Wye tell me Wye

Wye is een plaats in het bestuurlijke gebied Ashford, in het Engelse graafschap Kent. De plaats telt 2384 inwoners. (https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wye_(Kent))

Wye is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Wye with Hinxhill, in the Ashford district, in Kent, England, 5 miles (8.0 km) from Ashford and 12 miles (19 km) from Canterbury. It is the main settlement in the parish of Wye with Hinxhill. Hop varieties including Wye Challenger were bred at Wye College and named for the village.[2] In 2013, Sunday Times readers voted Wye the third best place to live in the UK.[3] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wye,_Kent)

The village's name comes from the Old English "Wēoh" meaning idol or shrine. See also: Wehe Wye may have been used for worship by the pre-Christian Angles.[4] Bridge Street, 2009 Wye became an important communications centre because of a ford across the River Great Stour connecting with ancient trackways across the North Downs. Romans constructed a road between Canterbury and Hastings using the gap through the North Downs and there have been suggestions the straight Olantigh Road may have been built by them as a separate route from Wye to Canterbury on the east of the River Stour. Remains of an ironworks at the west bank of the river, from that period, have been found. By medieval times, Wye had a market and hosted the local hundred court.[5][6](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wye,_Kent)

An attractive mediaeval settlement on the eastern most edge of the Weald of Kent in the crook of the North Downs.  The village offers a wide selection of footpaths for walkers, a good choice of individual shops, accommodation and dining out options.

Wye is the perfect base for country lovers.  It also has a main line raiol station making the journey to Ashford and connections with High Speed 1 to London and Eurostar services to Paris, Brussels and Lille just five minutes away. (https://www.visitkent.co.uk/attractions/wye-2864/)

The College of St Gregory and St Martin at Wye, commonly known as Wye College, was an education and research institution in the village of Wye, Kent. In 1447, Cardinal John Kempe founded his chantry there which also educated local children.[3]: 18  As of 2020, it still includes a rare, complete example of medieval chantry college buildings.[4]: 5 

Wye College, 1984

After abolition in 1545, parts of the premises were variously occupied as mansion, grammar school, charity school, infant school and national school, before purchase by Kent and Surrey County Councils to provide men's technical education.[3]: 30, 36, 48, 49, 60  For over a hundred years Wye became the school, then college, of London University most concerned with rural subjects, including agricultural sciences; business management; agriculture; horticulture, and agricultural economics.[5] Chemist and Actonian Prize winner, Louis Wain[6]: 441  developed synthetic auxin selective herbicides 2,4-DB, MCPB and Bromoxynil at Wye in the 1950s[6]: 448–450  alongside his other research into insecticides, plant growth regulators and fungicides.[6]: 451–453  Wain's colleague Gerald Wibberley championed alternative priorities for the college with an early emphasis on land use and the environment.[6]: 454 

Following World War II and a 1947 merger with Swanley Horticultural College for women,[6]: 444  Wye transformed itself from small agricultural college, providing local practical instruction, to university[7]: 488  for a rapidly increasing number[8] of national and international students.[9]: 79  (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wye_College)

In its early years only about a fifth of the South Eastern Agricultural College student intake was for three year qualifications. Others undertook short, more applied instruction for two year diplomas, or leading to a single year certificate.[6]: 443  Short courses were provided, for instance to local school teachers tasked with instructing their pupils in nature topics.[45]: 234, 345 

As well as teaching and research, academics and other staff at the South Eastern Agricultural College, throughout its existence, provided agricultural extension services to farmers and growers in the south-east of England.[46] Hall gave book-keeping and other advice to the Guinness hop farms;[47]: 138  Ernest Stanley Salmon helped hop and other growers combat fungi,[48] whilst Theobald advised those confronting crop pests.[44] Their colleagues dealt with all manner of technical requirements, even designing an innovative aerating sewage treatment plant for nearby Olantigh.[49]

Complementing individual consultations and publications,[50] college staff toured the south-east of England giving lectures to agricultural or rural organisations on "fruit growing, farriery, poultry, bee keeping, and numerous veterinary topics",[7]: 488  sometimes in migratory vans specially prepared for these roadshows. In Wye they regularly gave talks to the village school, and the laboratories offered a service analysing soil, forage and milk,[41]: 183  and performing veterinary post-mortems.[3]: 97  (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wye_College)

1935 Guinness Laboratories constructed, north of the main college buildings,[3]: 111  for the Hop Research Department.[57] Works were funded by the eponymous brewing company and opened by the Earl of Iveagh in 1936.[3]: 111  The vaguely Arts and Crafts design was considered old fashioned at the time, particularly for a scientific research building isolated from the original college's medieval fabric.[4]: 28  (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wye_College)

Wye College's estate extended to about 390 hectares (960 acres), largely between the villages of Wye and Brook. The college farmed approximately 300 hectares (740 acres), and 25 hectares (62 acres) was employed for horticulture, both on a commercial basis. The remainder accommodated hop gardens, woodland, recreation space, research facilities and buildings.[10] By 1984, the college owned much of Wye village across the High Street from its main entrance, over to Bridge Street and some premises on Oxenturn Road. That was variously used for administration, student hostels, car parking, a clinic, laundry and offices. Outside the village Wye College owned the NIAB facility at Coldharbour Farm; the MAFF / Defra regional offices and laboratories on Olantigh Road; Regional Veterinary Investigation Centre / Edward Partridge House off Coldharbour Lane; Withersdane Hall, Agricultural Field Centre / Farm Mechanisation Unit / Poultry Research; beagle kennels; Court Lodge; Brook Agricultural Museum; sport fields on Cherry Garden Lane, and an SSSI site at Wye Crown and quarry.[81][3]: 121 [10]

By 2005, teaching and research resources included extensive glasshouses; climate-controlled growth rooms; a containment facility for transgenic plants; dedicated laboratories for plant molecular biology; genomics and gene sequencing; electron microscopy; use of radiochemicals; soil analysis, and plant/animal cell culture.[105] Research was carried out at dairy, pig, hop and sheep enterprises on the college's farm; in the horticulture department; on the chalk grasslands, and amongst commercial crops.[10] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wye_College)

Hop research

Research greenhouse viewed from Squires hostel with Guinness Laboratories, laundry and Jubilee Building in background, 1983

Mycologist and accomplished tennis player,[136] Ernest Stanley Salmon established a systematic hop breeding programme at the college in 1906. It was the world's first, and a model for those that followed.[48] The importance of his work was rapidly understood so whilst the college's other hop gardens were grubbed out in 1917 to grow potatoes and support the war effort, Salmon's trial plots were spared.[137]

Seeking fungal resistance he crossed European plants with seeds grown on from a wild Manitoban hop cutting,[48][136] and thence bred varieties including Brewer's Gold (1934), Bullion (1938), and Northern Brewer (1944). It was estimated in 2005 that over half of all hops grown commercially worldwide were descended from Salmon's original seedlings. Ray Neve succeeded Salmon in 1953 producing varieties such as Wye Northdown (1971), Wye Challenger (1971), and Wye Target (1972).[138][139]

In 1981, Peter Darby took over the programme focussing on dwarf hops such as First Gold (1995); aphid resistance (Boadicea, 2004), and flavour.[140][138] At that time, the college's breeding program was producing 30,000 plants a year to evaluate.[141]

The unit merged into a newly formed Horticulture Research Institute in 1985; through subsequent consolidation became part of Horticulture Research International in 1990, and spun off with East Malling Research Station to form East Malling Research in 2004.[42]: 191, 213, 215  As Imperial College sought to close their Wye campus in 2007, hop research activities transferred to Wye Hops Ltd, a subsidiary of the British Hop Association,[142] based at China Farm, Upper Harbledown.[143] As of 2019, Wye Hops' national hop variety collection has been relocated to Shepherd Neame's Queen's Court at Faversham.[144] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wye_College)

Brewer's Gold is een hopvariëteit, gebruikt voor het brouwen van bier.

Deze hopvariëteit is een “dubbeldoelhop”, bij het bierbrouwen gebruikt zowel voor zijn aromatische als zijn bittereigenschappen. Dit is samen met Bullion een van de eerste variëteiten ontwikkeld door professor Salmon in het Wye Agriculture College te Kent rond 1919 en werd op de markt gebracht in de jaren dertig. De soort wordt voornamelijk geteeld in het zuiden van Duitsland en ook in Poperinge. (https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brewer%27s_Gold)

Bullion is een hopvariëteit, gebruikt voor het brouwen van bier.

Deze hopvariëteit is een “bitterhop”, bij het bierbrouwen voornamelijk gebruikt voor zijn bittereigenschappen. Dit is samen met Brewer's Gold een van de eerste variëteiten ontwikkeld door Professor Salmon in het Wye Agriculture College te Kent rond 1919 en werd op de markt gebracht in de jaren dertig. (https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullion_(hop))

Wye Challenger of kortweg Challenger is een hopvariëteit, gebruikt voor het brouwen van bier.

Deze hopvariëteit is een “dubbeldoelhop”, bij het bierbrouwen gebruikt zowel voor zijn aromatische als zijn bittereigenschappen. Deze Engelse variëteit werd gekweekt in het Wye College te Kent in 1963, met als voorvader Northern Brewer en in 1972 op de markt gebracht. (https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Challenger_(hop))

Wye Challenger was developed at Wye College from a cross made in 1963. As a granddaughter Northern Brewer it was released in 1971. It is strongly resistant to downy mildew disease. (https://www.barthhaas.com/hops-and-products/hops/wye-challenger)

First Gold is een hopvariëteit, gebruikt voor het brouwen van bier.

Deze hopvariëteit is een “dubbeldoelhop”, bij het bierbrouwen gebruikt zowel voor zijn aromatische als zijn bittereigenschappen. Deze Engelse dwerghopvariëteit werd gekweekt in het Wye College te Kent in 1995 en is een kruisbestuiving tussen Whitbreads Golding Variety en een mannelijke dwerghop. (https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Gold)

The variety First Gold is a descendant of Whitbread Golding an a very traditional variety for british Ales. Brewers appreciate the balanced bitterness and the spicy but also fruity flavour (https://www.barthhaas.com/hops-and-products/hops/first-gold)

Target is een hopvariëteit, gebruikt voor het brouwen van bier.

Deze hopvariëteit is een “bitterhop”, bij het bierbrouwen voornamelijk gebruik voor zijn bittereigenschappen. Deze Engelse variëteit werd ontwikkeld in het Wye College te Kent, bestand tegen de verwelkingsziekte en op de markt gebracht in 1972. Dit is een van de meest geteelde variëteiten in Engeland. (https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Target_(hop))

Wye Target

...

Bred at Wye College, released in 1976. A flexible hop with interesting potential for dry hopping. (https://www.barthhaas.com/hops-and-products/hops/wye-target)

The British Hop Association was formed by British Hop Growers in 1996 to ensure that the industry had a coordinated approach to its activities and in particular the research and development of new hop varieties through its subsidiary Wye Hops. In 1998 there were 13 commercially-grown British hop varieties, today there are 31. Given that it can take 10 years to develop a new hop variety, that’s quite an achievement.

The British Hop Association, formerly known as The National Hop Association, is a limited company, with three Directors from each of the 3 Growers Groups sitting on its Board. The Growers Groups are: English Hops Ltd, Faram Farms Ltd, Wealden Hops Ltd.  The British Hop Association is the forum by which growers make representations to the UK Government, the EC, international & national industry committees.

British Hops ‘Terroir’:

All British hops share the same wonderful ‘terroir’ – great soils and a mild maritime climate with even rainfall throughout the year.  We use the natural resources we have available, which means that very few of our hops are irrigated.  It is this special and sustainable terroir that gives our hops a lower level of myrcene than hops grown anywhere else in the world.  It is lower myrcene that makes the aromas so delicate and complex and so good at helping you to brew the best session beers in the world (in our humble opinion).  To find out more about lower myrcene levels, click on British Hops USP Climate.

The facts about British Hops:

There are 34 commercially grown British Aroma Hop varieties in the UK. (https://www.britishhops.org.uk/)

Established in March 2007, Wye Hops Ltd is a subsidiary of the British Hop Association and is the vital research centre for the British Hop industry. Funding for the project comes from the British Hop Association growers. Additional funding has been made available by IBD, SIBA, BBPA, East Malling Trust, Kent County Agricultural Society, Defra (the UK Government) and charitable trusts.

Wye Hops Ltd. is located amongst the commercial hop gardens at China Farm, run by Hop Farmer and British Hop Association member, Tony Redsell OBE. This site was selected mainly due to wilt-free conditions and a possibility for irrigation. (https://www.britishhops.org.uk/hop-breeding/)

A hop breeding programme consists of preparing pollen, making controlled crosses, raising seedlings, transferring seedlings to the field, and collecting, drying and pressing cone samples from the seedlings for analysis.

For historic reasons dating back to the early 1900s, in England male hop plants are grown alongside female hop plants. In the breeding programme, the males are not ‘killed’ but used as parents to develop new female varieties like First Gold. Peter uses the male hop plants mainly for their growth habit characteristics and to provide disease resistance in their female hop plant progeny.

It normally takes at least five years to identify a potential new hop variety and can be a further six years to take it into commerce. The cycle is:

Year 1: Create variety crosses

Year 2: Raising seeds

Year 3: First assessment of individual seedlings (based on resin analyses, and aroma assessment)

Year 4: Mature hop harvesting; yield, plant health and cone shape

Year 5: Selection of potential varieties and propagation of material for commercialisation

Year 6: Planting of small plots

Year 7: Assessment of commercial attributes including suitability for machine harvesting, yield, oil and resin analysis, and disease resistance

Year 8: Assessment of mature plants for habit and pilot brewing trials

Year 9: Propagation of materials for planting on farms

Year 10: Planting on farms

Year 11: Commercial crop

The future of British hops

wye-hops-logoIn 1962, hops in England were covering an area of approximately 8,200 ha. Since 1962, the area has declined and was stabilised to approximately 1,060 ha in 2007. This stability remains and since 2007 the UK crop has been about 1,000 ha.

In March 2012, Wye Hops Ltd celebrated a very successful five year anniversary and has a bright future ahead.

Peter Darby associates British flavour notes as being subtle and balanced. Although hoppiness is distinct, there are also fruity and woody notes present but without any one note being predominant. The effect is that you want to have another drink of the same beer; there is no need to change to another brand.

Peter continues with an analogy:

‘English flavour is like a chamber orchestra, the hops giving simultaneously the high notes and the bass notes. In comparison, a Czech beer is more like a full orchestra with much more breadth to the sound, and an American hop gives more of a dance band with more emphasis on volume and brass. The recent New Zealand hops (e.g. Nelson Sauvin) are like adding a voice to the instrumental music’.

Brewers around the world want “something new, something different and something not tried before” – with 31 commercially available varieties and more in the pipeline, it’s time to celebrate Great British Hops in your beers. (https://www.britishhops.org.uk/hop-breeding/)

Wye Valley Brewery is a brewery in the village of Stoke Lacy, Herefordshire, England, in the Wye Valley. Founded in 1985 by Peter Amor, it has become "one of Britain's leading independent breweries".[2] In 2002 Peter Amor's son, Vernon Amor, became managing director.[3] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wye_Valley_Brewery)

Since 1985, we have been producing the very best cask, keg and bottled beers, using the finest ingredients, while at the same time supporting the Great British institution that is fondly known as the 'pub'.

Our reputation for consistent excellence in product quality and customer service is the reason our beers are served in more than 1,200 pubs and bars throughout the West Midlands and South Wales. In fact, we've gone from a humbling beginning of producing approximately 10 brewers' barrels a week to an average of 800 barrels per week - that's more than 12 million pints per year!

...

[1997] After studying at Young’s brewery in London, Peter’s son, Vernon Amor, joined the brewery to help with the demands of the growing business..... 2019 saw major capital spend with all cask washing, filling, warehouse and loading bays being moved under one roof. This helped bring down our overall on-site vehicle movements by 80%! Further solar PV infrastructure on our roofs have resulted in an extra 65kw of energy. Oh... and we also now have a WVB pond, intended to become a haven for wildlife!  (https://www.wyevalleybrewery.co.uk/our-story/)

Wye Valley Brewery is a family business started by former Guinness brewer, Peter Amor, in the summer of 1985. After brewing for Guinness, he decided to branch out on his own. He began brewing from the back of a pub in Canon Pyon, Herefordshire, but soon moved to the old stable block of the brewery's first pub, The Barrels in Hereford.[4]

Meanwhile Vernon Amor, after studying at Young's brewery in London, joined the brewery to help with the demands of the growing business. By 2002, the brewery had outgrown its stable block at The Barrels, so it moved to a 9-acre former cider mill in Stoke Lacy.[5]

As well as supplying its beers to free houses throughout the West Midlands, South-West and South Wales, the brewery has eight of its own pubs.[6]

Brewery

The facade of Wye Valley Brewery

Wye Valley Brewery is located in Herefordshire. Over half of its hops and raw ingredients come directly from farms within 10 miles (16 km) of the brewery.[7]

Green brewing

As a brewing method, Wye Valley Brewery uses water vapour, created during the brewhouse boil, to heat water to then clean its casks; the roof and ground-mounted solar panels cover the equivalent of more than six tennis courts, providing over half of the brewery's total electricity. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wye_Valley_Brewery)

Here at Wye Valley Brewery, we know how lucky we are to be situated in the heart of Herefordshire - home to the best varieties of British hops, it also happens to be a rather beautiful part of the country! Because we care about our environment and the community we work in, it is extremely important to us that we support our local farmers. It is with immense pride therefore, that over half of our hops and raw ingredients come directly from farms within 10 miles of the brewery.

Of course, buying local not only helps to support the rural community, but also keeps our carbon footprint to a minimum, just one of many ‘green’ boasts we can make claim to... Over the last decade we have been able to update our Brewhouse and the way the brewery as a whole sources and uses energy. (https://www.wyevalleybrewery.co.uk/our-brewery/)

Beers

Core range

Wye Valley Brewery's flagship beer is Butty Bach, translated as a ‘little friend’, a Welsh term meaning. This 4.5% smooth, full-bodied, premium ale is burnished gold in colour, and has been crowned ‘Beer of the Festival’ at the Great Welsh Beer Festival on three occasions. Alongside this:

·      HPA (Hereford Pale Ale) a 4.0% is the straw-coloured ale with a citrusy aroma.

·      The Hopfather, a 3.9% smooth red ale featuring tropical citrus and grapefruit flavours.

·      Golden Ale, a 4.2% a light gold coloured ale brewed using Fuggles and Goldings hops.

·      Wholesome Stout, a 4.6% dark, full-bodied beer boasting roasted coffee notes and a dry, bitter finish.

·      Wye Valley Bitter, a 3.7% chestnut coloured ale, with a malty flavour and a clean bitter finish.

In addition to the core beer line, they produce a rotation of monthly ales as well.[8]

1985

In 2016, Wye Valley Brewery launched its first ever lager, 1985, which has won an international award. The lager is a natural extension to the brewery's range of real ales, is preservative free and made using ingredients sourced within a 10-mile radius of the brewery. Locally grown Pilot hops give ‘1985’ an earthy bitterness, whilst traditional European hops provide a delicate fruity aroma. The result is a 4.5% abv premium lager with a crisp, clean taste.[9]

 Nightjar In 2022, Wye Valley Brewery launched its keg stout called Nightjar. A dark British stout with rich coffee notes, intense roasted barley flavours and a dry, bitter finish.[10] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wye_Valley_Brewery)

Butty Bach is a Welsh term for 'little friend' and this malty, moreish bottle-conditioned brew certainly has made a few friends in its time! Burnished gold in colour, smooth and satisfying in taste, 'Butty' is a beer with a perfect malt-and-hop balance.

Camra says this is real ale (https://groceries.morrisons.com/products/butty-bach-299077011)

Butty Bach is a Welsh term meaning ‘little friend’ – and this charmingly smooth premium ale has certainly made more than a few friendships in its time. We brew it using Maris Otter and Crystal malts together with locally grown Fuggles, Goldings and Bramling Cross hops. With such fine ingredients, no wonder it remains a firm favourite. 4.5%

2015 GOLD CAMRA

West Midlands Awards ‘Beer of the Year’ ‘Best Bottled Beer’ (https://ludlowfarmshop.co.uk/product/butty-bach/)

Butty Bach is a Welsh term meaning ‘little friend’ – and this charmingly smooth premium ale has certainly made more than a few friendships in its time. We brew it using Maris Otter and Crystal malts together with locally grown Fuggles, Goldings and Bramling Cross hops. With such fine ingredients, no wonder it remains a firm favourite. (https://www.wyevalleybrewery.co.uk/our-beers/butty-bach/)

Het bier is goudblond met wit schuim en heeft een opvallend bittere smaak. Het meeste Britse bier dat ik heb geprobeerd was bruin van klein en de smaak is milder en moutiger. Met 4,5% past het bier prima in de Britse biercultuur.  

Real British ale's alcohol content usually hovers between 4 and 5% alcohol, while Belgian beers can obviously go a lot higher. ... This made me wonder why British beer's alcohol content is so low compared to the neighbouring cultures- is it just a quirk of different cuisines, or is there some more sinister underlying reason such as the UK government wanting to reduce the impact of drunk workers on the economy at some point in the last few hundred years?

...

It's the points/levels in the duty imposed that have made UK beer weak, from a historic point of view.

Over 4% and you are on to a higher tariff point for the duty paid on it, so brewers aimed at 3.9x% for a long time, although there have been changes, and a lot of brewers find that people are prepared to pay a few pennies extra for a stronger brew these days.

Pub prices were once highly sensitive to duty, but so much of the price of a pint is now determined by the running costs of the pub, rather than duty, that stronger beers are becoming more common. ... During the 1970s and 1980s, the fashion for lager almost eradicated traditional British ales from pubs. Alongside the negative stereotypes of the real-ale drinker, the weakness of traditional ales, and their typically mild flavour, made it difficult to compete. The resurgence of real ale in the British market was led by strongly hopped beers, 4.5% - 5% ABV. We are only now seeing weaker beers return to the market, as real ales become fashionable again. ... The explanation I have been given by a mircobrewer is that it is, indeed, due to the duty levied on British beers - it's not so much a purely economic argument, it's as much a matter of principle of not wanting to give the government too much money. However, there are many excellent microbrewers opening in the UK (based on the American model!) serving their local outlets and they tend to brew stronger beers. A good plan would be to always buy local bottled beers (cask and keg travel better) and you may find something really special. There is a newfound excitement in going to the pub if you are a fan of "real" beers - you may find a gem! The microbrewer I was referring to is the owner of The Kernel brewery in London but there are many popping up around the country.  (https://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/15256/why-is-the-alcohol-content-in-british-beer-so-weak)

The Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; Welsh: Dyffryn Gwy) is an internationally important protected landscape straddling the border between England and Wales.

The River Wye (Welsh: Afon Gwy) is the fourth-longest river in the United Kingdom. The upper part passes through Rhayader, Builth Wells and Hay-on-Wye, but the area designated as an AONB covers 326 square kilometres (126 sq mi) surrounding a 72-kilometre (45 mi) stretch lower down the river, from just south of Hereford to Chepstow.[1]

This area covers parts of the counties of Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Monmouthshire, and is recognised in particular for its limestone gorge scenery and dense native woodlands, as well as its wildlife, archaeological and industrial remains. It is also historically important as one of the birthplaces of the modern tourism industry. The area is predominantly rural, and many people make a living from tourism, agriculture or forestry. Ross-on-Wye is the only town within the AONB itself, but Hereford, Monmouth, Coleford and Chepstow lie just outside its boundaries.

The Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; Welsh: Dyffryn Gwy) is an internationally important protected landscape straddling the border between England and Wales.

The River Wye (Welsh: Afon Gwy) is the fourth-longest river in the United Kingdom. The upper part passes through Rhayader, Builth Wells and Hay-on-Wye, but the area designated as an AONB covers 326 square kilometres (126 sq mi) surrounding a 72-kilometre (45 mi) stretch lower down the river, from just south of Hereford to Chepstow.[1]

This area covers parts of the counties of Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Monmouthshire, and is recognised in particular for its limestone gorge scenery and dense native woodlands, as well as its wildlife, archaeological and industrial remains. It is also historically important as one of the birthplaces of the modern tourism industry. The area is predominantly rural, and many people make a living from tourism, agriculture or forestry. Ross-on-Wye is the only town within the AONB itself, but Hereford, Monmouth, Coleford and Chepstow lie just outside its boundaries. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wye_Valley)

Okee, deze brouwerij zit dus niet in Wye, maar in Wye en dat is elders in de UK....

The River Wye (/waɪ/; Welsh: Afon Gwy [ɡʊɨ̯]) is the fourth-longest river in the UK, stretching some 250 kilometres (155 miles) from its source on Plynlimon in mid Wales to the Severn estuary.[1] For much of its length the river forms part of the border between England and Wales. The Wye Valley (lower part) is designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.[2][3] The Wye is important for nature conservation and recreation, but is affected by pollution.[4][5]

Etymology

The meaning of the river's name is not clear. Possibly the earliest reference to the name is Guoy in Nennius' early 9th Century Historia Brittonum and the modern Welsh name is Gwy. The Wye was much later given a Latin name, Vaga, an adjective meaning 'wandering'.[6][7][8] The Tithe map references a Vagas Field in both Whitchurch and Chepstow.[9] Philologists such as Edward Lye and Joseph Bosworth in the 18th and early 19th centuries[10] suggested an Old English derivation from wæg, "wave".

Description

The source of the Wye is in the Welsh mountains at Plynlimon. It flows through or past several towns and villages, including Rhayader, Builth Wells, Hay-on-Wye, Hereford (the only city on the River Wye), Ross-on-Wye, Symonds Yat, Monmouth and Tintern, meeting the Severn estuary just below Chepstow. The lower 16 miles (26 km) of the river from Redbrook to Chepstow forms the border between England and Wales.

Conservation

River Wye (Lower Wye)

Site of Special Scientific Interest

Grid reference ST544912 to SO230429

Interest Biological/Geological

Area England: 1,159.6 ha (2,865 acres)

Wales: 245.2 ha (606 acres)

Total: 1,404.8 ha (3,471 acres)

Notification 1978

Natural England website

The River Wye is protected by two Sites of Special Scientific Interest, one covering the Upper Wye (Gwy Uchaf) above Hay-on-Wye,[11] and one covering the Lower Wye (Gwy Isaf) downstream to Chepstow.[12] The criteria for inclusion of the river as an SSSI include geology, topography, flora, mammals, invertebrates, fish and birdlife, as the river and its tributaries constitute a large linear ecosystem. The Lower Wye SSSI is itself divided into seven units of assessment set by Natural England, and administrative responsibilities are shared between the councils of Powys, Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, and Monmouthshire.[12] The Wye abuts a range of other SSSIs in England and Wales, including the Upper Wye Gorge and Lower Wye Gorge.

It is also a Special Area of Conservation[13][14] and one of the most important rivers in the UK for nature conservation. It is an important migration route and wildlife corridor, as well as a key breeding area for many nationally and internationally important species. The river supports a range of species and habitats covered by European Directives and those listed under Schedule 5 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.[12] In Powys the river lies within the Radnorshire Environmentally Sensitive Area. Much of the lower valley is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Wye)

Herefordshire (/ˈhɛrɪfərdʃɪər, -ʃər/ HERR-if-ərd-sheer, -⁠shər)[3] is a ceremonial county in the West Midlands, England. It borders Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthshire and Powys to the west. The city of Hereford is the largest settlement and county town.

The county is one of the most rural in England... Herefordshire is one of the 39 historic counties of England. Herefordshire County Council was created in 1889.[11]

In 1974, the administrative county formed in 1889 was merged with that of neighbouring Worcestershire to form Hereford and Worcester. 

...

Probably Hereford's most famous export is its Hereford beef cattle. Herefords are docile but extremely hardy creatures and these attributes have led to their proliferation across the world, particularly the US, Canada, South America and Australia. The breed is so gentle that a Hereford bull was used as the mascot for Hereford United Football Club for many years, led around the club's Edgar Street ground before major matches. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herefordshire)

The Hereford is a British breed of beef cattle originally from Herefordshire in the West Midlands of England.[1][2] It has spread to many countries – there are more than five million purebred Hereford cattle in over fifty nations worldwide.[3] The breed was first exported from Britain in 1817, initially to Kentucky.[4] It spread across the United States and Canada, through Mexico, to the great beef-raising countries of South America. Today Herefords dominate from Australasia to the Russian steppes, including Israel, Japan, continental Europe and Scandinavia, temperate parts of Australia, Canada, the United States, Kazakhstan and Russia, the centre and east of Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, and New Zealand, where they make up the largest proportion of registered cattle.[5] They are found all over Brazil[6] and in some Southern African countries,[7] notably South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Their original popularity among ranchers of the American Southwest testified to the hardiness of a breed originating in cool, moist Britain, but shown to thrive in harsher climates on nearly every continent. The World Hereford Council,[8] is based in Britain. There are currently 20 Hereford societies in 17 member-countries and a further eight in 10 non-member countries.[9] In the United States, the official Hereford organization and breed registry is the American Hereford Association, the second-largest society of its kind in the country.[10]... Until the 18th century, the cattle of Herefordshire resembled other cattle of southern England, being wholly red with a white switch, similar to the modern North Devon and Sussex breeds. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, other cattle (mainly Shorthorns) were used to create a new type of draught and beef cattle which at first varied in colour, with herds ranging from yellow to grey and light brown, and with varying amounts of white. By the end of the 18th century the white face characteristic of the modern breed was well established, as was the modern colour during the 19th century.[11]

The Hereford is still seen in the Herefordshire countryside today[12] and featured strongly at agricultural shows.[13][14][15] The first imports of Herefords to the United States were made about 1817 by the politician Henry Clay, with larger importation beginning in the 1840s.[16][17] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hereford_cattle)