What is a SMaSH

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SnickASaurusRex

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Please excuse my ignorance.

I understand that it means Single Malt and Single Hop, but I wonder why people brew these. Is it a test batch thing, or more of a purity thing, like single origin coffees, and single malt scotch?

This intrigues me a lot. And I was looking for thoughts on the subject. So please post your thoughts. :mug:
 
It's really a way to 'learn' the character of a single hop variety or a single malt so you know what each one brings to a beer.
 
Ahh

I started searching for single malt recipes because in "Brew Like a Monk" Stan Hieronymus suggest that quiet a few monastic breweries only use one malt and one hop, a regimen of simplicity, plus a little sugar and funkified yeast.

Then I saw all this SMaSh stuff and it threw my beer thinkometer into a spin dive.
 
I think it is both to get to know ingredients and also the novelty of a simple recipe. I did a marris otter/willamette smash with nottingham that turned out very nice, and I actually sent it to NHC as a cream ale. Not exactly a typical cream ale recipe but when I tasted it that was the only style it could match.

I'm looking forward to possibly doing it again but with s-04. I'm having a lot of trouble pegging down the flavor of that yeast and I think it is because I use it in beers with other big flavors. I'd also love to try a munich/tett or maybe saaz smash with euro ale yeast.
 
For me it is just a way to get back to basics really. Sometimes when creating recipes people, myself included, get out of hand with how many ingredients they use. Don't get me wrong, I just had Schmaltz's Jewbelation 12 (12 different malts and 12 different hops) and it blew me away, but sometimes a simple recipe makes a very good, fantastic beer. A lack of diversity of ingredients doesn't mean you have to sacrifice depth IMO.
 
It started out for me as a process tester and now it's just a quick, easy, and drinkable beer. I brew to Blond Ale style guidelines and it makes a great slightly malty lawmower beer that serves as a good tap filler and fairly popular BMC replacement.
 
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