Smoke:

Set your smoker up with enough wood to smoke for 5 hours.

Set the smoker temperature to ~ 5 hours. Depending on the size of your hocks and the external ambient temperature, you may need more or less time.

Method:

Heat the water and dissolve the salt and sugar. Let the water cool completely and add in the bay leaves, peppercorns and cloves.

In a large glass or plastic vessel add the hocks and the brine and be sure everything is covered in brine. If you need more, add more of the water, sugar and salt brine.

Brine the hocks for 2 full days.

Remove the hocks from the brine and let them rest on a rack and pan in your refrigerator overnight.

After 12 hours of air drying, they're ready to be smoked.

Place the hocks in your 250ºF smoker for ~ 5 hours or until their internal temperature reads 200ºF.