Bad Santa by Pelican Brewing: the hops, explained

What it'll taste like

What the 4 hops smell like, most shared first — from the hop growers' and breeders' own notes, not the brewery's. 3 from USA, 1 from England.

The hop bill

Magnum
USA

No aroma descriptors on file yet.

Bitterness Very high 9–18% α

Aroma oil 1.5–3.9 mL
Fuggle
England

Spice, Vegetal, Grassy, Vanilla, Tea

Bitterness Gentle 3–6.5% α

Aroma oil 0.5–1.4 mL

Mostly myrcene 43%, humulene 39%
Willamette
USA · Aroma

Earthy, Floral, Herbal, Woody, Spice, Orchard fruit

Bitterness Moderate 3.8–8% α

Aroma oil 0.5–1.6 mL

Mostly myrcene 33%, humulene 26%

Grown 2025: 227 ac Oregon · 199 ac Washington · 158 ac Idaho
Cascade
USA · Dual purpose

Grapefruit, Citrus, Floral, Spice, Pine, Woody

Bitterness Moderate 4.5–8% α

Aroma oil 0.7–1.5 mL

Mostly myrcene 46%, humulene 15%

Grown 2025: 1,719 ac Washington · 487 ac Oregon

In the order Pelican Brewing lists them: Magnum, Fuggle, Willamette, Cascade. From the brewery's page for this beer. Forms like Cryo and CO2 extract are the same variety processed differently.

Beers like this one · the closest hop bills on file

Fruity Garland Ex Novo Brewing · shares Magnum, Cascade
The Brewed Abides Pelican Brewing · shares Magnum, Willamette
Tsunami Pelican Brewing · shares Magnum, Willamette
Fresh Hop Pale Ale 2014 Stoup Brewing · shares Willamette, Cascade
Dragonstooth Stout Elysian Brewing · shares Magnum, Cascade

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New to hop talk? What these words mean

Bitterness (alpha acid): How much bite a hop gives when it's boiled. Under 5% is gentle, 13%+ is a bruiser. It's why a West Coast IPA snaps and a pilsner doesn't.
Aroma oil: The smelly part of the hop — where the citrus, pine and tropical fruit come from. More oil, more punch when it's added late or dry-hopped.
Myrcene, humulene…: The main oils. Lots of myrcene reads fruity and resinous; humulene and caryophyllene read woody, herbal, spicy.
Aroma / bittering / dual purpose: What brewers mostly use the hop for: smell, bite, or both.
Fresh (wet) hop: Hops straight from the field into the beer, same day, never dried. Only at harvest, late August into October.
Cryo, CGX, LupoMax, Incognito: The same hop, processed: concentrated powder or extract, for more aroma with less vegetal taste.

In Brooks’s glass

Brooks hasn’t had this one yet.