BREWMASTEREX:
Steve Dresler, Craft Brewing Consultant
 

Charter for Award of the Order of the Hop

Instituted by John the Fearless, who was born in 1371 at Dijon, the son of Philip the Bold, Duke of Burgundy and King of Brabant, the Order of the Hop was intended as a mark of distinction and honor for all “Gentlemen” who contributed to the development and prosperity of the “noble” plant, which is so important for beer production.  The Order of John the Fearless continues to be conferred in the 21st Century on the descendants of those who received the honor in 14th Century: hop growers and brewers, administrators and rectors of universities, employees, drinkers of good beer, and all who are interested in “cultivation of the noble hop” and the “agreeable drink”.  Following a promise to Mr. M. Kauffmann (France), the previous Grand Master of the Order of the Hop, the International Hop Growers Bureau took over the award of the Order of the Hop at the meeting of the I.H.B. on 5.8.1970 in Brussels. This charter outlines the procedure for award of the Order to all who have merited it by their services in the field of hop cultivation. The award of the Order of the Hop is designed to lead to further achievements and still greater advances hop culture.

 

Article I - The Order of the Hop has three grades:

(1) Knight of the Order of the Hop (Chevalier).

(2) Officer of the Order of the Hop (Officer)

(3) Commander of the Order of the Hop (Commander)

Thus, the degree of recognition conferred is progressive, the second decoration (Officer) being higher and the third (Commander) the

Article II - On conferment of the Order of the Hop the person thus decorated shall receive a medal and/or ribbon and a suitably inscribed certificate.

Article III - The Knight’s medal shall have a diameter of about 4 cm and show a crown of hop leaves and cones surrounding the arms of Burgundy with the Lion of flanders in the middle. To the left of the coat of arms are the letters C.I.C.H. (Comité International de la Culture du Houblon), above the coat of arms the letters I.H.B. (Internationales Hopfenbaubüro) and to the right, I.H.G.C. (The International Hop Growers Convention). The Knight shall wear this on his left lapel. The Officer wears a hop—green ribbon (12 x 5 cm) embroidered in gold with two hop cones and two hop leaves (about 2 x 3 cm), on his left breast, near the medal. The Commander wears a hop—green ribbon (75 x 2.6 cm) around his neck, with the medal.

Article IV - The certificate of conferment of’ the Order of’ the Hop measures 41.5 x 30 cm. The certificate bears the following headings: “Ordre du Houblon, créé par “Jean sans Peur”, né á Dijon en 1371. Hopfenorden, gestiftet von Johannes Intrepidus, geboren 1371 in Dijon Hops—Order, instituted by Jean sans Peur, born 1371 at Dijon.” The central part, reserved for designation of the recipient, is surrounded by hop—leaves and cones (in green). Below is the

I.H.G.C. headquarters in Strasbourg, with the date on which the document was issued.The document shall be signed by the I.H.G.C. President in office (under the words “Le Grand Maitre, Der Grossmeister, The Grand Master”) and by the Secretary General in office (under the words: “Le Vicaire General, Der Generalvikar, The Vicar General”). The recipient of the honour shall have his Surname and Christian name, address and degree of honour conferred, with the date of the award inscribed on the document.
Article V - The Order of the Hop shall be awarded by the Executive at the Executive Meeting, if possible at the Spring Meeting, so that the necessary preparations may be made before the General Meeting, when the Order of the Hop shall be solemnly conferred by the President upon the person thus honoured.

Article VI - The higher degrees of the Order may normally be conferred only if the previous degree or decrees have already been awarded; these may be passed over only in exceptional cases and for very special reasons.

Article VII - Member organizations shall send proposals for conferment of the Order of the Hop to the Secretary General by mid—February at the latest, so that the latter may submit all proposals to the Executive in time for the Meeting. Each member organization may make the following maximum number of proposals annually for conferment of the Order of the Hop:

• Member countries with up to 2,000 ha of hops (2 awards)

• Member countries with hop area from 2,001 to 5,000 ha hops (3 awards)

• Member countries with an area over 5,000 ha hops (5 awards)

By the way of exception, the country where the IHGC Congress takes place may nominate 2 additional nominees for the award. In addition, the IHGC commissions and the Executive Committee have right to nominate totally up to 4 persons for the award every second year.

The area under cultivation during the previous year shall be used for this.

 

Article VIII - The necessary material shall be acquired out of I.H.G.C. funds.
Article IX - The Secretary General shall keep a book in which all awards shall be recorded under the Member countries.  Where possible those already made and fully recognized, as such by the I.H.G.C. shall also be registered.
Article X - The charter comes into force as soon as it has been accepted by the Board.
 

This Charter has been accepted at the Board meeting of the I.H.B. on 30 September 1971 in Munich.