German hop varieties beyond the noble four for modern lagers

Why look past the noble hops

The four noble varieties are landrace hops, prized for delicate floral and spicy aroma. They are also low in alpha acid, prone to disease and sometimes hard to source fresh in India. Our guide to noble hops covers them in detail.

The Hop Research Centre at Hüll in Bavaria has bred many newer varieties. Some are close substitutes for the noble hops. Others are high-alpha bittering hops. A recent group brings fruit for modern styles. All of them are widely sold through importers.

Noble-style replacements

Alpha acid ranges below are typical and vary by crop year.

• Hallertau Tradition (around 4 to 7%). Bred at Hüll to keep the Mittelfrüh character with better disease resistance. Floral, herbal and clean. A reliable stand-in for Mittelfrüh in helles and pilsner.
• Perle (around 4 to 9%). Minty, spicy and slightly fruity. Works as a bittering hop with a refined finish and as a flavour hop in lagers and wheat beers.
• Spalter Select (around 3 to 6.5%). Bred to resemble Spalt and Tettnang. Spicy, woody and gentle.
• Hersbrucker (around 2 to 5%). An older landrace variety, soft and floral, often used for aroma in pilsner and Kölsch.
• Saphir (around 2 to 4.5%). Delicate, with a sweet citrus and tangerine edge. Good late in a helles or pilsner for a little lift.

Clean bittering hops

Hallertau Magnum (around 11 to 16%) is one of the most widely used bittering hops in the world. It gives smooth, neutral bitterness and very little aroma, which is exactly what a lager needs early in the boil.

Herkules (around 12 to 17%) is even higher in alpha. It is efficient and cost-effective, slightly more assertive in flavour. Polaris is a very high-alpha variety with a striking ice-mint note, so it is less neutral than Magnum.

Using Magnum to bitter and a noble or noble-style hop late is a standard, cost-efficient way to brew a clean German lager.

The fruity new German hops

Around 2012, Hüll released a group of varieties aimed at the craft market, several with American Cascade in their parentage.

• Mandarina Bavaria (around 7 to 10%). Tangerine and orange peel. Lovely in a dry-hopped pilsner or a wheat beer.
• Hallertau Blanc (around 9 to 12%). White grape, gooseberry and passion fruit. Gives a wine-like note.
• Huell Melon (around 6 to 8%). Honeydew melon and strawberry. Best in small doses.

These let a brewer make a modern lager that still reads German, with fruit that complements the malt rather than shouting over it.

Using them in modern lagers

For a classic helles, bitter with Magnum or Tradition to around 18 to 22 IBU and add Tradition or Hersbrucker late. Keep the hop character quiet so the malt leads. Our helles guide sets out the style.

For a German pilsner, bitter to 30 to 40 IBU and use Tradition, Perle or Spalter Select in the last 15 minutes. A first wort hop addition, added to the kettle as wort runs off from the lauter tun, gives a rounder bitterness that suits pilsner well. See our pilsner guide.

For a dry-hopped pilsner, keep bitterness firm, then dry hop with Saphir, Mandarina Bavaria or Hallertau Blanc at a modest rate during the final days of fermentation or early lagering. The result is crisp and dry with a fruit lift.

Tasting them side by side

Reading descriptors only goes so far. A quick way to learn these hops is a hop tea session. Steep 2 g of each variety in 200 ml of hot water at around 80 °C for five minutes, strain and let it cool slightly. Smell and taste each one alongside a noble hop such as Saaz or Mittelfrüh.

The differences become clear quickly. Tradition sits close to Mittelfrüh, Perle shows more mint, Saphir has its citrus lift and Mandarina Bavaria smells plainly of orange. Do the same with your actual stock before a brew, because crop years differ and a packet can drift from its description.

Freshness and sourcing in India

Delicate German aroma hops lose their character faster than resinous American ones. Buy current crop year, keep packs frozen and do not open more than you need. A stale Saphir smells of nothing much; a stale Hersbrucker can turn hay-like.

When a variety is out of stock, swap within the same group. Tradition, Spalter Select and Perle are reasonable substitutes for each other in most lagers. Keep the IBU target and adjust weight for alpha acid.

Common questions

What is the best substitute for Hallertau Mittelfrüh?

Hallertau Tradition is the closest common substitute. It was bred to carry the Mittelfrüh character and has a similar floral, herbal profile.

Which German hop is best for bittering a lager?

Hallertau Magnum. It gives clean, smooth bitterness with very little aroma.

Can German hops give a fruity beer?

Yes. Mandarina Bavaria, Hallertau Blanc and Huell Melon bring orange, white grape and melon notes.