Has anyone been brewing a SMaSH

The Homebrew Forum

Help Support The Homebrew Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
I'm not sure what I'm missing but I rarely do a SMaSH. Why do people do them? I'll often use just one hop but I always have some small bits of various crystal malts left over in bags in my grain stash, so I always chuck a bit of this in: maybe it's out of habit?
 
I'm not sure what I'm missing but I rarely do a SMaSH. Why do people do them? I'll often use just one hop but I always have some small bits of various crystal malts left over in bags in my grain stash, so I always chuck a bit of this in: maybe it's out of habit?
The whole idea is to see what characteristics each hop and grain type yield as they are the only two present and gives their characters bare whereas additional grains or hops mask their flavours and aromas and a good way of deciding which will suit your pallet or you can pair together.
More feasible in 5 litre batches and if you don't like the combo you haven't wasted mu h but on the flip side if you do just increase your batch size by percentage or add and subtract to what you think may suit.
 
Forgot about this thread. I opened the first of my Maris Otter Citra SMaSH's last Friday night, purely for testing purposes 😊. It was even better tasting than I remember the 5L batch being. I then drank another two bottles! 😁

Definitely best drank young.
 
do you have your recipe/schedule so I can give it a go.

97% Maris Otter, 3% Cara 30. Mash at 65C. I have aternated between cara and no cara. and like both. Your choice.

Hops all Citra - No early additions. 16IBU at 20 mins, 16IBU at 10 mins, 15 IBU at 5 mins, then hopstand at 80C for 30 mins using the same weight as the 10minute addition. No dry hop.

US-05 at 20C
OG 1.057 finish at 1.011
ABV 6% ish
 
I'm not sure what I'm missing but I rarely do a SMaSH. Why do people do them? I'll often use just one hop but I always have some small bits of various crystal malts left over in bags in my grain stash, so I always chuck a bit of this in: maybe it's out of habit?
I do them all the time when I want to try a new malt or a new hop. It's about cutting down the number of variables so you can taste what has changed.
Apart from that, my most drunk beer, Summer Lightning, is, I understand, a SMaSH.
 
Last edited:
I have been reading this with interest, i have a kilo of various hops 25kg of pilsner 25kg of larger malt yeast i have gervin, cml voss, and beoir , hops are bramling x, challenger, ekg, styrian goldings, first gold, target and saaz, i can see some smashes coming, i also have black malt and some special w, forgot northern brewer hops
 
I have been reading this with interest, i have a kilo of various hops 25kg of pilsner 25kg of larger malt yeast i have gervin, cml voss, and beoir , hops are bramling x, challenger, ekg, styrian goldings, first gold, target and saaz, i can see some smashes coming, i also have black malt and some special w, forgot northern brewer hops
Both grains are light in body and colour so when adding hops try a balanced recipe so both can shine through again checking your AA% of the hops to keep your IBU'S balanced and not leaving it too bitter.
 
How does this look
pilsner smash
Specialty Beer

Recipe Specs
----------------
Batch Size (L): 20.0
Total Grain (kg): 4.500
Total Hops (g): 100.00
Original Gravity (OG): 1.049 (°P): 12.1
Final Gravity (FG): 1.012 (°P): 3.1
Alcohol by Volume (ABV): 4.81 %
Colour (SRM): 3.3 (EBC): 6.5
Bitterness (IBU): 25.9 (Average)
Brewhouse Efficiency (%): 70
Boil Time (Minutes): 90

Grain Bill
----------------
4.500 kg Pilsner (100%)

Hop Bill
----------------
40.0 g Saaz Pellet (3.6% Alpha) @ 60 Minutes (Boil) (2 g/L)
40.0 g Saaz Pellet (3.6% Alpha) @ 10 Minutes (Boil) (2 g/L)
20.0 g Saaz Pellet (3.6% Alpha) @ 5 Minutes (Aroma) (1 g/L)

Misc Bill
----------------

Single step Infusion at 66°C for 60 Minutes.
Fermented at 20°C with kveik voss


Recipe Generated with BrewMate
 
Maris otter And mosaic after that Maris Mosaic Lemondrop, Maris Sorachi Ace,

After all that Decided Mosaic Lemondrop and Maris and Caramalt for colour cracking brew

Also Munich Malt and Hallertau Heersucker
 
Done quite a lot of smash beers, from american hopped ipa styles, to English summer ales and saisons.

My favourite is either pale malt and el Dorado with East Coast ale yeast, or my saison smash with pale malt and styrian goldings with belle saison.
 
There's nothing wrong with keeping recipes simple. There are an awful lot of different base grains. Pale 2-row malt and EKGs make a nice pour; light munich with EKGs will give you a completely different beer. As would pale 2-row and cascades.
 
Marris Otter and Medusa conditioning at the moment, ready for testing in a week or so :hat:

Have done Tomahawk, Mouteka and Mosaic SMaSH's before with good results always stick with MO for the grain and play with the hops. Try to keep a lowish ABV as they can go down far to easily.
 
How does this look
pilsner smash
Specialty Beer

Recipe Specs
----------------
Batch Size (L): 20.0
Total Grain (kg): 4.500
Total Hops (g): 100.00
Original Gravity (OG): 1.049 (°P): 12.1
Final Gravity (FG): 1.012 (°P): 3.1
Alcohol by Volume (ABV): 4.81 %
Colour (SRM): 3.3 (EBC): 6.5
Bitterness (IBU): 25.9 (Average)
Brewhouse Efficiency (%): 70
Boil Time (Minutes): 90

Grain Bill
----------------
4.500 kg Pilsner (100%)

Hop Bill
----------------
40.0 g Saaz Pellet (3.6% Alpha) @ 60 Minutes (Boil) (2 g/L)
40.0 g Saaz Pellet (3.6% Alpha) @ 10 Minutes (Boil) (2 g/L)
20.0 g Saaz Pellet (3.6% Alpha) @ 5 Minutes (Aroma) (1 g/L)

Misc Bill
----------------

Single step Infusion at 66°C for 60 Minutes.
Fermented at 20°C with kveik voss


Recipe Generated with BrewMate
Looks like a straightforward tasty lager, except for your choice of yeast. It will be a good pale ale.
The Voss may add some esters, though at 20degC there shouldn't be much, it just won't be as clean as with a lager yeast. It will however be drinkable quite quickly.

If you're after a clean smash to understand more of the character of Saaz, you won't be far off with this. Hop schedule looks good to me.

Of the noble hops, I would imagine Saaz is probably the best to put with the kveik even if fermenting at hotter temps as you may get that spicy Saaz to blend with the orangey Voss esters.
 
How does this look
pilsner smash
Specialty Beer

Recipe Specs
----------------
Batch Size (L): 20.0
Total Grain (kg): 4.500
Total Hops (g): 100.00
Original Gravity (OG): 1.049 (°P): 12.1
Final Gravity (FG): 1.012 (°P): 3.1
Alcohol by Volume (ABV): 4.81 %
Colour (SRM): 3.3 (EBC): 6.5
Bitterness (IBU): 25.9 (Average)
Brewhouse Efficiency (%): 70
Boil Time (Minutes): 90

Grain Bill
----------------
4.500 kg Pilsner (100%)

Hop Bill
----------------
40.0 g Saaz Pellet (3.6% Alpha) @ 60 Minutes (Boil) (2 g/L)
40.0 g Saaz Pellet (3.6% Alpha) @ 10 Minutes (Boil) (2 g/L)
20.0 g Saaz Pellet (3.6% Alpha) @ 5 Minutes (Aroma) (1 g/L)

Misc Bill
----------------

Single step Infusion at 66°C for 60 Minutes.
Fermented at 20°C with kveik voss


Recipe Generated with BrewMate
Looks good! I brewed a Pilsner recently - actually just finished the 5L keg tonight. It was an 8L batch with 2kg Pilsner malt and only 30g of Saaz at the beginning of a 60 minute boil and fermented using CML Hell yeast. It has been one of my best brews yet, and been approved by friends and family, including those that don't drink ales, stouts etc.

Pity the weather's so warm just now (I don't have temp control) or I'd brew a bigger batch of this.
 
How does this look
pilsner smash
Specialty Beer

Recipe Specs
----------------
Batch Size (L): 20.0
Total Grain (kg): 4.500
Total Hops (g): 100.00
Original Gravity (OG): 1.049 (°P): 12.1
Final Gravity (FG): 1.012 (°P): 3.1
Alcohol by Volume (ABV): 4.81 %
Colour (SRM): 3.3 (EBC): 6.5
Bitterness (IBU): 25.9 (Average)
Brewhouse Efficiency (%): 70
Boil Time (Minutes): 90

Grain Bill
----------------
4.500 kg Pilsner (100%)

Hop Bill
----------------
40.0 g Saaz Pellet (3.6% Alpha) @ 60 Minutes (Boil) (2 g/L)
40.0 g Saaz Pellet (3.6% Alpha) @ 10 Minutes (Boil) (2 g/L)
20.0 g Saaz Pellet (3.6% Alpha) @ 5 Minutes (Aroma) (1 g/L)

Misc Bill
----------------

Single step Infusion at 66°C for 60 Minutes.
Fermented at 20°C with kveik voss


Recipe Generated with BrewMate
It looks lovely apart from the yeast. Pilsner malt is nice and refined, saaz is delicate and lovely, Voss is like an elephant's fart in a broom cupboard. Don't do it. Saflager W-34/70 doesn't need to be fermented at lager temperatures; even in the mid to high 20s, it'll leave your beer with some dignity.
 
It looks lovely apart from the yeast. Pilsner malt is nice and refined, saaz is delicate and lovely, Voss is like an elephant's fart in a broom cupboard. Don't do it. Saflager W-34/70 doesn't need to be fermented at lager temperatures; even in the mid to high 20s, it'll leave your beer with some dignity.
I'll need to keep that yeast in mind. 👍🏻
 
Original Burton Pale was a SMaSH ale. Simple, brewed for the masses and forerunner of IPA. 5.5Kg Crisp Best Ale Malt; 50g Sovereign at 60 minutes and another 50g at 15 minutes. Mash thickness around 3Lts/Kg and mash tmp 66 DegC. Mash liquor volume 16.5 Lts and sparge with 22 Lts. Should give you a boil volume of 32 Lts and fermenter volume of around 26 Lts @ 1.050 (depending on system). Yeast Notty, naturally! This is for a full volume boil. BUT as @scomet says: "nowhere to hide". If you want a more citrussy flavour go for Jester hops (citrus is not my scene in a SMaSH I'm afraid).
 
My all time best result with smash experiments is Sorachi Ace... Wifette says it's the worst beer I make, I think it's really successful! Perhaps slightly an acquired taste. It's also kinda strong at 7 pc or more depending upon mash temp. I've tried it without the dextrose addition but actually it's not as nice... The alcohol kick is something that really contributes to the beer, although pouring sugar in goes against the grain of my entire beery belief system
 
97% Maris Otter, 3% Cara 30. Mash at 65C. I have aternated between cara and no cara. and like both. Your choice.

Hops all Citra - No early additions. 16IBU at 20 mins, 16IBU at 10 mins, 15 IBU at 5 mins, then hopstand at 80C for 30 mins using the same weight as the 10minute addition. No dry hop.

US-05 at 20C
OG 1.057 finish at 1.011
ABV 6% ish
thanks
i dont understand all of what you mean
how long is the boil?
how much in at 20mins left
how much in at 10 mins left
how much in at 5mins left
then at 80drgrees 30mins another how much?

some folk arent experts. like me.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top