Help/opinions on this SMASH recipe

OK, For my third, fourtnh and fifth AG brews, I want to keep things simple and get to know my hops better. I'm going to stick with MO for all three brews as I want to concentrate on a good malty base and hopefully keep the hops on the subtle side, and at the low end of the IBU scale.

The first recipe will be with EKG, the second with Fuggles. I would like a suggestion for hops for the third attempt.

This is the first recipe I've tried to formulate myself in beersmith. As I am doing 30 gallons in 3 batches I don't want to screw things up too badly. Beer style is not important, and even though this will look like piss, I have decided against darkening it to stick with a SMASH for my edumacation.

All criticism and suggestions gratefully received.

Oh yes, although I'm not interested at this point in style categories, I am working towards my personal recipe for a maltier ESB or something along those lines


BeerSmith Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: MO SMASH
Brewer: T Clark
Asst Brewer:
Style: English Pale Ale/Strong Bitter
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (35.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 10.00 gal
Boil Size: 13.76 gal
Estimated OG: 1.049 SG
Estimated Color: 4.8 SRM
Estimated IBU: 22.4 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
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Amount Item Type % or IBU
18.25 lb Maris Otter (3.0 SRM) Grain 100.00 %
2.00 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] (60 min) Hops 19.0 IBU
1.00 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] (10 min) Hops 3.4 IBU
2 Pkgs SafAle English Ale (DCL Yeast #S-04) Yeast-Ale

It depends on if you want a contrast or somthing of the same family.
For the contrast I'd go for cascade/pioneer/Styrian goldings to see how big the difference is.
To stay similar I'd look at progress/northdowner/admiral

To go malty without raising the ABV then you probabably know you can mash at a higher temperature.

I'd also look at doing 60,30,0 minute additions. or continuos i.e every 5 minutes (from fwh) but that's a pain.

I agree with you both there. I will try for more variety on the third batch re hops. EKG and fuggles pretty much covers English style bitter. In any case, a good bitter is only a future target after I get a feel for the hops, then some messing with the malts. I would be totally OK with finding something that might take me in a different direction if I liked it enough.

Orfy said:

To go malty without raising the ABV then you probabably know you can mash at a higher temperature.

I'd also look at doing 60,30,0 minute additions. or continuos i.e every 5 minutes (from fwh) but that's a pain.

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To be honest, the 18.25 pounds of MO was completely arbitrary. It just happened to be a close approximation of a 55 pound bag split 3 ways. Now that I think on it, I now have a mill, so I will be buying uncrushed. I also have a vacuum sealer, so keeping the grain fresh for later use is not a problem and I will be happy to reduce the grain bill if you guys think it's too high. I am happy with a lower final ABV. I like to be able to have a few pints without it laying me out.

I wasn't thinking of mashing higher because I did that by accident on my first brew and extracted some tanins, I think.....So I just want to steer clear of that method until I have the process down better..

I'm finding it hard to come to terms with how sickly pale this brew will be, so I'm considering buying some crystal of some kind for the next two brews if I can't get past my reservations about the SMASH idea. The whole SMASH experiment makes sense to me for education purposes, but hell, if I don't like the first one! Ya know?

One other factor in doing the low-hoppped smash, and probably lowering the grain bill is cost. Not that I care about cost personally, but I want to show SWMBO just how cheaply I can make a good beer. I've washed and saved my last yeast, planted my hops last spring etc. etc.....That will help my future endeavours in the long run if she buys my story. You shoulda seen her face when I told her my last two brews were cheaper than BMC!

Nah don't worry plenty have done SMaShes and have been more than happy with them.
I'm a mild drinker and like malty(but balanced) beers.
It's not going to lack flavour because it's light.

I like your idea, LGI. I love EKG and Fuggles, so I'm interested to see what your take is on them separately in an otherwise same beer. Perhaps Challenger for the 3rd?

I think you will find it is not that pale in the end. It won't be macro lager pale. I did a couple of SMaSH'es with my homegrown hops and MO. It turned out pretty nice. My hops were Centennial and an unknown feral hop (I am guessing cluster) and it was a nicely balanced beer in the end.

I will suggest Willamette hops as an American variant on English hops. I recently did a 10 gallon batch of ordinary bitter using Willamette and it was wonderful. In fact I am craving it right now, sadly it is all gone. They are slightly spicy and fruity. Currants and blackberries sprang to mind. Really refreshing.

If I were concerned that I might not like a batch I was planning I think I'd be making 5 gallon or smaller batches, not 10.
How about Cascades or Amarillo...the later appears to be pretty popular.

Zymurgrafi said:

I will suggest Willamette hops as an American variant on English hops. I recently did a 10 gallon batch of ordinary bitter using Willamette and it was wonderful. In fact I am craving it right now, sadly it is all gone. They are slightly spicy and fruity. Currants and blackberries sprang to mind. Really refreshing.

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I can second the Willamette. (But they might be similar to Fuggles?) I brewed an oatmeal stout with them once that had excellent hop flavor. I was surprised at how "Britishy" they were.

Thanks guys. I think I will probably go with Cascade for the third one. (Orfy's contrast, plus it's very popular here so I should get to know it better) I've given nyself the weekend to think about everything. I thought it was time I slowed down a bit on my normally irratic thinking process.

Gonefishing said:

If I were concerned that I might not like a batch I was planning I think I'd be making 5 gallon or smaller batches, not 10.
How about Cascades or Amarillo...the later appears to be pretty popular.

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Yeah, you are right. One of the reasons I went AG was to do larger batches, and I think I got the 10 gal. thing stuck in my head a bit. Although I'm confident I will enjoy it, 10 Gal is rather a lot for an experiment.....Let alone 30 Gals! Even if perfectly enjoyable I reckon I will soon be itching to brew with some sceciality grains again.

I've decided to do two 5 gallon batches on the same day with the EKG and Fuggles. That way I will also get to try them sidr by side. I will still be getting the third hop, but maybe do a 2.5 with them a few days later. That would use up all my bottling capacity, and I'll be able to taste all 3 side by side

menschmaschine said:

I can second the Willamette. (But they might be similar to Fuggles?) I brewed an oatmeal stout with them once that had excellent hop flavor. I was surprised at how "Britishy" they were.

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Willamette is a Fuggles cultivar. It was developed by the Oregon Agricultural Experimental Station in the mid-1970s, from a domestic dwarf variety and Fuggles. The main differences are three, one theoretical and two practical. First, Willamette is a triploid, while Fuggles is tetraploid. Second, Willamette is seedless while Fuggles is not (no seeds = no weight as seeds = more AAs in the wort). Third, Willamette is much more disease-resistant than Fuggles.

Flavor and aroma are very similar to Fuggles, being spicy, grassy and herbal, at the same time being very mild and floral. Most brewers can't tell Fuggles and Willamette apart. That makes W a very good sub for F.

Cheers,

Bob

I just pulled the first pint of my Willy-Mo SMaSH and it is very good. I don't want to call it bland, but it has a delicate grainy flavor. Definitely good for the casual drinking while eating. Not really a beer that demands sniffing, sipping, and critiquing. Mine is lightly hopped to 20 IBU and 4.7%. On my kegerator menu sheet I wrote that it is a good starting point for someone who usually drinks miller lite.

You might consider Argentine Cascades. A MO SMaSH would be a great opportunity to try those suckers out.