Shagadelic Baby Yeah (SMASH)

About This Beer

Shagadelic Baby Yeah is a single-malt, single-hop IPA built to understand two ingredients in isolation: Maris Otter as a 100% base malt, and Superdelic as the sole hop variety across the entire schedule. The goal was a clean calibration brew, not a maximalist showcase. At OG 1.063 with a 90-minute boil and 300 g of Superdelic total, this was designed to let both ingredients speak without interference.

Superdelic (trial code NZH-102) is a New Zealand triploid bred by Dr. Ron Beatson in 2012 and fast-tracked to commercial release after showing unusually distinct red fruit and candy character in sensory trials. This was the first time it was used in this brewing log. Maris Otter was also a first use here, chosen specifically because its biscuity English malt character would contrast clearly with the fruity, candy-like New Zealand hop profile.

Ingredients

A SMASH is really just two stories: one malt, one hop. Maris Otter is a traditional English winter barley, kilned slightly higher than most pale malts, and its richness is noticeable even at lower-gravity ranges. At 6 kg in a 24.5 L batch it provided a dense malt backbone without any adjuncts to dilute it.

Superdelic ran across four stages: 20 g at 90 minutes for bittering, two mid-boil additions at 30 and 10 minutes for flavour, a 70 g whirlpool addition for aroma development, and a 100 g dry hop for 5 days. The full hop character, not just one stage, was the intention.

LalBrew BRY-97 was the yeast: a high-flocculating, clean West Coast strain that keeps ester levels low and lets the hops read clearly. Exactly the right tool for a calibration brew.

Brew Day

Brewed on the BrewZilla 35L Gen 4. The 90-minute boil included a 20-minute hop stand at 80°C after flameout, then the wort was chilled into the fermenter. OG hit the target of 1.063 exactly at 24.5 L into the fermenter.

Fermentation

Fermented around 20°C for approximately 14 days, then raised to 22°C for a diacetyl rest before packaging. A final gravity was not recorded for this batch. BRY-97 at this OG typically finishes around 1.013–1.015 based on subsequent batches, but no measurement was taken here.

The dry hop (100 g Superdelic) went in during the final fermentation phase and ran for 5 days before packaging.

The Result

Bottled on 2023-11-16, two weeks after brew day, carbonated to 2.4 vol CO2.

Clear Superdelic character with moderate bitterness and a clean SMASH expression. Maris Otter’s biscuity body came through underneath the hop aroma. The red fruit and candy qualities Superdelic is known for were present and legible without being buried by other ingredients.

This batch became a template reference point for single-hop calibration brews.