Need input on Vienna Lager recipe

This is what I have come up with sofar:

Vienna Lager
Brew Type: All Grain Date: 4/17/2009
Style: Vienna Lager Brewer:
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.0 %

Ingredients Amount Item Type % or IBU
4.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 42.1 %
4.00 lb Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) Grain 42.1 %
1.00 lb Munich Malt (20.0 SRM) Grain 10.5 %
0.50 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 5.3 %
0.75 oz Hallertauer Mittelfrueh [4.00%] (60 min) Hops 10.8 IBU
0.75 oz Hallertauer Mittelfrueh [4.00%] (30 min) Hops 8.3 IBU
0.50 oz Hallertauer Mittelfrueh [4.00%] (5 min) Hops 1.4 IBU
1 Pkgs Bavarian Lager (Wyeast Labs #2206) Yeast-Lager

Estimated Original Gravity: 1.051 SG
Estimated Color: 7.4
Bitterness: 20.5 IBU

What do you think?

In place of the pale malt, maybe use some pilsner malt. I also like acid malt in my lagers. It looks like a good recipe.

It's a little under the BJCP color range. You could add a skosh of Carafa.

maho said:

What do you think?

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I think the best Vienna style beer is made with Vienna malt exclusively or close to it. Simplify the recipe by eliminating the pale malt, Munich malt and crystal malt. My preference is 97% Vienna and 3% CaraFoam/CaraPils but 100% Vienna is excellent. The hops and yeast look very good.

Are you going to make a starter for the yeast? IMO, you need at least a 1 gal. starter if you start with an Activator pack. It will work without it but will be better with it.

I'd drop the crystal. You probably don't want the extra residual sweetness.

One 'puzzle' about a Vienna lager is that there isn't supposed to be any roasted or caramel flavor or aroma...and it's supposed to be fairly crisp/dry. There is supposed to be some light toasted flavor and aroma. Yet the color (10-16 SRM per BJCP) is too dark to achieve with just Vienna malt alone. Most color malts add caramel or roasted flavor/aroma so the puzzle is to get the flavor/aroma in style while still getting the color dark enough.

I haven't tried it yet but I think my next attempt will be a combination of just Vienna and Dark Munich...maybe a pound of Pils or so just to help the Dark Munich convert. About a 50:50 ratio of Vienna/Dark Munich should be right at the bottom end of the color range.

Take out the 2 row, and either add more vienna or Munich. Most viennas use either of those grains exclusively. You can add a little crystal, but only a squosh to get your color right.

I'd also drop the aroma and flavor hops, and do it soley as a bittering addition. According to the Bjcp style guide,

Noble hop aroma may be low to none.

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So move your hops into bittering only....


Here's the vienna I brewed two months ago and am going to bottle soon.

Mine is
8# Vienna
1# Caramunich (56 SRM)
8 ounces of Crystal 60l
1.35 ounces of Hallertauer @ 60...

Mine was based on the info from this basic brewing podcast.

December 29, 2005 - Vienna Lagers
We talk to Chris Colby of Brew Your Own magazine about Vienna Lagers, a style favored south of the border. Chris takes us through the style and how to make great Vienna lagers at home.

Clicky to listen, Mp-3

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