I got an unbelievable deal on a pound of columbus hops through yakima valley hops a while back. I have never brewed with them so I don’t know what they taste like. Would an IPA single hopped with these be a bad thing?
Columbus is one of my favorite hops. Dank, resinous, a bit citrusy. I’d do a single hop beer with them…except for the fact that I don’t really care for most single hop beers I’ve tried.
I like single hopping to learn what a hop tastes like. I just don’t want to make something undrinkable, from what you say it sounds like I am safe from that. Thankyou.
I’m a big fan of Columbus too, but I don’t know if I’d try a single hop IPA with them. I think they are great for bittering, flavor, and aroma, but I think they need a companion or two for flavoring and/or aroma. I have bittered exclusively with them, but have mixed them with Centennial and Simcoe in late additions and dry hopping with a 1:1:1 ratio to help round off their “dankness”. I have also bittered with them in conjunction with nugget hops. That was a solid combination that I will probably do again. It’s a pretty versatile hop, and I think you’ll be safe whatever you do with it…except that I’m not sure about using them as the only hop in a beer. But if you do decide to do that, let us know how it tastes…I’m still curious 
I agree that it’s a great way to learn about a hop variety.
I use Columbus quite a bit for my American ales. As Denny said, dank, resinous with some citrus notes. I like using them to achieve the bittering charge for APA/IPA’s plus they also work well in finishing along with Amarillo, Simcoe and Citra.
Try a small extract batch using the “15 minute pale ale” recipe. I did that two weeks ago with Mosaic. 3 lbs DME, 8 oz 60L crystal, Safale05, 3 oz Mosaic. I may do it again this weekend with a NZ hop. Fun and fast, and I’m not looking for the Rosebud of homebrews, just some insight into a particular hop.
Yeah, that’s a good idea…and pragmatic! Like you say, I’m not looking for an award winning beer. Just a way to experience a hop variety. Thanks for the idea.
Columbus is one of the hops I have found makes an excellent single hop beer. I recommend trying it.
Just bottled the Mosaic quick-n-easy 15-minute APA, and it is so tasty I am planning to do Fred Bonjour’s late-hopped Amarillo APA with Mosaic next weekend. ( Site Not Found ) Now pondering doing the same “stovetop stuffin’” approach with Nelson or some other hop I haven’t really played with.
I just did an all Columbus pale ale a couple of weeks ago. The additions I chose were: .5 oz 30 min and 1 oz ea @ 10, flameout, and dryhop (in primary after 4 days). 5 gal batch…OG 1.050. It’s been in the keg a week and the flavor is like eating a grapefruit. My sniffer isn’t very good, so I can’t tell exactly what the aroma is (people say dank, pungent, citrusy…I have no idea), but it certainly smells good to me. :) The only way you’ll know is to give it a try. If you don’t like it, you can always send it to me…I’ll even pay shipping.
I like 'em!
Columbus is one of the two hops in Denny’s Wry Smile (the other is Mt. Hood) and I like that combo so much I’ve brewed that beer more than any other. Singling out Columbus in an APA sounds very interesting.
It’s funny that when John Maier from Rogue first tasted the beer, he said he never would have thought of that hop combo. To tell the truth, I’m not sure how I came up with it!
Hog Heaven Barleywine from Avery is an all columbus beer, if you want to get some ideas before brewing your own.
Great “research” suggestion, thanks!