"Mike Rowe" news and stories

Next time you sip on a deliciously hoppy ale, you may want to take a moment to reflect on the men who made it all possible. Or at least that's what the Discovery Channel might have us believe.

News out of Yakima, Washington, via the Yakima Herald-Republic, is that Mike Rowe and the rest of the Discovery Channel's Dirty Jobs crew visited a hops processor in the area to film a forthcoming episode of the show. According to the article "Rowe spent two days picking and inspecting hops, working the kilns that dry the hops and making bales." Hops, a flower that helps give beer its distinct flavor, seems like a topical choice. Rising hops' prices, the result of a global hops shortage, has received significant media coverage.

While picking hops certainly doesn't sound like much fun, I'm yet to be convinced how "dirty" the job actually is. Though, truth be told, I'd probably be more apt to watch a Dirty Jobs episode about beer over filthier fare simply because it's a topic I enjoy (unlike, say, cleaning my toilet).

However, don't fire up your DVR quite yet: The episode probably won't be airing until between January and October of next year.

[Photo Credit: wikipedia.org]