

Now Gadd’s has joined forces with more than 20 other Kentish companies to make a Kent Green Hop beer that he has dubbed Beer-jolais.

The plan is to brew hops within 12 hours of picking to produce Britain’s freshest beer in the same way that vineyards compete to bottle the first Beaujolais wine.

The first Kent Green Hop Fortnight is being launched next month to celebrate the Kentish harvest.

Mr Gadd said: “We make regular trips to the hop gardens to check on the hops and cannot wait to start picking. We should be able to start picking in the first week of September.”

British brews usually dry out the hops before adding them to the mix but fresh green hops contain small yellowy sacs of oil which add a distinctive flavour lost during the conventional heating and drying process.

Kent Green Hop Fortnight starts on September 27.

For details visit www.kentgreenhopbeer.com