When brewing an IPA, especially a West Coast IPA, there are endless hop varietals to choose from. The most common are Citra, Chinook, Cascade, Mosaic, Simcoe, Galaxy, El Dorado, Amarillo, and Centennial hops. While we could spend all day writing about the various aromas, flavors, and bitterness imparted by every one of the above-mentioned hops, today it’s Centennial’s turn.
Named for the Centennial anniversary of Washington State, this popular hop variety has been used by brewers from coast to coast since it was made available in 1990. It’s used for aroma, flavor, bittering, and dry-hopping. One of the most useful and versatile hop varieties, centennial is known to add a ton of citrus (big on grapefruit), floral, and dank pine to whatever beer it’s added to.
To help you find the best beers brewed with centennial hops, we selected eight of the best, most readily available options. Check our ranking out below!
8.) Melvin 2X4
ABV: 9.9%
Average Price: $13 for a six-pack
The Beer:
This award-winning, 9.9% ABV double IPA is brewed with Columbus, Citra, Simcoe, and Centennial hops. The result is a potent, bold. Flavorful IPA loaded with notes of citrus peels and dank, floral hops. While there are other hops included, this is a beer for Centennial fans.
Tasting Notes:
The nose is a mix of honeydew melons, citrus peels, ripe berries, and dank, piney hops. There’s more of the same when it comes to the palate. There are notes of caramelized pineapple, melon, fresh-cut grass, and spicy, floral, resinous hops. The finish is dank and pleasantly bitter.
Bottom Line:
If you’re a fan of flavorful, dank double IPAs, this Centennial-hopped is a can’t-miss beer. It has everything fans of hop love.
7.) Stone IPA
ABV: 6.9%
Average Price: $12 for a six-pack
The Beer:
When it comes to classic West Coast IPAs, there are few more well-known than Stone IPA. This award-winning, year-round favorite gets its hop flavor and aroma from the addition of Magnum, Chinook, Azacca, Calypso, Ella, Vic Secret, and of course Centennial hops. It’s known for its bright citrus, tropical fruit, and dank pine.
Tasting Notes:
Breathing in the nose before your first sip will give you aromas of cereal grains, lemon peels, caramelized pineapple, grapefruit, and pine needles. The palate is a mix of sweet malts, lemon peels, tangerines, pineapple, grapefruit, and resinous, sticky pine. The finish is sweet and perfectly bitter for the style.
Bottom Line:
This is a beloved West Coast IPA for a reason. It ticks all the IPA boxes. Light malt, citrus, tropical fruits, and dank, bitter pine.
6.) Hopworks Ace of Spades
ABV: 9.5%
Average Price: $8 for a 19.2-ounce can
The Beer:
If you’ve never tried Hopworks Ace of Spades, what are you waiting for? This 9.5% ABV double IPA is brewed with Cascade, Chinook, Centennial, Simcoe, Waimea, Cryo Idaho 7, El Dorado, and Amarillo hops. The result is a potent, complex IPA loaded with peach, pineapple, citrus fruits, and dank, bitter pine.
Tasting Notes:
A lot is going on with this beer’s nose. There are hints of caramel malts, candied orange peels, tropical fruits, and dank, resinous pine needles. Sipping it reveals notes of ripe peach, caramelized pineapple, cereal grains, juicy grapefruit, lemon, wet grass, and pine needles. The finish is a mix of citrus sweetness and resinous, bitter pine.
Bottom Line:
If you’re looking for balance, high alcohol content, and a veritable explosion of hops, this IPA is for you.
5.) Founders Centennial IPA
ABV: 7.2%
Average Price: $19 for a 15-pack
The Beer:
With a name like Founders Centennial IPA, you better believe this is a beer for the Centennial hop fans. This year-round favorite is brewed with Crystal malts, Munich malts, Golden Promise malts, and the aforementioned Centennial hops. It’s known for its malty, hoppy flavor profile with restrained bitterness.
Tasting Notes:
Before your first sip, you’ll be treated to aromas of orange blossoms, grapefruit, sweet malts, wildflowers, fresh bread, and dank pine. Taking a drink, brings up notes of bready malts, caramel, pineapple, tangerine, grapefruit, and a forest of pine trees. The finish is lightly bitter and memorable.
Bottom Line:
While some of the other beers feature Centennial, it’s the star of the show with this beer and it shines.
4.) Creature Comforts Tropicalia
ABV: 6.6%
Average Price: $12 for a six-pack
The Beer:
Located in Athens, Georgia, Creature Comforts is the kind of brewery where you feel like you can randomly pick a beer and you’ll like it. One of its most popular beers is its Tropicalia IPA. Brewed Galaxy, Citra, and Centennial hops, it’s well-known for its
Tasting Notes:
The nose is a mix of bready malts, tangerine, lemongrass, hay, honey, grapefruit, and sticky pine. The palate is loaded with bready malts, cereal grains, orange peels, lemon zest, grapefruit, mango, and resinous pine. The finish is a nice mix of fruit sweetness and bitter pine needles.
Bottom Line:
Tropicalia is a great name for this beer since it’s very fruit-centric. The tropical fruit and citrus flavor pair perfectly with the bitter, piney hops.
3.) Green Flash West Coast IPA
ABV: 7%
Average Price: $13 for a six-pack
The Beer:
The folks at San Diego’s Green Flash knew they didn’t need a humorous name to get people to try their West Coast. The beer would speak for itself. That’s why it’s called West Coast IPA. It gets its citrus, dank, piney, bitter flavor from the liberal use of Simcoe, Columbus, Citra, Cascade, and Centennial hops.
Tasting Notes:
Complex scents of sweet malts, fresh bread, tangerines, grapefruit, pineapple, passionfruit, mango, and floral, piney hops dance around your nose before your first taste. On the palate, you’ll find notes of caramel malts, fresh bread, candied orange peels, grapefruit juice, ripe berries, mango, and dank pine. The finish is fairly hoppy and bitter but has a nice kick of citrus sweetness.
Bottom Line:
You might assume a beer simply called “West Coast IPA” was all hops and bitterness and nothing else. Well, this beer is perfectly balanced between malts, tropical fruit sweetness, and piney hop bitterness.
2.) Bell’s Two Hearted
ABV: 7%
Average Price: $11 for a six-pack
The Beer:
Consistently one of the highest-rated IPAs you can find almost anywhere, Bell’s Two Hearted is kettle-brewed and dry-hopped with only Centennial hops. This 7%, year-round banger is known for its mix of sweet malts, citrus flavors, and resinous pine.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a surprising amount of toffee sweetness on the nose that moves into candied orange peels, other citrus flavors, and a ton of resinous, sticky pine. A very welcoming start. The palate is classic IPA with a lot of grapefruit and orange peels, but there is a nice hint of caramel sweetness here as well. There’s also black pepper and dank pine. The finish is bitter, and prickly, and leaves you craving more immediately.
Bottom Line:
There’s a reason Bell’s Two Hearted is consistently one of the highest-rated IPAs. While it’s prickly, sticky, and bitter, it’s surprisingly well-balanced.
1.) Firestone Walker Union Jack
ABV: 7%
Average Price: $12 for a six-pack
The Beer:
Firestone Walker’s flagship IPA is named for its British-born co-founder. Brewed with 2-row, Munich, and Crystal Light malts, it’s brewed with CTZ, Cascade, and Centennial hops in the kettle and dry-hopped with Cascade, Simcoe, Amarillo, Citra, Chinook, and Centennial hops.
Tasting Notes:
Take a moment to breathe in the complex fragrances on the nose. If you do, you’ll be treated to aromas of tangerine, grapefruit, lemon, ripe pineapple, and a ton of pine. There’s more of the same on the palate but with a sweet, caramel-like malt backbone. It then moves into more grapefruit, candied orange peel, lemon, fresh grass, and a hoppy, floral, dank pine. The finish is pleasantly bitter and memorable.
Bottom Line:
If you only try one Centennial-hopped beer on this list, make it Union Jack. We get that it’s cheating because there are so many other hops included. But still — this beer is a can’t-miss.
