Silas spat into the dirt, a twinkle in his eye. "North field is spoken for, Clara. Big contract out of Chicago."

Every August, the quiet town of Oakhaven transformed. It wasn't the tourists who arrived first, but the "Bulk Buyers"—a ragtag fleet of dented pickup trucks and sleek refrigerated semis. They weren't looking for a pound or two for a homebrew kit; they were here for the heavy lifting.

By noon, the deal was inked on a greasy napkin. They spent the rest of the day baling the "Ghost" into two-hundred-pound cubes, wrapping them in airtight foil to freeze the freshness in time.

Clara’s heart sank. In the world of bulk hops, timing was everything. If you didn't secure your "spot" during the harvest, you were left scrambling for pelletized leftovers by February.

Among them was Clara, a head brewer from three states over. Her brewery was growing faster than she could keep up with, and she needed five hundred pounds of Citra and Mosaic to keep her flagship IPA flowing through the winter.

Clara followed him. Inside the kiln, the floor was waist-deep in vibrant green flowers. She plunged her arms in, pulled out a handful, and rubbed them between her palms. The friction released a sticky, yellow resin—lupulin—and an aroma so potent it made her dizzy. It was perfect.