Alphabetical (Extract) SMaSH

I started SMaSH-y project a couple of weeks ago. I'm planning on brewing the same recipe for all of the hops that I'm interested in, in alphabetical order, every two weeks until I finish.

Since it's extract, I know it's not true SMaSH. But I thought it would still fit the same purpose - learning about the hops.

Here are the hops that I'm going to use:

Amarillo
Apollo
Azacca
Calypso
Cascade
Centennial
Chinook
Citra
Columbus
El Dorado
Equinox
Falconer's Flight
Galaxy
Motueka
Nelson Sauvin
Simcoe
Summit

The recipe is a 3 gallon batch. I use 4 lbs of light DME.

Here is the hop schedule I'm using.

0.5 oz 60 min
2 oz 5 min
2.5 oz flameout
3.5 oz dry hop (4 days)

My questions are:

1) are there any hops that I'm skipping that anyone would recommend? I tried to grab all of the "bigger" ones in terms of flavor based on reputation, but I definitely could've missed some.

2) are there any hops for which I should consider altering the schedule? I've only made one batch so far (amarillo) and I was planning on seeing how it comes out before I change anything.

3) for which hops should I use a different hop on the bittering addition? I've heard that citra gets weird when it's used for bittering, so I was planning on swapping columbus or simcoe on the 60 min on that one. Any others?

Sounds like a great experiment. An all citra smash should be fine. The summit could be weird, maybe good, maybe nasty. I've never had such good luck with it for flavor/aroma. I would lose that one. Definitely try Mosaic.

Just curious... When referring to hops as oz. Are these pellet or whole cone hops. And I'm not just referring to your recipe but I'm new and was wondering if it made a difference?

I think this is a great idea and we might have to try something similar. Keep us updated and cheers!

I'm referring to pellets. I would guess that it makes a difference, but I'm not totally sure.

The amarillo will be ready tomorrow and the apollo is in the carboy. I'll be sure to post some notes as they finish.

Don't dismiss Noble hops. I really want to do one with Hallertaugh or Saaz. I think both of these, if hopped correctly could make a great SMaSH.

QUICK QUESTION: planning any changes in hop amounts based on variations in AA to try to reach a similar IBU in all of them? Or just sticking with the same weight, and come what may?

Great minds think alike: I was thinking about a similar project, but smaller in scope: I was just going to start with one representative from each of "corners" of the hop wheel. So, one citrus, one evergreen, one spicy, one herbal, and so on.

I may join you in a couple of these. Fuggles, anyone? EKG? Mosaic seems to get many great reviews for Smash brews.

skydiver30960 said:

QUICK QUESTION: planning any changes in hop amounts based on variations in AA to try to reach a similar IBU in all of them? Or just sticking with the same weight, and come what may?

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That's what I was wondering, you might want to shoot for a particular IBU range to be able to better compare. Sounds fun, those are going to be some hop bombs at 3 gals! Good luck with it.

jcaggiano said:

Don't dismiss Noble hops. I really want to do one with Hallertaugh or Saaz. I think both of these, if hopped correctly could make a great SMaSH.

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You think that the nobles are worth the trouble? I've always heard that their better for background on a brew that emphasizes the malts. Maybe I'll reconsider. I'm already up to 18 hops though.

chickypad said:

That's what I was wondering, you might want to shoot for a particular IBU range to be able to better compare. Sounds fun, those are going to be some hop bombs at 3 gals! Good luck with it.

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Good question. I was thinking about this, and I'm recording the AAs to see if it makes a difference. Apollo was the second batch and I used this recipe, so I'll probably find out whether I have to adjust pretty early on.

By the way - I cracked the first Amarillo bottle and it's pretty great.

Dangerously close to veering off topic, but FOR THE ALL GRAIN BREWERS who happen to be reading:

A quick search on HBT yields lots of good malt/hop combinations for smash brews. But, does anyone have any suggestions for a grain to use in an experiment such as this, where the same grain could/would be paired with all the hops considered? Something that will taste good, but be middle-of-the-road enough that it will work with any hop and allow the hop itself to take center stage?

I like the idea of doing this with extract: my BIAB-fu is weak at best, and extract will yield a drinkable brew with a minimum of process-related variation. But, OTOH, my wallet really likes the idea of doing this BIAB!

I would do biab with pale ale or maris otter. If you want a more robust malty flavor you could go Vienna or Munich. I do all my smash with pale ale.

Yea, I would use american 2-row if I was going all-grain. That's essentially what I'm trying to replicate. That's why I use munton's dme when I can get my hands on it (since my understanding is it's made strictly from 2-row - no caramel, etc.).

I just dry hopped the apollo. As noted above, it's possible I went too far with the AAs by using a fixed schedule based on weight. The aroma was really intense when I popped the top on that carboy. It may calm down over the next week and half. We'll see.

I luves me some SMASH brew

Ike said:

QUICK QUESTION: planning any changes in hop amounts based on variations in AA to try to reach a similar IBU in all of them? Or just sticking with the same weight, and come what may?

Great minds think alike: I was thinking about a similar project, but smaller in scope: I was just going to start with one representative from each of "corners" of the hop wheel. So, one citrus, one evergreen, one spicy, one herbal, and so on.

I may join you in a couple of these. Fuggles, anyone? EKG? Mosaic seems to get many great reviews for Smash brews.

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I did end up doing a Noble IPA but it was not a SMaSH. I used MarisOtter and 3 ounces each Hallertau, Northern Brewer and EKG (1/2 oz each @ 60, 1/2 each @ 10, 1 oz each FO, and dry hopped 1 ounce each. It was really good but no SMaSH.

sjb523 said:

I started SMaSH-y project a couple of weeks ago. I'm planning on brewing the same recipe for all of the hops that I'm interested in, in alphabetical order, every two weeks until I finish.

Since it's extract, I know it's not true SMaSH. But I thought it would still fit the same purpose - learning about the hops.
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How far did you get down your list and how were your results so far?