“Hopped Up” is a feature-length documentary film about hops and craft beer. This film was built from the ground up — by hand, on foot, in fields. It’s about legacy, science, family, and the weird magic of hops. I made it because the story deserved to be told. Now I’m selling the DVDs directly — not for profit, but to get them into the hands of those who care. Thanks for supporting indie film and holding onto a piece of it. Posing the question, did craft beer change Yakima, or did Yakima change craft beer? That’s the question director/producer Daniel A. Cardenas set out to answer in “Hopped Up.”
Sitting in a hop field at Brulotte Farms reviewing an image in April 2014
Released in October 2021, Hopped Up won “Best Northwest Documentary” and “Best Feature Documentary” at the 2021 Ellensburg Film Festival, which started over 15 years ago.
With proximity to the Yakima Valley, the production took Cardenas to Yakima over 10 times. Furthermore, the film also travels to Oregon’s Willamette Valley, Missoula, Montana, St Petersburg, FL, and throughout WA state.
Interviews with hop farmers, breeders, sellers, brewers, and experts in the industry help tell the story.
Daniel A. Cardenas shooting Hops Doc