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Underrated Aroma Hops: 10 Great Teammates at Rookie-Contract Prices
There are “cheater” hops and there are “cheaper” hops, but the latter can also offer the big exotic aromas and flavors that are popular today. Stan Hieronymus has specific suggestions for varieties and how they might be employed in the brewhouse.
When Sapwood Cellars in Columbia, Maryland, released the 10th iteration of its Cheater Hops IPA, it sold a special glass to commemorate the occasion. The glass listed the hop varieties that had been used in the series up to that point. The names—such as Citra, Mosaic, and Galaxy—are familiar (and expensive).
As Sapwood Cellars partners Scott Janish and Michael Tonsmeire explained it when they released Cheater iteration No. 15, “a handful of hop varieties pack such appealing aromatics that brewing with them is like cheating. … We are honest brewers, that’s why we can admit when we cheat!”
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