# Citra



## Jye (22/1/10)

Stuster seems to be away so Ill get this thread started. I couldnt find a lot of info considering how new Citra is but I managed to steal the quote below from a Morebeer thread. If you find any other technical data please add it below otherwise share your experience.



> Citra is a new moderately-high acid (10-12%) US hop variety releaset sometime in 2008. Citra is a cross between several hop varieties including Hallertau Mittelfreuh, U.s. Tettnanger, E.K. Goldings, and other unknown varieties.
> 
> The aroma is reported to be very fruity (citrus fruits especially.) Descriptors I have seen used include: grapefruit, lime, melon, gooseberry, lychee fruit.
> 
> ...



So what can you tell us about this hop? How do you use them - bittering, flavour, aroma? What hop combinations are they good for? Have you used them in anything other than American styles? What commercial beers using this hop can you recommend? Any other tips for using this hop?

Tell us all you know so we can all make the best beer we can. :chug:


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## Jye (22/1/10)

Ok Ill kick things off.

To me this hop is all fruit salad and pineapple, similar to galaxy and some resemblance to simcoe. Over all Im not very impressed and the bitterness is soft which makes me thinking it wont be able to stand up on its own, it will need blending with a more aggressive C hop.

My vote is to rename it as it doesnt belong in the 'C' hop family... Sitra? I think it sits well grouped with amarillo, simcoe and galaxy.

*Citra SMASH* 
Blonde Ale 


Type: All Grain
Date: 30/12/2009 
Batch Size: 30.00 L
Brewer: Jye 
Boil Size: 37.00 L Asst Brewer: 
Boil Time: 60 min Equipment: SK Brew Hous 
Taste Rating(out of 50): 35.0 Brewhouse Efficiency: 70.00 
Taste Notes: 

Ingredients

Amount Item Type % or IBU 
6.60 kg Pilsner (Barrett Burston) (2.0 SRM) Grain 100.00 % 

40.00 gm Citra [11.10 %] (20 min) Hops 22.7 IBU 
30.00 gm Citra [11.10 %] (5 min) Hops 5.6 IBU 
30.00 gm Citra [11.10 %] (Dry Hop 5 days) Hops - 

2.00 gm Calcium Carbonate (Mash 5.0 min) Misc 
7.00 gm Calcium Sulfate (Gypsum) (Mash 60.0 min) Misc 

2 Pkgs Safale American US-56 Yeast-Ale 



Beer Profile

Est Original Gravity: 1.048 SG
Measured Original Gravity: 1.052 SG 
Est Final Gravity: 1.012 SG Measured Final Gravity: 1.011 SG 
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 4.76 % Actual Alcohol by Vol: 5.34 % 
Bitterness: 28.3 IBU Calories: 486 cal/l 
Est Color: 3.6 SRM Color: Color 


Mash Profile

Mash Name: SK Brew Hous Mash Total Grain Weight: 6.60 kg 
Sparge Water: 28.11 L Grain Temperature: 25.0 C 
Sparge Temperature: 100.0 C TunTemperature: 25.0 C 
Adjust Temp for Equipment: FALSE Mash PH: 5.4 PH 

SK Brew Hous Mash Step Time Name Description Step Temp 
90 min Mash In Add 16.50 L of water at 73.4 C 67.0 C


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## goatherder (22/1/10)

I'm drinking my first glass of late hopped Citra Smash right now. It's not fully carb'd but I'm getting plenty of fruit aroma - pineapples, passionfruit with a citrus note at the end, reminds me of tangerines. Hopefully it will develop as the keg hops kick in. The bittering is reasonable soft, although most hops turn out like this when added late. 

Overall, I think it's great and works well in a single hop beer. Jye, you are spot on with the comparison with amarillo - similar alpha and will work in similar situations, like as a feature hop in an easy drinker or as a partner to something more aggressive. 


Recipe:

TF MO mashed at 67 to 1.050
20g Citra at 20, 15, 10 & 5min for 40 IBUs
Wyeast 1187 Ringwood for two weeks
20g Citra dry hop after primary.


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## warra48 (22/1/10)

If it's similar to Amarillo, it's off the list for me.

Hope others will enjoy it.

That's one of the great things about the HB hobby, you can tailor everything to your own preferences.


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## cliffo (22/1/10)

I did a similar brew to Jye and the keg didn't last too long which I guess is a positive vote for the hop.

I also did a quick mid-strength extract brew that is going down quite nicely at the moment in my 36 degree room.

Definite fruit salad profile for me.

Whether it will become a staple hop or not for me...I'm not sure...Amarillo will still take the #1 spot in APAs for me.

I still have about 30g left and am aiming to put down an APA with Citra and Cascade in the near future as I reckon these will play nicely together.

All in all not a bad hop though the jury is still out for me as to whether its the novelty of a new hop or if it will find a place as a regular-use hop.

cliffo


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## goatherder (22/1/10)

Let me clarify, Citra doesn't taste a lot like amarillo (more tropical/citrus than stonefruit), it just seems to fit in the same bucket of dual purpose, interesting flavoured, mid-alpha, medium intensity fruitiness.


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## Scruffy (22/1/10)

8kg Maris Otter (ok maybe a bit of crystal)
Citra & Challenger to 68IBU (90g of each)
1882
26hrs old.
I'll let you know!


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## joecast (22/1/10)

Brewing tomorrow and just got some citra. From the comments already here I might bitter with centennial and add the citra late. Sound good? And yes, I do love my American c hops!


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## tazman1967 (22/1/10)

Ive only used this for dry hop...did the BYO S/N Torpedo Clone.
Bottled this last W/end, Heaps of fruit salad aromas coming off it while bottling.
IMHO... this hop would be best used late in the boil or to dry hop a APA, just to reinforce the C hops that you have used...
I also think this would be a great combo with Simco.
Cheers


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## browndog (22/1/10)

I have to disagree with the amerillo comparison. This hop is out there on its own as an American hop if you ask me. I've done an IPA and find it to be passionfruit with fruit salad, and no wall flower either, plently of flavour in this hop. Not a flavour that really appeals to me either, if I was to use it again, it will be in combo with other hops.

BeerSmith Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Citra IPA
Brewer: Tony Brown
Asst Brewer: Jess
Style: American IPA
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (35.0) 

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 24.00 L 
Boil Size: 32.79 L
Estimated OG: 1.066 SG
Estimated Color: 12.3 SRM
Estimated IBU: 60.5 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 80.00 %
Boil Time: 75 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU 
4.00 kg Pale Malt, Ale (Barrett Burston) (3.0 SRM)Grain 61.54 % 
2.00 kg Munich Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 30.77 % 
0.50 kg Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 7.69 % 
25.00 gm Citra [11.50 %] (60 min) Hops 27.9 IBU 
25.00 gm Citra [11.50 %] (20 min) Hops 16.9 IBU 
25.00 gm Citra [11.50 %] (10 min) Hops 10.1 IBU 
25.00 gm Citra [11.50 %] (5 min) Hops 5.6 IBU 
0.50 tsp Koppafloc (Boil 15.0 min) Misc 
1 Pkgs US05 From Trub (Safale) Yeast-Ale 


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Light Body, Batch Sparge
Total Grain Weight: 6.50 kg
----------------------------
Single Infusion, Light Body, Batch Sparge
Step Time Name Description Step Temp 
75 min Mash In Add 16.96 L of water at 81.1 C 67.0 C 



cheers

Browndog


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## rosswill (24/1/10)

I'm drinking one of these at the moment. Jamil's APA recipe. I get mint. Think of chewing a couple of mint leaves from the back garden. Not a C hop by any stretch. A nice beer none the less. Not a benchmark new hop, but one to try.


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## joecast (2/2/10)

joecast said:


> Brewing tomorrow and just got some citra. From the comments already here I might bitter with centennial and add the citra late. Sound good? And yes, I do love my American c hops!



ok, changed my idea at the last minute. had 20g columbus in the freezer so tossed that in as a bittering hop, then 20g citra at 10min and flameout. not the citrus that i was half expecting but didnt do a full on review as i only kegged yesterday and had a quick taste today. certainly tasty and think the columbus has a smooth backing bitterness. the flavor and aroma are also smooth, not overpowering and could have upped the citra to 30g each easily.
still interested in trying the centennial/citra combo, but have also been thinking galaxy/citra would make an interesting beer. will post more on the current keg once i get a better idea but definitely a thumbs up from me.
joe


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## Fents (3/2/10)

rosswill said:


> I'm drinking one of these at the moment. Jamil's APA recipe. I get mint. Think of chewing a couple of mint leaves from the back garden. Not a C hop by any stretch. A nice beer none the less. Not a benchmark new hop, but one to try.



mint? thats pretty full on when its clearly a citrus type hope.

just cracked a keg with heaps of late citra in it and dry hopped as well and i just drool thinking about it...massive fruit salad flavours.


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## superdave (3/2/10)

I tried a citra hopped brew at BABBs and found it tasted a lot like lychee; some said they got mango flavours. I'm not a fan of lychee at the best of times so this hop isn't for me. The beer was great though, so no offence to the brewer


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## rosswill (3/2/10)

Fents said:


> mint? thats pretty full on when its clearly a citrus type hope.
> 
> just cracked a keg with heaps of late citra in it and dry hopped as well and i just drool thinking about it...massive fruit salad flavours.



Yeah, Its funny. I'm reading all the posts on this hop and wondering why I'm the odd one out. I kegged this one and bottled about a dozen. I've sampled about four bottles now and I'm trying to locate the discriptions others are finding (Lychee, stone fruit and fruit salad), and all I get is mint. Absolutely no citrus. Must be the process, because the recipe is pretty stock standard. I bittered with 15g Warrior and 25g Citra at 15 & 2 mins. maybe the Warrior overpowered the Citra? I might get some other HB'er to taste it and see what they find.


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## 3GumsBrewing (17/2/10)

Oh good lord. I am in love.

Did a Citra SMASH on the weekend..

5kg Pilsner
20gm Citra @ 40, 20, 0 and Dry Hop

I could not detect much of a difference between the other 'C' hops during the boil, but after just sampling a hydro sample it is bursting with fruit salad smells and flavours. 
Now I am not usually the best at smelling and tasting different fruits but damn, I really got passionfruit and pineapple out of this one. As long as it still smells and tastes great when its in the keg!!

DK


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## bum (17/2/10)

DK said:


> I really got passionfruit and pineapple out of this one.



Very glad to hear this. Not because I'm chasing passionfruit and pineapple exactly. I have an unopened pack of citra in the freezer ready for my next brew. I'm reading a lot of descriptions of lychee aromas about the place for this hop and in my last brew I stumbled upon a mix of hops that smells exactly like lychee and tastes quite strongly of the same (the missus picked it before I did) and was worried this hop would make an awesome blend of hops redundant (or vice versa). Very glad to hear there's a little more to it than it may have appeared.


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## Bizier (17/2/10)

I have tried I think, three, citra beers, and I agree with the call of mandarin (I think it was Josh who said it). But there is also the mint. I think it gives an interesting slightly new angle to the citrus type hop, I think this will be the kind of hop that someone one day will use to amazing ends by doing something different with it. I would like to see a beer specifically brewed to pair with a Thai salad or something along those zesty spicy lines. It could be quite refreshing.


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## joecast (17/2/10)

rosswill said:


> Yeah, Its funny. I'm reading all the posts on this hop and wondering why I'm the odd one out. I kegged this one and bottled about a dozen. I've sampled about four bottles now and I'm trying to locate the discriptions others are finding (Lychee, stone fruit and fruit salad), and all I get is mint. Absolutely no citrus. Must be the process, because the recipe is pretty stock standard. I bittered with 15g Warrior and 25g Citra at 15 & 2 mins. maybe the Warrior overpowered the Citra? I might get some other HB'er to taste it and see what they find.


not that odd, i dont think. my current citra brew was bittered with columbus then 20g citra at 10min and 0min. i just dont get the big citrus/fruit salad that others mentioned. i wouldnt have said mint either if i didnt read it here first, but i do get that character out of it. great hop regardless and i cant wait to try it again, maybe with some centennial??
joe


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## beers (23/2/10)

I'm picking up similar characteristics to Nelson Sauvin... mixed with a lot of nectarine/peach. Well worth trying in a single hop brew IMO.


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## rosswill (23/2/10)

In my first couple of posts I was rabbiting on about 'mint' from the Citra. Well, I'm a third of the way through the keg and guess what, no more mint. It's gone. Now just fruit salad and faint citrus and stone fruits. A very nice drop. 
I checked my recipe which showed I used Marco Polo as the bittering hop. Not dissimilar to Joecast who also detected mint, and he used Columbus, so perhaps it was the Marco Polo (aka Chinese Columbus) that was throwing the 'mint' flavours.


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## Steve (25/2/10)

Tasted one of Peteoz77's latest creations done with straight Citra. Mariss Otter, Vienna and some cystal. Loved it. So much so I got some off him to do a couple of brews. Im going to brew a copy of his creation as well as a Citra Lager. I reckon it'd be great with 100% Pils (maybe a dash of crystal?) 100% Citra and done with S189. Kinda like a Knappstein/Nelson Sauvin lager which I brewed years ago and thoroughly enjoyed.
Cheers
Steve


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## Peteoz77 (25/2/10)

You beat me to it Steve!

The brew was based on my 3 Legged Hound Pale Ale, but I substituted Citra for Amarillo. It was a bit more subdued than I was anticipating. However, it's a fantastic beer! My new house pale Ale I reckon.


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## 431neb (17/10/12)

Interesting discussion. I once took a stab in the dark with a bitter blonde. Let me elaborate....

As a kits and bits brewer that has only just come back to brewing after a ten year hiatus I have been enjoying AHB and getting some great tips that I wish I'd had last time - I might have made some better beer and kept going. 

Actually it was having about 200 stubbies (full) stolen from me that broke my wee heart and sent me running back to commercial beer. Sob...

To stay on topic , I dry hopped a Coopers Canadian Blonde kit this afternoon with 12.5 g Hallertau and 12.5 g of Citra. The packets were lying around on the bench in the shed so I just retrieved them and did a little comparing between those two and a Nelson bag that was there too.

The Citra is the full fruit salad . My wife says it smells like a lychee perfume she wears. I get more passionfruit and pineapple but she might have a point. 

The Hallertau is actually very similar but more muted than the Citra and (I think) a little more grassy.

The Nelson "smells like paint" according to the missus. It's an older pack so might have lost a bit of twang. Grapey is what it's supposed to be but I dunno if my nose is being tricked by what I've read but one could shut your eyes and imagine a shiraz.

This brew is an attempt to brew something cheap, quaffable and easy to get. It's in the barrel so I'll let you all know the verdict later.

The recipe , if it can be called that, was Coopers Canadian Blonde + Coopers brew booster + 12.5 g Citra 20 min boil 12.5 g Hallertau 10 min boil 12.5 g of each dry hopped for 4 or 5 days. Oh and I used the kit yeast. I've stolen someone else's idea for a name and dubbed it the "Bitter Blonde". Bitterness could be likened to slow boiled anger but hopefully my Bitter Blonde will be much more approachable than that. 

The boil times were the real stab in the dark.... I have NFI but it's fun making mistakes. Open to suggestions on tweaking the recipe. Obviously a better quality yeast would be an easy option.


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## Lord Raja Goomba I (18/10/12)

Maybe get the packets from either your local site sponsor or craftbrewer - the price per gram will be signficantly cheaper than buying in 12.5g lots, and the hops a lot fresher.

Goomba


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## mckenry (14/3/14)

Ummed and arrrred whether to post this as it wasnt something I brewed. I tasted a late hopped Citra beer yesterday and all I could taste was lemon ! It was bittered with Chinook, so I dont think thats giving the lemon. I know lemon is a citrus fruit, but this was just not what I was expecting nor what I have read about Citra. The lemon was quite strong in the after-taste. Not something I would want to risk a brew day on. Anyone want to send me a beer with late Citra that they think is good??? :unsure:


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## Lord Raja Goomba I (14/3/14)

Strange - Lemon is usually given to Sorachi Ace or some of the British hops.


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## sponge (14/3/14)

Yea I can't say I've ever got lemon from citra. Definitely the usual citra suspects of pineapple, passionfruit, lychee, etc, but don't get too much C-hop style citrus from it, especially not lemon.


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## lukiferj (14/3/14)

Never had that from Citra. And I am currently using a fair bit of it. Only time I can remember tasting strong lemon flavours was in a Mikkeller single hop Sorachi Ace. Wasn't a huge fan of the flavour. Do you know what other hops were used?


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## mb-squared (14/3/14)

mckenry said:


> Anyone want to send me a beer with late Citra that they think is good??? :unsure:


this one is dry-hopped with Citra. I've brewed it several times and it is probably the best-tasting beer I (or many friends) have had. can't seem to brew it fast enough...
http://www.theelectricbrewery.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24947


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## forshoa (14/3/14)

The Zombie Dust (Three Floyds) clone is a great example and was pretty damn good. Magnum at the top for bittering then Citra all the way with whirlpool steep at the end.
This is pretty much how it went for a BIAB brew.


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## willmaxi (23/3/14)

Hi only new to brewing but just tasted my citra cascae mix verry fruity, tastes heaps like stone wood, could do with some bittering,still real happy with it.
Greg


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## stakka82 (24/3/14)

I have an all citra American wheat on atm that is pretty lemony. I think malt and accompanying hop choices can massively change perception of a hop.


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## brewologist (15/7/14)

My brewing mates and I have been experimenting with Citra lately. We've had some cracker brews and been keg hopping with it. 

This is my latest recipe, a single hop Citra APA thats a few days into fermentation.

APA 37.8 IBU's - Double Batch. 2X 20L - OG 1.055. Yeast - WLP001.

4.75kg - JW Trad Ale
4.75kg - Briess Pilsner
500g - Wey Munich
500g - Briess Dark Caramel

Citra Hopped
12g @ 60
40g @ 10
60g @ 5
120g @ 0/Whirlpool

Dry hop 50g in each fermenter (3 days then CC)
Dry hop 75g in each keg for 3 days max. I will taste keg before I dry hop.

This should give me a good idea of what Citra tastes like. The smell of the wort was amazing when I was pitching the yeast.

Cheers,


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## menoetes (16/7/14)

I love this hop too. I've only used in as a late addition in Kit & Bits brewing but it have a powerful citrus fruit salad flavour and aroma that can really dominate the beer for those hop-heads amongst us. I cracked a few bottles of this on the weekend and my friends went a bit nuts for it;

*Centicitral Cervezia *

23 Liter Batch

1 x Coopers Mexican Cervizia kit.
1.5kg of Liquid Pilsen Malt
200g Caramunich 1 - steeped
150g Carapils - steeped
12g Centennial hops @ 15 min
15g Citra hops @ 10 min
18g Citra hops @ 0 min - flameout

Wyeast American II yeast

I think it was Yob who mentioned to me that Centennial and Citra went well together and he wasn't wrong! I know it's not AG but still a good way to get an idea for citra with that smooth centennial in the background. It's not going to last long :chug:


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## mb-squared (16/7/14)

I have had great success with Citra as a dry hop. In fact, I've brewed this recipe a few times (http://www.theelectricbrewery.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24947) and have been told by quite a few that it's the best beer they've ever had! I'm not quite sure about that, but it is a very very good beer.


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## mb-squared (16/7/14)

oops, just noticed that I had already posted that recipe in this thread a few months ago. serves me write for breaking out the typing fingers before having my first coffee of the day...


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