Saison recipe with only Sterling hops

Hey everyone,

I'm looking to brew my first saison recipe and was planning on using wyeast 3711. I've heard this yeast produces a lot of spicy flavor and thus didn't want to use a spice-forward hop like Saaz. Wondering if I can use Sterling? I hear that sterling is less spicy with plenty of floral/citrus (hoping this complements 3711 well). Please let me know if you think Sterling will work well with the following recipe. Thanks!

Batch size: 5 gallons
Boil volume: 3.5 gallons
Est. OG: 1.048
Est. FG: 1.007
Bitterness: 22.1 IBUs
Est ABV: 5.6%

4 lb Pilsen Light DME
1 lb Bavarian Wheat DME
0.5 lb Dextrose

0.6 oz Sterling @ 60 min
1 oz Sterling @ 10 min
1 oz Sterling @ 0 min

Yeast: Wyeast 3711 (French Saison)

While that's true, it's also gaining favor as a saaz replacement. I like sterling myself. Rather noble flavor. I'd add the flavor/aroma additions at 15 & 3 minutes, respectively. More flavor & aroma that way. I read that 3711 would give peppery flavors, but didn't get it in too many bottles of my saison last year. More of a light barnyard flavor on the back. Otherwise, it was good.

Great, thanks for the reply. I will go ahead and try 3711 with Sterling then. Sounds like it should come out well.

Hey Ray. I'm considering making a Saison for the first time as well using Sterling. I know it's been a while, but how did this turn out?