Hop
Simcoe
A distinctive American hop combining pine and passionfruit with a characteristic catty, dank edge.
Simcoe carries pine and passionfruit together with a distinctly resinous, faintly savoury edge that some drinkers read as catty. It is a dual-purpose hop with a high enough alpha to bitter and enough character to dry-hop.
It arrived in 2000 and did much to define the West Coast IPA profile before the tropical varieties took over. Proprietary, and for years supply-constrained, which is part of why so many breweries learned to blend around it.
Aroma and flavour
Descriptors are impressions rather than analytical results. BeerHQ rates this characterisation as well established.
Belongs to
Analysis
| Alpha acid | 12–14% |
|---|---|
| Cohumulone | 15–20% |
| Total oil | 2–3 ml/100 g |
| Purpose | dual purpose |
| Origin | United States |
| Breeder | Yakima Chief Ranches |
| Released | 2000 |
| Storage stability | good |
The name is a registered trademark rather than a plain variety name, which affects what a label may say and who may grow it.
How it is used
- Bittering (early boil). Added at or near the start of the boil, where long exposure isomerises alpha acids into bitterness and drives off aroma.
- Whirlpool / hop stand. Steeped below boiling after flameout. Extracts aroma and flavour with limited additional bitterness.
- Dry hop. Added after the boil, during or after fermentation. Contributes aroma and flavour with essentially no isomerised bitterness.
If you like Simcoe
Hops with comparable character. Similarity and substitutability are different questions, so each entry says which it is: a hop can smell alike and still change the beer if its alpha acid is far off.
Chinook 12–14% alpha · editorial
Shares the pine character with a rougher bitterness.
Not the same: lacks the tropical fruit of Simcoe.
Close enough in both aroma and alpha acid to swap in a recipe.
Southern Cross 11–14% alpha
Shares pine and resin, citrus, earth and wood with Simcoe; a dual-purpose variety at a comparable alpha acid.
Not the same: lacks the tropical fruit of Simcoe.
Close enough in both aroma and alpha acid to swap in a recipe.
Denali 13–15% alpha
Shares pine and resin, tropical fruit, citrus with Simcoe; a dual-purpose variety at a comparable alpha acid.
Not the same: lacks the earth and wood of Simcoe.
Close enough in both aroma and alpha acid to swap in a recipe.
Strata 11–15% alpha
Shares pine and resin, tropical fruit, citrus with Simcoe; an aroma variety at a comparable alpha acid.
Not the same: lacks the earth and wood of Simcoe.
Close enough in both aroma and alpha acid to swap in a recipe.
Idaho 7 9–14% alpha
Shares pine and resin, tropical fruit, earth and wood with Simcoe; a dual-purpose variety at a comparable alpha acid.
Not the same: brings stone fruit that Simcoe does not; lacks the citrus of Simcoe.
Close enough in both aroma and alpha acid to swap in a recipe.
Straight substitutes
Close enough in both character and alpha acid to swap at a similar weight. Substitution is directional and imperfect — these are the nearest available options, not equivalents.
- Chinook — Shares the pine character with a rougher bitterness.
- Southern Cross — Shares pine and resin, citrus, earth and wood with Simcoe; a dual-purpose variety at a comparable alpha acid.
- Denali — Shares pine and resin, tropical fruit, citrus with Simcoe; a dual-purpose variety at a comparable alpha acid.
- Strata — Shares pine and resin, tropical fruit, citrus with Simcoe; an aroma variety at a comparable alpha acid.
Combines well with
Used in
- American IPA
The defining modern craft beer: intense citrus, tropical and resinous hop aroma over a lean malt base, finishing firmly bitter.
- West Coast IPA
The dry, clear, aggressively bitter interpretation of American IPA, built on pine and grapefruit with the malt stripped right back.
- Double IPA
IPA scaled up: more strength, more hops and more bitterness, while staying dry enough to remain drinkable.
- Black IPA
An IPA with dark malt for colour and a light roast edge, keeping full citrus and pine hop character.
- Red IPA
An IPA built on caramel and amber malt, where toffee depth sits underneath full American hop character.
- Cold IPA
A lean, dry IPA fermented with lager yeast at higher temperature, using maize or rice to strip body and expose hop aroma.