Hopedia
United States

Simcoe substitutes

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

Compare side by side

Direct substitutes

8
Amarillo

Amarillo

USAAroma2014
Pale AlePilsWitbier
Alpha acid7–11%
Beta acid5.5–8%
Total oil1–2.3 mL
FloralSpicyTropicalCitrus+7
Cascade

Cascade

USADual purpose1972
IPAAPAPils
Alpha acid4.5–9%
Beta acid4.8–7.5%
Total oil0.7–2.5 mL
GrapefruitFloralSpicyCitrus+1
Centennial

Centennial

USADual purpose1990
IPAAPAPils
Alpha acid7–12%
Beta acid3.5–5.5%
Total oil1–3 mL
PineCitrusFloralGrapefruit+1
Citra

Citra

USADual purpose2008
IPAAPAPils
Alpha acid10–15%
Beta acid3–4.5%
Total oil1.5–3 mL
CitrusGrapefruitPeachMelon+5

Columbus

USADual purpose8230
IPAAPAPils
Alpha acid14–18%
Beta acid4.5–6%
Total oil2.5–4.5 mL
EarthyBlack currantLicoriceCurry+6

Magnum (US)

USABittering1980
IPAImperial StoutBarleywine
Alpha acid10–16%
Beta acid4.5–7%
Total oil1.6–3 mL
FloralCitrusSpicyNutmeg+1
Mosaic

Mosaic

USADual purpose2012
IPAAPAPils
Alpha acid11.5–13.5%
Beta acid3.2–3.9%
Total oil1–1.5 mL
BlueberryTropicalCitrusGrassy+9
Summit

Summit

USABittering2003
IPAImperial StoutBarleywine
Alpha acid15–17.5%
Beta acid4–6.5%
Total oil1.5–3 mL
Black currantAniseIncenseOrange+8

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.

Simcoe → Amarillo

workable match

Use 1.44× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 13% → 9% · 33% aroma match

Keeps
Grapefruit, Apricot, Citrus
Loses
Fruity, Earthy, Passion fruit, Pine, Berry, Bubblegum
Adds
Floral, Spicy, Tropical, Orange, Lemon, Melon, Peach, Dank

Simcoe → Cascade

last-resort match

Use 1.93× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 13% → 6.75% · 33% aroma match

Keeps
Grapefruit, Pine, Citrus
Loses
Fruity, Earthy, Passion fruit, Berry, Apricot, Bubblegum
Adds
Floral, Spicy

Simcoe → Centennial

workable match

Use 1.37× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 13% → 9.5% · 33% aroma match

Keeps
Grapefruit, Pine, Citrus
Loses
Fruity, Earthy, Passion fruit, Berry, Apricot, Bubblegum
Adds
Floral, Tangerine

Simcoe → Citra

workable match

Use 1.04× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 13% → 12.5% · 33% aroma match

Keeps
Grapefruit, Passion fruit, Citrus
Loses
Fruity, Earthy, Pine, Berry, Apricot, Bubblegum
Adds
Peach, Melon, Lime, Floral, Gooseberry, Lychee

Simcoe → Columbus

last-resort match

Use 0.81× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 13% → 16% · 22% aroma match

Keeps
Earthy, Citrus
Loses
Fruity, Grapefruit, Passion fruit, Pine, Berry, Apricot, Bubblegum
Adds
Black currant, Licorice, Curry, Spicy, Floral, Pungent, Dank, Cannabis

Simcoe → Magnum (US)

last-resort match

Use the same weight for the same bitterness

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

Keeps
Citrus
Loses
Fruity, Earthy, Grapefruit, Passion fruit, Pine, Berry, Apricot, Bubblegum
Adds
Floral, Spicy, Nutmeg, Black currant

Simcoe → Mosaic

workable match

Use 1.04× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 13% → 12.5% · 56% aroma match

Keeps
Earthy, Grapefruit, Pine, Bubblegum, Citrus
Loses
Fruity, Passion fruit, Berry, Apricot
Adds
Blueberry, Tropical, Grassy, Spicy, Tangerine, Papaya, Rose, Blossom

Simcoe → Summit

workable match

Use 0.8× the weight for the same bitterness

alpha acids 13% → 16.25% · 33% aroma match

Keeps
Earthy, Grapefruit, Citrus
Loses
Fruity, Passion fruit, Pine, Berry, Apricot, Bubblegum
Adds
Black currant, Anise, Incense, Orange, Tangerine, Onion, Garlic, Dank, Cannabis

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.

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