Chinook Hop Pellets
Brewing Values
Alpha Acids: 10.8-14.0%
Total Oil: 1.4-2.1 ml/100g
Sensory Notes
Ripe Pineapple – Sweet Resin – Bright Pine
Overview
Named for the original inhabitants of the area of Washington in which it was developed, Chinook is traditionally known as a bittering hop. It usually comes in strong with pine and resin notes, but our Vermont Chinook brings big tropical fruit flavors (especially ripe pineapple) with the pine and resin notes taking more of a back seat. Vermont Chinook can still be used for bittering but offers tons of bright flavor and aroma when used late in the brewing process.
All hops are grown, harvested, dried, pelleted, packaged and sold by Champlain Valley Hops in Starksboro, VT. Please contact us if you have any questions.
Chinook Hop Profile: Aroma & Flavor
Chinook is well-known for its spicy and earthy profile, which is often reminiscent of pine resin. It also offers grapefruit notes that sing out clearly above its earthy elements. Since it’s high in AA% (alpha acids), Chinook can add a lot of bitterness if used too heavily, but its high geraniol content turns into citronellol during the brewing process, which is good for fruity IPAs.
Our Vermont Chinook is very distinctive, since our terroir adds pineapple and ripe tropical fruit notes that aren’t typically present in cones grown out west. Our latest crop features more hints of sweet pine but continues to be dominated by pineapple and tropical fruit.
Chinook Hop History
Chinook was bred as a cross between Petham Golding (a common English variety) and a USDA-selected male. It was first bred in 1985 as an American bittering hop, but is now considered to be a dual-purpose variety by most brewers.
Unlike Cascade, Chinook was a successful sell to the mainstream industry right off the bat–although the big breweries only used it for bittering purposes (craft brewers would be responsible for giving Chinook a more versatile image).
Named after the native population of the Yakima Valley region, it continues to be overwhelmingly grown in WA, though our Vermont Chinook makes the case that it can work extremely well in other terroir.
Beers that use Chinook hops
IPA, Pale Ale, Stout, Porter, Winter Ale
When to add Chinook hops
Chinook is a dual-purpose variety, offering ample bitterness if added early, and strong fruitiness if added later. Use it sparingly on the hot side, because it can quickly overwhelm!
What hops go well with Chinook?
Centennial, Cascade, Simcoe, Columbus, Citra, Amarillo
Chinook hop substitute options
Nugget, Columbus, Tomahawk, Zeus, CTZ, Northern Brewer, Galena
