Low-Alpha Hops Are Primed to Light up Your IPA

What does it mean for a hop to be a big flavor contributor in an IPA? Is the impact of hop flavor directly measured by the percentage of alpha acids and the total oil content of a given variety (the prevailing industry paradigm)? Or are there equally complex and captivating characteristics that can be coaxed out of hops that are generally considered “low-alpha” or “low-total-oil”? Can those hops be used to skillfully craft diverse and flavorful IPAs? Can we use those hops to make IPA unique again?

These are questions we ask ourselves at Indie Hops as we contemplate whether a new paradigm is needed in the ever-evolving world of IPA. In our current reality, malt bills in both West Coast and hazy IPAs have been stripped down to be paler in color; to be softer and leaner; to provide a clean canvas upon which to paint a hoppy masterpiece. Yet brewers are still leaning almost exclusively on high-alpha varieties when it comes to IPA. With such a clean canvas to paint on, it’s time we ask ourselves … do we need more colors on our color wheel? Does a clean canvas mean that we can expand the hop varieties that are generally considered well-suited for IPA?

An Expanded Palette

Red, yellow, and blue are considered the three primary colors because they cannot be created by mixing other colors. This rule can also be applied to the three primary hops used in modern IPA brewing—Citra, Simcoe, and Mosaic (the “Trinity”). These three hops have become ubiquitous in IPA, and countless breweries have successfully combined them to craft excellent beers. But would Picasso have limited himself to painting with only the three primary colors? No!

Brewers, of course, know this and do reach for varieties outside of the hop Trinity, but the overwhelming tendency is to reach for other high-alpha hops. Can greater nuance in tint, shade, or tone, and even entirely unique flavors, become possible by exploring certain lower-alpha varieties? We believe the answer is yes and that this is a path to a more versatile palette of colors with which to expand the horizon of IPA and connect with a broader base of craft-beer consumers.

Let’s explore this idea further by highlighting some examples.

Courtesy Fidens Brewing

Audacia

For this year’s CBC in Indianapolis, we teamed up with Fidens Brewing and Grains of Wrath to brew both a hazy and a West Coast IPA, each featuring a hop bill of 40 percent Amarillo/Citra and 60 percent Audacia, our newest hop release at Indie Hops. These beers were both built atop simple malt bills and specifically brewed to showcase the unique ability of Audacia (alpha acid ~ 5.5–8% | total oil ~ 1.1–1.5 ml/100 g) to “punch above its weight” and make its presence known alongside a couple of well-established IPA stars. Not every lower-alpha hop seems capable of inhabiting this space, of walking the tightrope between class and sass, of being as comfortable in IPA circles as in a noble gathering of world-class lagers. What then, are the key attributes of Audacia (and varieties such as Meridian, Crystal, Riwaka, and Sterling) that allow the broad brushstroke to paint across multiple beer styles?

Indie Hops crew checking on baby Audacia plants.

From a sensory standpoint, Audacia introduces flavors of huckleberry and lingonberry as well as tart lychee, currant, and pomegranate, all mingled with pronounced aromas of lavender, lilac, and rose. Its pedigree is quite unique as well—Audacia is a child of Hersbrucker Pure (female) and 1218-2M (a male that is related to Strata). Dr. Shaun Townsend at Oregon State University kept this male in the Indie Hops breeding program because of its exceptional agronomy, but it seems to have been responsible for passing along some awesome flavor attributes as well. And while its total oil content is relatively low compared to many typical “IPA hops,” it has a disproportionately greater amount of other essential oils because of its lower-than-average levels of myrcene, which makes up only about 25–30 percent of the total oil content instead of the 50+ percent that is more typical of the three primary hop varieties (and many others) used in modern IPA brewing.

We know that myrcene is a key contributor to the citrusy, piney, and resinous aromas found in IPA, but we also know that myrcene is highly volatile and very little remains in finished beer. And although beers heavily dry hopped with varieties high in myrcene can have pronounced myrcene-hued aromas, myrcene itself is hydrophobic and actually seems to have a saturation limit in finished beer depending on factors such as temperature, alcohol content, and carbonation levels. All this is to say, when it comes to myrcene, there is clearly a point of diminishing returns, and even hop varieties low in myrcene have enough to maximize this monoterpene’s contributions. This is why some varieties of moderate total oil but low myrcene can be big contributors to IPA character.

But this doesn’t explain why hops such as Meridian, Crystal, Riwaka, and Sterling are stellar IPA contributors, as they are all relatively high in myrcene!

Hops are mysterious. For all that we’ve collectively learned about hops, there is much more that we don’t know. Some hops simply have a combination of oils that, when found in beer, intrigues people. Why does Crystal pop in IPAs when her half-sisters Liberty and Mount Hood don’t? Crystal is simply sassier than her sisters.

Let’s look at a couple more beer examples.

Courtesy Buoy Beer

Meridian and Crystal

Buoy Beer Company in Astoria, Oregon, has been brewing excellent beers since the early 2010s. One of their core year-round beers, simply called IPA, is described on Buoy’s website as a Northwest IPA that is “big without the bitter bite. No hop shock here. Well-balanced and lovingly dry-hopped with Meridian and Crystal hops for a rich, citrusy finish.” Now, we know what you’re thinking. Meridian and Crystal for an IPA? Yep, that’s right, and the results speak for themselves. Buoy IPA is one of their flagship beers and clearly stands out from countless other IPAs with its unique and catchy hop profile. Both Meridian (alpha acid ~ 5–6.5% | total oil ~ 1.1–1.6 ml/100 g) and Crystal (alpha acid ~ 3.5–5% | total oil ~ 1.0–1.3 ml/10 0g) are relatively low in percent alpha acid and total oil content and are not typically considered standard “IPA hops.” But when skillfully mixed together, they can create a flavor profile with distinct complexity that Buoy further describes as including “melon and blackberry, with some citrus pine. An up-front bitterness, light caramel sweetness, and an earthy hop finish.” Myrcene levels for Meridian and Crystal are actually fairly standard, about 40–64.4 percent and 40–50 percent, respectively, and Buoy IPA has all the hallmarks of great myrcene character, plus the benefits of a defining flavor profile that is “smooth” and clearly different from that of an IPA brewed with the three primary hops.

Let’s dive into one more example to drive the point home.

Sterling and Chinook

Back in 2014, Mike Hess Brewing in San Diego, California, won gold at the World Beer Cup for their Habitus Double IPA featuring Sterling and Chinook hops. This beer was built upon a base of two-row and rye malt, and even with the spicy character of the rye, our original premise still holds true. By mixing a lower-alpha hop such as Sterling (alpha acid ~ 6–9% | total oil ~ 1.3–1.9 ml/100 g) with a bigger and bolder hop such as Chinook (alpha acid ~ 12–14% | total oil ~ 1.5–2.2 ml/100 g), Mike Hess Brewing was able to craft a standout, high-gravity double IPA that showcased layers of intriguing hop flavors beautifully complemented by the spicy rye malt. With Oregon-grown Chinook imparting fruity flavors of grapefruit, pineapple, and gin berries, and Oregon-grown Sterling weaving in wonderfully floral, earthy spice, and subtle red-grape flavors, these two hops mix incredibly well and result in unexpectedly drinkable flavors that people won’t soon forget.

Versatility

Another useful feature of lower-alpha hops is their ability to perform exceptionally well in both hot-side and cold-side applications. Each of these hops has enough alpha acid to achieve meaningful IBU contributions and “clean bitterness” through early-kettle additions, while also being able to deliver big flavor contributions through late-kettle additions, whirlpool additions, and dry hopping. By no means are these the only hops capable of this kind of dual-purpose functionality, but these are a few that we believe are remarkably well-suited to a new IPA paradigm—because hops, like people, are incredibly diverse.

We believe that to the extent that we can diversify our hop-variety combinations in IPAs, we can expand the audience of people who enjoy hop-driven craft beer. And the uniquely hop-driven nature of craft beer has historically been the key feature that sets our industry apart from the global macro-beer producers and bears primary responsibility for capturing such a significant market share of beer drinkers worldwide. So, as our industry faces the unknown headwinds and tariffs of tomorrow, we encourage all brewers to ask themselves, “Can we make IPA unique again?” We believe that broadening the exploration for “IPA hops” to include lower-alpha/oil varieties will help.

If you’re attending CBC in Indianapolis this year, swing by the Indie Hops booth #3122 to try the Audacia-hopped hazy and West Coast IPA from Fidens Brewing and Grains of Wrath, plus Buoy IPA, and many more incredible collab beers you won’t want to miss! Check out the full beer lineup here.

Indie Hops. Life is short. Let’s make it flavorful.