Can someone please recommend a good sMaSh recipe

Bennyboyca

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Can someone please recommend a good hoppy sMaSh recipe, I like light ales (in colour) and also love a punchy hoppy aroma. However, whenever I’ve made beers with a lot of hops, they turn out heavy on the body and grassy as opposed to light zingy and punchy, any help would be appreciated!!

thanks,
Ben.
 
Can someone please recommend a good hoppy sMaSh recipe, I like light ales (in colour) and also love a punchy hoppy aroma. However, whenever I’ve made beers with a lot of hops, they turn out heavy on the body and grassy as opposed to light zingy and punchy, any help would be appreciated!!

thanks,
Ben.
Can you show us your last attempt (the recipe)? It may help to show you where your mistakes might be... Versus giving you a recipe... It could be in your process.
 
Can you show us your last attempt (the recipe)? It may help to show you where your mistakes might be... Versus giving you a recipe... It could be in your process.
 

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Okay. The grain bill looks great!
1. What temp did you mash at?
2. What was your water to grist ratio? If you mashed thick it could have increased the malt body - a thin would lead to a more fermentable wort.
3. Was your FG actually 1.009 or did you end up with something higher?

If you felt it was too malty with that grain bill you could switch out the Marris Otter for some pilsner malt or american 2-row. Marris Otter does have a very pronounced taste.
 
If this is your first IPA maybe drop the simcoe and use columbus with either centenial or cascade (maybe even both) -

3 C's: Columbus, Cascade, and Centennial - A classic combo...

Personally - I would do: Columbus with Cascade...

Others here will probably give you better advice on the hop than I can though as I tend to prefer beers that aren't hoppy. I have done a few good hoppy ones with Chinook and had some nice grapefruit notes.

Edit: I just realized you want a SMASH Recipe...

I have read that Vienna Malt with Northern Brewer hops is a great SMASH beer....
 
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One thing I can say is that if you added Columbus alone as your bittering hop and then added Cascade at the 10 to 15 minute mark and then another dose of Cascade at flame out - you may like the results....

Are you dry hopping at all?
 
Usually Smash recipes are done to get an idea on a particular hop flavor, if that is your objective. You should pick a flavor that matches your taste buds, whether piney, citrus, fruity, etc. It may take some research to determine what you like. For me I would do 2 Row malt and Mosaic.
 
I've got one in the fermenter now. 2-row malt, Cascade hops, and a Belgian Saison yeast.

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/brewsession/333797

I have not gone too heavy on the bittering hops, about 25 IBU. I thought about dry hopping, but I ended with a 5 minute hop addition instead. Keep in mind that I am shooting for a light Trappist ale with some mild hop flavor. If you want more aroma, you might like to dry hop. If you want a cleaner taste, you might try a Safale US-05 yeast instead of the Belgian.
 
I've got one in the fermenter now. 2-row malt, Cascade hops, and a Belgian Saison yeast.

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/brewsession/333797

I have not gone too heavy on the bittering hops, about 25 IBU. I thought about dry hopping, but I ended with a 5 minute hop addition instead. Keep in mind that I am shooting for a light Trappist ale with some mild hop flavor. If you want more aroma, you might like to dry hop. If you want a cleaner taste, you might try a Safale US-05 yeast instead of the Belgian.

2-Row, Cascade and S-05 is a solid SMASH honestly!
 
Thought I'd weigh in: A Helles is quite technically a SMASH beer, Pilsner malt and Hallertau hops. That said, any combination of base malt and hops works. Vienna malt and Saaz, you have a classic Vienna Lager. Can't lager? Pick a clean yeast, German Ale yeast comes to mind, ferment as cool as possible. Lots of possibilities.
 
I have had some great Mosaic smash bears, but yeah, smash away! Simcoe, and mosaic stand up real good in single hop beers. Others too for sure, but those would be my choice.
 
Are you wanting to brew an IPA?
 
Ale malt and as above mosaic or galaxy.

You know I've never brewed a SMaSHbeer huh.

Enjoy report back with the brew
 
Funny - I was reading through a book last night (BYO Big Book of Homebrewing) and came across a recipe for Anchor Brewing Company's Liberty Ale which just happened to be a SMASH beer! Even more surpising, it is made with pale 2-row and cascade!

So, I built the recipe in here for you and added all the notes from the book. This may work with a dry yeast such as Nottingham (edited from S-05 after yeast research).

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/988475/anchor-liberty-ale-clone
 
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I way over hopped when I first started brewing and ended up with bitter grassy beer. I've discovered less is more and I can use way less hops if I use a cleaner malt profile like German 2-row with maybe a small amount of few steeping grains for head and color (the idea was taken from an extract kit I brewed).

FWIW, I would keep the 60 minute or increase it to 28g (although I find a 28g addition of a hop over 7AA to end up way too harshly bitter), skip the 30 minute hop addition entirely, keep the 15 as is or move it to 10 minutes, and reduce the 5 minutes to 10-14g or move it to 2 minutes or Whirpool/hop stand as you cool and/or a dry hop for about 3 to 5 days. With that high of AA in your hops you could be over hopping during the boil for that malt profile and making it too bitter.

I get a great but subtle SMaSH flavor from 2-row and a 14 g hop addition at 60, 14g at 10, and 28g for 3 days dry hop before bottling. Smells great and it is very subtle and low bitterness but an obvious hop profile (to me anyway) this way. If you want more sharp bitterness I'd make the 60 minute addition 21g, still skip the 30 and leave the rest as is. Experiment, worst case scenario I can share a great honey beer bread recipe to use the beer up if it's not to your taste.

Incidentally, I made a horrible NEIPA once. Smelled great but tasted like a lawn mower blade threw up. I think it was because I did not cool the wort fast enough (it was winter so I left it outside for 3 hours) so the late addition (@ 10 and 5) and whirlpool/hop stand additions I tried to do spent too much time too hot. If you're slow to cool your wort or let it cool down on it's own, the hops can be at too high of a temp for too long, I find they get harsh. I've done my own experiments and there are a few articles I read on-line (sorry I can't remember exactly where or who wrote them - but I think it was an Australian brewer) that are about a no cool hop process and how you need to move the hops schedule accordingly because the "boil" lasts longer. For example, to make up for the longer time the wort is at higher temps, move the 60 minute to 30 or less and the 15 and 5 minute or add hops at periods AFTER the boil is over - almost like a hop stand and adjust the amounts of hops you use (I can't remember up or down). I found a neat chart online somewhere that showed how to shift the additions to make up for a natural cool brew. I've not tried it but it's on my "I wonder what would happen if" list.
 

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