Columbus
BarthHaas describes it as ginger, leek, tomato leaves, fennel seeds, garlic.
- Smells like
- Spice, Onion / garlic, Tomato leaf, Anise
- Bitterness
- Very high (13.9–18% alpha)
- In the glass
- 143 beers here · 1 fresh hop · Brooks has had 1
- Swap it for
- Extra Styrian Dana · compare them →
Brewing values
Alpha acid
13.9–18% typical 15.9
3 sources, spread of 4.1%
- Hopsteiner15–17Data sheet last changed 2020-01-09.
- BarthHaas13.9–17.5Range over the last 4 crop years.
- Crosby Hop Farm14–18
Beta acid
4–6% typical 5.0
3 sources, spread of 2%
- Hopsteiner4.5–5Data sheet last changed 2020-01-09.
- BarthHaas4.3–6Range over the last 4 crop years.
- Crosby Hop Farm4–6
Cohumulone
30–35% of alpha typical 32.5
1 source, spread of 5% of alpha
- Hopsteiner30–35Data sheet last changed 2020-01-09.
Total oil
2.5–3.5 mL/100g typical 3
1 source, spread of 1 mL/100g
- Hopsteiner2.5–3.5Data sheet last changed 2020-01-09.
Alpha to beta runs about 3.2:1, which is what governs how fast the bitterness fades in storage.
Oil composition
- Myrcene52%
- Humulene30.6%
- Caryophyllene16%
- Linalool0.8%
- Geraniol0.5%
Normalised to 100% so this hop can be compared like for like. The published components sum to 63.6% of total oil in the source data.
Where it's grown
In 2025, for the shared bucket: 4,115 acres in Washington, 775 acres in Idaho. No. 2 by acreage in Washington; No. 1 by acreage in Idaho.
2020–2025: counted in “Columbus/Tomahawk/Zeus (CTZ)”, one figure NASS reports for 2 cultivars together.
Acres by year
| Year | Washington | Idaho |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 1,673 | — |
| 2016 | 1,416 | — |
| 2017 | 1,659 | withheld |
| 2018 | 2,034 | withheld |
| 2019 | 2,323 | 991 |
| 2020 | 4,829 | 1,457 |
| 2021 | 4,523 | 1,046 |
| 2022 | 3,998 | 520 |
| 2023 | 5,295 | 1,059 |
| 2024 | 4,627 | 811 |
| 2025 | 4,115 | 775 |
Acres harvested, from the USDA NASS National Hop Report. Where America's hops grow →
Aroma
In the glass · 143 beers from 17 breweries
Brooks has had one of them · 3.75 average
- Design Trends Fort George Brewery · 3.75
- Fresh Hop Kolsch Aslan Brewing · fresh hop
- Charlie Foxtrot Aslan Brewing
- Bottomcutter IIPA Bale Breaker Brewing
- Skyward IPA Bale Breaker Brewing
- Sticky Situation Fresh Hop IPA Bale Breaker Brewing
- Forklift Double IPA Barley Brown's Beer
- Pallet Jack IPA Barley Brown's Beer
- Sticky Hands Block 15 Brewing
- Synergy Series Block 15 Brewing
- Beer that Benefits Oregon Humane Breakside Brewery
- Black & Tan Breakside Brewery
Brewed alongside · in 135 beers that use Columbus with other hops
Counted from the hop lists of every beer in What's in the can: what Pacific Northwest brewers actually put next to Columbus.
What to swap it for
-
Summit 58
-
Mount Hood 57
-
Mackinac 56
-
Ella 56
-
TerraFlux 54
Scored on aroma overlap, oil composition and acid chemistry, then nudged up where a brewer has vouched for the swap by hand. An axis we haven't measured earns nothing, so a hop known only by its acid numbers caps out around 30 — the score is how much evidence there is for the swap, not just how close the numbers happen to be. Anything under 50 is a different beer, not a substitution.
Pedigree
Parentage unrecorded.
Notes on this record
purpose defaulted to dual, unconfirmed -- was not researched individually for this bulk scaffold pass. Correct before publishing.
For brewers and data folks: this hop as JSON · the source file · where America's hops grow