Cascade Hops - why the backlash?

I have noticed over the last 2-3 years there seems to be a bit of a backlash or resistance forming towards cascade hops. Stone brewing won't even touch them, deeming them to cliche' in american beer (at least this is my understanding).

Personally, I think cascade may very well be the most versatile, tasty , american hop there is. No wonder its so popular, its AWESOME!

Resinous, candy like grapefruit on the dry hop....its so nice.

thats all i got...just wanted to see if I am the only one that feels this way.

I remember reading this a while back, Stone's take on it:
http://blog.stonebrew.com/index.php/on-the-curious-subject-of-cascade-hops/

Amarillo hops seem to be all the rage around here. They sell out quickly at all 3 of the LHBS in this town.

I just dry-hopped a batch of IPA with them and bottled it last week. Will see how that turns out.

I love Cascade but I can definitely see why a brewer would stay away to avoid putting out another Cascade beer.

simcoe, citra and amarillo seem to be the polular ones nowadays in my experience. Personally, I get a pound or two of cascade (at a great price) every time I order hops. They are awesome.

I love Cascades. As long as I am brewing just for myself, I have no qualms about using them.

That's fine. More Cascade hops for me

I use em and I love em.
Very versatile hop, but just like any other ingredient too much is too much. If you get in a rut of only using cascade then I could see the issue, but if you brew with a variety including cascade and keep a balance I see no issue.

I have gotten past hop bombs though, I like IPAs like no other but just nailing the IBUs has ceased to impress and am now looking for a smooth yet high IBU beer when I have an IPA.

permo said:

thats all i got...just wanted to see if I am the only one that feels this way.

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Funny, I was thinking something similar. Using too many "in" hops. Motivated me to brew an American Wheat with Cascade last weekend. Looking forward to it. The old will be new again!

I use cascades alot. I like them.

Somebody - brewingtv, maybe - once called cascade the green bean casserole of hops. They may have been right, but green bean casserole has its place. It tastes good, but it ain't trendy.

I just brewed a Maris Otter / Cascade SMaSH this evening.

1.064 OG, 53 IBUs, S04 yeast at 57-60F (I'm out of US05 at the moment -- or rather it is all busy right now in two other fermenters). Should be awesome, was getting tons of grapefruit aroma during the boil, and I'll be dry hopping twice with Cascade as well.

The haters can go drink BMC if the don't like it. :rockin:

I love that they are "out of style" - makes it so you can get them for $10 a pound. I go through about 2 lbs per year. One or two "sierra nevada pale ale" clones, and then I mix them in a lot with Centennial and Citra in some IPA's I brew. Another year or two and they won't be as "cliche" as citra and some of the other new hops...

QuercusMax said:

I just brewed a Maris Otter / Cascade SMaSH this evening.

1.064 OG, 53 IBUs, S04 yeast at 57-60F (I'm out of US05 at the moment -- or rather it is all busy right now in two other fermenters). Should be awesome, was getting tons of grapefruit aroma during the boil, and I'll be dry hopping twice with Cascade as well.

The haters can go drink BMC if the don't like it. :rockin:

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I did the same using MO and Cascade with a 60 IBU, fermenting right now and a definite grapefruit aroma to it:rockin:

jeffjm said:

Somebody - brewingtv, maybe - once called cascade the green bean casserole of hops. They may have been right, but green bean casserole has its place. It tastes good, but it ain't trendy.

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That analogy is perfect. I can't stand the generic green bean dish that is done for holidays. This is not the fault of the green beans. Handled in a different way they can be sublime.

I would suggest that if one is bored of Cascade a person should look to their own imagination rather than fault a wonderful hop.

Really like Cascade, esp in tandem with Centennial.

My last IPA was a Chinook, Cascade, Centennial and Citra mash. You could definitely taste the spice of the Chinook but the Cascade and Centennial added that citrus grapefruit taste with an extra kick from the Citra at the end. I think Cascade is a perfect dual use hop for when you are working with one of the "C's" to help give it that clean crisp citrus note.

I think the amount of use and attention it's had over the last couple decades just shows how great of a hop it is. I'm sure it just cycles along with whatever else is in style. With Citra being such a big one lately I think it's brought Cascade back in the spotlight just for it's complimenting flavors.

Now another one I've used a few times, Warrior, would be interesting to try with Cascade in place of Citra. I think the Cascade could be bittered and added at the end for a more subtle note than the Citra. Who knows, I love it and plan to use it in my beers when the need arises

For me, Cascade has been used as a bit of a "filler" hop. I use it to round corners and fill in gaps in the profile of my IPAs and APAs that are sorta kinda left by the other American hops. To temper the pissy character of Simcoe or the over the top tropical fruit of Citra. Makes the beers more rounded and complete tasting, in my opinion.

That being said, if you don't enjoy SNPA, you can go kick rocks.

I live in the UK and in my short experience of brewing, and experimenting in US hops cascade seem to be my favourite and they also always sell out in the LHBS.

I like Cascade because...

I think a lot of people have nailed it. Cascade is falling out of favor as everyone tries to get the new "in" hops to make their beers stand out from the rest. A lot of the new commercial beers I see coming out rely on Citra, Simcoe, Centennial and Amarillo, with the new varieties like Galaxy and Calypso probably getting big in the near future.

I like Cascade and use it frequently. It may not be cutting-edge any more, but it's just a good dual-purpose hop.

mb82 said:

That's fine. More Cascade hops for me

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Me too! I've never heard about any so-called "backlash" against them, but then again I tend to ignore BS opinions like that or the mutual masturbation of EACs and the opinion of the moment and brew what I want with what I want.

Cascade hops are always good! My favorite hop by far. Very tasty, clean bittering, excellent aroma, and as an added bonus very cheap. Shunning cascade is almost as bad as slamming a door in a little old lady's face. :rockin:

What I do not like is PA/IPA/IIPA that are oily. I have found that MANY times this attribute is from cascades in large quantities. When I try an PA/IPA/IIPA I can tell in the 1st sip if I am going to like/finish it. There are some commercial examples that I really do like that have cascade in them but they seem to be the exception not the rule.

Marketing advertisers telling you what you like and what you need to like to be a sheeple.

I'm not what I would consider a "hophead" but I honestly have never met a hop I didn't like that was applied in moderation. To dislike something because of a perceived "trendiness" is the very definition of being shallow.

Zamial said:

What I do not like is PA/IPA/IIPA that are oily. I have found that MANY times this attribute is from cascades in large quantities. When I try an PA/IPA/IIPA I can tell in the 1st sip if I am going to like/finish it. There are some commercial examples that I really do like that have cascade in them but they seem to be the exception not the rule.

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when I try a new PA/IPA/IIPA i know in the 1st sip that I am going to finish it!

phenry said:

I like Cascade because...

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The gentleman depicted in this picture has done nothing to me. I have not met him, we have not shared words harsh or otherwise, and he is not depicted doing anything more awful than attending a live music venue...

... and yet I want to beat him with my fists until the breath leaves his lungs...

I've seen a lot of people ragging on them, usually because they are just tired of them. I got away from them for a year or so, but fell in love with them again.

Cascades are great on their own, but I also love them for combining with other hops - you can always rely on cascades for that classic spicy, citrusy burst (or background) in an American ale.

BTW... Only hops I have used so far (and have 2 more batches on the way...) are Kent Goldings. Probably time to branch out .

CreamyGoodness said:

The gentleman depicted in this picture has done nothing to me. I have not met him, we have not shared words harsh or otherwise, and he is not depicted doing anything more awful than attending a live music venue...

... and yet I want to beat him with my fists until the breath leaves his lungs...

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That escalated quickly...

I wonders if those who prefer Cascades prefer them over Simcoes, Citras and Amarillos?

I simply have never liked cascade. I pick it out immediately in a beer and it doesn't agree with me.

I love cascade hops. There I said it.

I've had a few people tell me they hate cascade then sample my black IPA and tell me how wonderful it is. I use cascade hops (mostly) in that beer!

I love cascade!!! I couldn't find any for awhile, but was able to score 11 pounds from my local brewer. They have been cutting back on using them for some reason, leaves more for me I guess.

CreamyGoodness said:

The gentleman depicted in this picture has done nothing to me. I have not met him, we have not shared words harsh or otherwise, and he is not depicted doing anything more awful than attending a live music venue...

... and yet I want to beat him with my fists until the breath leaves his lungs...

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Yeah, he does have a rather punchable face.

Pilgarlic said:

I wonders if those who prefer Cascades prefer them over Simcoes, Citras and Amarillos?

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I do prefer cascade over Simcoe. Simcoe has a woody/dirt character I don't find appealing in my ales.

Citra and amarillo are fine, although the hype around them is a bit overdone.

Cascade hops are THE american hop. If you hate cascade does that mean you hate america too?

I thought centennial was the American Hop, and Cascade was just it's lesser cousin.....the creepy one that no one really likes.

Nightshade said:

I use em and I love em.
Very versatile hop, but just like any other ingredient too much is too much. If you get in a rut of only using cascade then I could see the issue, but if you brew with a variety including cascade and keep a balance I see no issue.

I have gotten past hop bombs though, I like IPAs like no other but just nailing the IBUs has ceased to impress and am now looking for a smooth yet high IBU beer when I have an IPA.

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Then Lagunitas Sucks is the beer for you! Why I just brewed a clone, tons of hop aroma and flavor without being overly bitter.