Roy Farms of Moxee, Washington, partnered with the National Black Brewers Association (NBBA) to launch the Velvet Cake Hop Blend — a hand-selected premium blend consisting of Cashmere, Azacca®, Chinook, and Amarillo® hops. The new blend delivers notes of sweet candy, citrus, and tropical fruit with hints of resin and spice.
Master Brewers from the National Black Brewers Association visited Roy Farms during the 2025 harvest to personally select and craft the blend. The new hop blend and a beer brewed with it make their commercial debut at the 2026 Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America in Philadelphia, April 20-22.
The partnership carries meaningful philanthropic intent — a portion of all sales will support the National Black Brewers Association’s mission to provide educational resources and capital access to Black-owned small businesses and brewers across the United States.
Here is the press release introducing the Velvet Cake Hop Blend.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – April 13, 2026
Roy Farms of Moxee, Washington Launches Premium ‘Velvet Cake Hop Blend‘ in Partnership with the National Black Brewers Association
Philadelphia, PA — Roy Farms, a multi-generational farm located in Moxee, WA, announces the launch of the Velvet Cake hop blend, a new premium hop blend created in partnership with the National Black Brewers Association nonprofit 501(c)(6), and members’ support network. With oversight from Roy Farms leadership, Master Brewers from the National Black Brewers Association hand-selected the blend to add to Roy Farms’ world-class portfolio of hops. The blend will be released for purchase from Roy Farms and partners for the first time at the 2026 Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America that will be hosted in the city of Philadelphia – April 20-22, 2026.
Members of the National Black Brewers Association visited Roy Farms during [the] 2025 harvest to hand-select their favorite varieties and create the first-ever Velvet Cake Hop Blend. The group collectively agreed upon a blend consisting of 40% Cashmere, 30% Azacca®, 15% Chinook and 15% Amarillo®, imparting desirable notes of Sweet Candy-like, Citrus and Tropical with hints of Resin & Spice.
Roy Farms has been at the forefront of agriculture and sustainability since the family’s first harvest in 1907. As a leader in both conventional and organic hop growing, Roy Farms is a fully integrated hop grower and processor, ensuring the highest quality from field to pellet. Additionally, Roy Farms serves as the managing partner of Latitude 46°, a Pacific Northwest breeding company dedicated to discovering innovative and sustainable hop varieties for future brewers.
The partnership marks a historic philanthropic initiative that provides both access to educational resources and capital for underserved and underutilized small businesses and brewers within the Black diaspora in the United States. A portion of the sales of this specialty hop blend will benefit the efforts of the National Black Brewers Association.
“This partnership is a vital example of leadership working together in the food and beverage sector to build and foster community. The Velvet Cake hop blend is a very phenomenal product that embodies the best attributes of collaboration, fellowship, and STEM research. We are enthusiastic about the opportunities this milestone occasion will bring forth.” – Jon Renthrope, President, National Black Brewers Association
“Roy Farms is beyond grateful to collaborate with NB2A on this exciting new blend. Life is layered much like this blend with opportunities and surprises around every corner. We hope to be a partner for good alongside the enthusiastic and driven people associated with the NB2A, while adding a dash of fun as well. This blend has familiar, favorite notes with a unique twist.” – Michael Roy, Owner, Roy Farms
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