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Before showy varieties like Citra®, much of American brewing was led by the classic family of “C-hops.” This included Cascade, Centennial, and big, bold Chinook.
Named after the Native American tribe indigenous to the Yakima Valley region where this variety was first grown, Chinook played a key role in the flavors and aromas that defined an entire generation of craft brewing on the West Coast. However, don’t make the mistake of thinking this old school hop is no longer relevant.
Last year, brewer and founder at La Cumbre Brewing Jeff Erway told Craft Beer & Brewing, “After 20 years, honestly, I like it more every year. I am never disappointed.”¹ Chinook even plays a central role in their flagship beer which took home a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival less than one year after their brewery opened.
Excited to start brewing? Ready to learn more about this unapologetically piney and surprisingly fruity hop? Discover the origins, aromas, and endless brewing possibilities of Chinook!
Sure, it was originally bred as a bittering hop with alpha acids ranging from 12-14% and a bite that’s been described as “grippy.” However, that’s only half the story. Chinook’s aroma is beautifully resinous with elements of Christmas pine, fresh rose petals, and even tropical hints of ripe pineapple. It’s perfectly spicy, delicately floral, and the light tropical touches are transformative.
Reid Spencer, head brewer at Georgetown Brewing, told Craft Beer & Brewing that he loved Chinook, saying, “I’m often reminded how great it is at selection. It can have the most explosive aromatics. Sometimes it even out-performs Citra [at the selection table]. It can be a little forgotten.”
Part of its explosive flavor comes from unique compounds that make it ideal for certain brewing purposes. Chinook contains a large amount of the “survivable compound” Geraniol. Survivable compounds, named so by Yakima Chief Hops in 2021, are beer-soluble and highly aromatic. Other compounds included in this group are Linalool, one ketone, four sweet esters, and one tropical thiol.
This matters because adding hops high in survivable compounds during specific points in the brewing process can uniquely impact a final beer. For example, Chinook and Centennial are varieties with particularly high amounts of survivable compounds, which makes them good candidates for use in earlier stages of the brewing process.
Today, brewers understand that geraniol can play a role in the biotransformations of compounds, thereby creating fruity aromas and flavors; they also understand that those may interact synergistically with thiols to generate tropical flavors.
Brewing 21st Century IPA with 20th Century Hops
Craft Beer & Brewing
Yakima Valley Hops also notes the high Geraniol content in Chinook which can turn into Citronellol through biotransformation. Citronellol is “a highly-sought-after aroma compound in fruit-forward IPAs. This is just one of the reasons why we recommend Chinook as one of the Top Hops For Hazy IPAs.”²
While it’s obviously a delicious addition to a variety of IPAs and Pale Ales, Chinook can also shine in dark beers like porters and stouts or even experimental beers using whirlpool and dry hopping techniques to bring out more nuanced fruit and floral notes.
We highly recommend pairing Chinook with Simcoe® for a deep resinous pine aroma with notes of dank fruit. That’s just the start! There are MANY other iconic hop pairings (Citra®, Mosaic®, Amarillo®, etc.) that are just as mouthwatering.
As part of the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) hop breeding program in Washington, Chinook was developed by Chuck Zimmermann with parentage including English hops Petham Golding and a USDA-selected male.
When it was released by Steve Kenney in 1985, many in the industry dubbed it “super alpha.” However, unlike Cascade which had been made public several years prior, Chinook wasn’t a hard sell to the mainstream industry.
Big breweries quickly began using it for bittering purposes, but it was craft brewers who eventually saw its aromatic potential and slowly curated its reputation as a dual-purpose hop.
Suddenly, Chinook was beloved for its big notes of pine, zesty citrus, and rich spicy undertones, and it’s no coincidence that many of those flavors would go on to define an entire generation of West Coast IPAs.
While newer hops have certainly stolen some of the spotlight from C-hop varieties like Chinook, there’s no denying that it’s still an unforgettable brewing staple.
The bold elements of Christmas pine in Chinook make it an obvious choice for seasonal beers, whether they lean more into fall Oktoberfest styles or winter stouts or porters. However, with emerging and blurring beverage categories, there’s never been a better time to experiment with beverage formulations — and big, versatile Chinook might be just what your next drink needs!
Hop waters, for example, appeal to seltzer drinkers and even beer customers who might want an alternative to non alcoholic beer. The resinous pine notes in Chinook can provide the bold flavor customers who are new to NA beer might be looking for.
Want Ideas for Adding Hop Water to Your Menu? Get inspiration HERE!
On top of that, its unique florals and tropicals are versatile enough to provide novelty for the growing functional drink category. From flavor-forward energy drinks to RTD teas and carbonated soft drinks, Chinook can stand on its own or pair beautifully with other flavors and aromas.
For example, blending it with other hops or fruit could create the next elevated beverage experience customers are craving. You could play up Chinook’s natural fruit flavors with even MORE Pineapple, add an unexpected hit of Raspberry to complement those floral qualities, and so much more.
Plus, let’s not forget the big wide world of cannabis-inspired flavors! Pairing resinous Chinook with the dank quality of strains like Super Sour Diesel can create a deep base of earthiness that’s never been experienced before. Conversely, leaning into tropics with something like Pineapple Express can give customers an explosion of juicy citrus with complex notes of spice.
All of this starts by brewing with the true flavor and aroma of Chinook, and that’s exactly what you’ll get in our Chinook Quantum Profile.
Our Quantum Series starts with hops… and only hops. Using whole Chinook hops and pellets, we perform the highest quality extractions in the industry, so you’re JUST getting vibrant flavors and aromas with no undesirable compounds. No lab formulations, just every last drop of authentic Chinook flavor and aroma we could squeeze out of the plant.
Want to brew with the flavor and aroma of Chinook… forever? While Quantum is solely derived from hops, our Chinook Omni Hop Profile is sourced from sustainable botanicals. With this as the foundation, we then layer in terpenes and other compounds to formulate, replicate, and standardize the flavor and aroma so it can be recreated indefinitely.
Plus, once you get your optimized hop extract in your hands, you can ditch several common brewing issues. Compared to whole hops, pellets, and even other hop extracts, our profiles have:
You can even differentiate your brand with exclusive flavors and aromas customers won’t get anywhere else. Want more complex tropicals or added depth to that Christmas pine? Prefer sweeter florals? Customize your Chinook profile and create the precise flavor and aroma you want!
Ready to start brewing? Today, it’s easier than ever.
Unlike traditional extracts, our Optimized Hop Extracts offer varietal-specific flavors and aromas with no alpha acids and no undesirable plant compounds to gunk up your tank. They have a 100% utilization rate, they don’t require carriers, they offer logistical cost savings, and there’s zero “hop creep.”
Contact us today, and let’s get you brewing with the flavors and aromas of this iconic C-hop!
Hieronymus, S. (2024, August 5). Brewing 21st Century IPA with 20th century hops. Craft Beer & Brewing. https://www.beerandbrewing.com/21st-century-ipas-20th-century-hops
Chinook Hops. Yakima Valley Hops. (n.d.). https://yakimavalleyhops.com/products/chinook-hop-pellets?srsltid=AfmBOorJx1Gs8PVnKVnB9He42x5-8e2Cwbgm5RwHuh7NA6YnyAz5cZ6X
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