Hops
Hops Substitutes: How to Choose the Best Alternative
When a recipe hop is unavailable, the best substitute depends on what that addition is meant to do. A hop used for 60-minute bittering can often be replaced more easily than a distinctive late or dry-hop addition, where aroma and flavour are the main point.
Use the chart below as a practical starting point rather than a promise of an identical result. Current availability changes, so compare the hop range and New Zealand hops before choosing.
The three things to match
- Purpose: bittering, late-boil flavour, whirlpool or dry hop.
- Character: citrus, tropical fruit, stone fruit, pine, floral, spicy, herbal or earthy.
- Alpha acid: especially important for bittering additions, where a stronger hop may need less weight.
For bittering only: a useful first calculation is new weight ≈ original weight × original alpha-acid percentage ÷ substitute alpha-acid percentage. For example, 20g of a 10% AA hop is roughly equivalent in alpha-acid input to 25g of an 8% AA hop. This is an estimate: boil time, wort gravity, hop form and recipe software still affect the final IBU.
New Zealand and Pacific hop starting points
| Hop requested | Possible starting substitutes | How close is the match? |
|---|---|---|
| Taiheke / NZ Cascade | Taiheke when available, Cascade, Centennial, Amarillo | Citrus and floral direction. Centennial is usually firmer; Amarillo is more orange-led. |
| Motueka | Saaz, Sterling, Wakatu | Saaz-like spice with lime and citrus. Wakatu is softer and more floral. |
| Nelson Sauvin | Hallertau Blanc, Motueka, a restrained white-wine/tropical blend | Its gooseberry and white-wine character is distinctive; there is no exact one-hop replacement. |
| Riwaka | Motueka, Taiheke, Citra | All can supply bright citrus, but Riwaka’s intense grapefruit and tropical edge is difficult to copy exactly. |
| Kohatu | Kohatu when available, Wai-iti, Wakatu, Motueka | Soft tropical fruit and citrus; best suited to gentle late additions rather than replacing a high-alpha bittering hop. |
| Rakau | Rakau when available, Nectaron, Mosaic, Amarillo | Stone-fruit direction. Mosaic can add berry and dank notes; Amarillo is more citrus-forward. |
| Southern Cross | Southern Cross when available, Simcoe, Chinook, Waimea | Citrus and pine direction. Check alpha acid carefully if using it for bittering. |
| Waimea | Waimea when available, Pacific Jade, Green Bullet, Chinook | Firm bittering with citrus and pine. Chinook can be more resinous. |
| Wakatu | Wakatu when available, Hallertau Mittelfrüh, Liberty, Pacifica | Floral and gently spicy with citrus/lime. A useful bridge between NZ and noble-style hops. |
| Nectaron | Rakau, Mosaic, Citra | Aim for ripe stone fruit and tropical character. A blend is often closer than one substitute. |
American and modern aroma hops
| Hop requested | Possible starting substitutes | How close is the match? |
|---|---|---|
| Cascade | Centennial, Amarillo, Ahtanum | Classic grapefruit, citrus and floral direction; Centennial is often stronger and more bitter. |
| Centennial | Cascade plus a little Chinook, Amarillo, Columbus | Often called a more intense Cascade-type direction, with extra resin and bitterness. |
| Citra | Mosaic, Galaxy, Azacca | Tropical and citrus direction. Galaxy can be more passionfruit-led; Mosaic brings berry and dank notes. |
| Mosaic | Citra, Simcoe, Azacca | Fruit-forward alternatives, but Mosaic’s mix of berry, tropical fruit and resin is distinctive. |
| Amarillo | Cascade, Centennial, Azacca | Orange and floral citrus direction. Adjust the recipe rather than assuming equal intensity. |
| Chinook | Columbus, Northern Brewer, Nugget | Pine, spice and firm bitterness. Columbus is often the closest for a strong resinous role. |
| Simcoe | Chinook, Mosaic, Summit | Pine and fruit direction. Mosaic is fruitier; Chinook is usually sharper and more resinous. |
English, European and noble-style hops
| Hop requested | Possible starting substitutes | How close is the match? |
|---|---|---|
| East Kent Golding / Golding | Fuggle, Willamette, Styrian Golding, Progress | Traditional floral, earthy and gently spicy English direction. |
| Fuggle | Willamette, Styrian Golding, East Kent Golding | Earthy, woody and herbal. Willamette is a common American-grown starting substitute. |
| Saaz | Sterling, Tettnang, Motueka | Noble spice and herb character. Motueka adds a clearer lime note. |
| Hallertau Mittelfrüh | Liberty, Mount Hood, Wakatu | Soft floral, spicy and herbal direction. Wakatu introduces a light citrus edge. |
| Tettnang | Saaz, Spalt, Sterling | Noble floral and spicy profile; check origin because similarly named varieties can differ. |
| Styrian Golding | Fuggle, East Kent Golding, Willamette | Despite the name, this is closer to the Fuggle family than to every hop sold as Golding. |
When a blend is the better answer
A single replacement does not always cover the missing hop’s full profile. Combining a citrus hop with a tropical or resinous hop can be closer, especially for Citra, Mosaic, Nelson Sauvin, Riwaka or Nectaron-led recipes. The current Mangrove Jack’s Citrus blend and other recipe-range hop blends can also provide a straightforward flavour direction when an exact variety is unavailable.
How to make the substitution
- Check the alpha-acid percentage printed on both packs; crop year and lot can change it.
- For a bittering addition, adjust the weight using your brewing software or the alpha-acid estimate above.
- For late and dry hopping, prioritise aroma character and intensity rather than matching alpha acid.
- Keep the original timing unless you intentionally want to change bitterness or aroma.
- Write down the hop, weight, alpha acid and timing so you can refine the next batch.
If the requested hop defines the beer—particularly Nelson Sauvin, Riwaka or another highly distinctive late hop—it may be better to wait for stock or accept that the substitute will create a different but still good beer.