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United States

Apollo substitutes

Proven alternatives to Apollo and hops with a similar aroma profile. Pick by availability, price or country of origin.

Compare side by side

Direct substitutes

7

CTZ

USADual purpose8230

Alpha acid14.5–17%

Beta acid4.5–5.5%

Total oil2.5–4.5 mL

Black currantLicoriceCurryCitrus+2

Columbus

USADual purpose8230

Alpha acid14–18%

Beta acid4.5–6%

Total oil2.5–4.5 mL

EarthyBlack currantLicoriceCurry+6

Magnum (GR)

Magnum (GR)

GermanyBittering1980

IPAImperial StoutBarleywine

Alpha acid11–16%

Beta acid4.5–7%

Total oil1.6–2.6 mL

AppleBlack currantCleanCitrus+3

Magnum (US)

USABittering1980

IPAImperial StoutBarleywine

Alpha acid10–16%

Beta acid4.5–7%

Total oil1.6–3 mL

FloralCitrusSpicyNutmeg+1

Nugget

Nugget

USADual purpose1983

Alpha acid9.5–16%

Beta acid3–5.8%

Total oil0.9–3.3 mL

HerbalCitrusGingerPineapple+5

Tomahawk

USADual purpose8230

Alpha acid15–17.5%

Beta acid4.5–6%

Total oil2.5–4.5 mL

CitrusBlack currantLicoriceCurry+1

Zeus

Zeus

USABittering8230

IPAImperial StoutBarleywine

Alpha acid13–17.5%

Beta acid4–6.5%

Total oil2.4–4.5 mL

Black currantLicoriceCurryPungent

How to swap it in a recipe

Bitterness scales with alpha acid times weight, so for bittering additions rescale the weight by the alpha ratio — the multiplier for each substitute is given below. For late, whirlpool and dry-hop additions dose 1:1 by weight and go by aroma instead, because alpha acids do not drive those.

Apollo → CTZ

workable match

Use 1.13× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 17.75% → 15.75% · 33% aroma match

Keeps: Citrus, Cannabis, Dank
Loses: Grapefruit, Orange, Pine, Resin, Lime, Lemon
Adds: Black currant, Licorice, Curry

Apollo → Columbus

workable match

Use 1.11× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 17.75% → 16% · 33% aroma match

Keeps: Citrus, Cannabis, Dank
Loses: Grapefruit, Orange, Pine, Resin, Lime, Lemon
Adds: Earthy, Black currant, Licorice, Curry, Spicy, Floral, Pungent

Apollo → Magnum (GR)

last-resort match

Use 1.31× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 17.75% → 13.5% · 11% aroma match

Keeps: Citrus
Loses: Grapefruit, Orange, Pine, Resin, Cannabis, Lime, Lemon, Dank
Adds: Apple, Black currant, Clean, Clean, Floral, Fruity

Apollo → Magnum (US)

last-resort match

Use 1.37× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 17.75% → 13% · 11% aroma match

Keeps: Citrus
Loses: Grapefruit, Orange, Pine, Resin, Cannabis, Lime, Lemon, Dank
Adds: Floral, Spicy, Nutmeg, Black currant

Apollo → Nugget

last-resort match

Use 1.39× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 17.75% → 12.75% · 11% aroma match

Keeps: Citrus
Loses: Grapefruit, Orange, Pine, Resin, Cannabis, Lime, Lemon, Dank
Adds: Herbal, Ginger, Pineapple, Geranium, Lychee, Herbal, Earthy, Coconut

Apollo → Tomahawk

last-resort match

Use 1.09× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 17.75% → 16.25% · 11% aroma match

Keeps: Citrus
Loses: Grapefruit, Orange, Pine, Resin, Cannabis, Lime, Lemon, Dank
Adds: Black currant, Licorice, Curry, Onion

Apollo → Zeus

last-resort match

Use 1.16× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 17.75% → 15.25% · 0% aroma match

Loses: Citrus, Grapefruit, Orange, Pine, Resin, Cannabis, Lime, Lemon, Dank
Adds: Black currant, Licorice, Curry, Pungent

Similar aroma profiles

2

Amarillo

Pale AlePilsWitbier

Alpha acid7–11%

Beta acid5.5–8%

Total oil1–2.3 mL

FloralSpicyTropicalCitrus+7

Chinook

USADual purpose

Alpha acid11.5–15%

Beta acid3–4%

Total oil1–2.7 mL

PineResinGrapefruitSpicy+2

How to pick a substitute

Look for similar alpha acid content (within 2%) and overlapping aroma notes. The more shared notes, the safer the swap.