Need a suggestion....

[Drew_101]

I want to try a Vienna SMaSH for my first AG try. I was wanting to know a couple things. First how many lbs. Of grain and what kind of hops would be a good choice? Also what temp to mash at? Thanks

 

[Yooper]

My only Vienna SMaSH was a Vienna lager. It was great, but involved decoctions, cold fermentation, lagering, and is probably not what you want to try for your first beer!

Are you thinking of doing a simple American pale ale or something like that? Vienna would be really nice as a malty base malt for APA, and would be great with hops like cascades, centennial, amarillo, or even willamette for a more amber or English feel.

I'd probably go with a target OG of 1.050-1.060, just in case your efficiency is very high or very low- you'll still have a great bill.

So, I'd probably do something like this:

11 pounds Vienna

1 ounce cascades 60 minutes
1 ounce cascades 15 minutes
1 cascades 0 minutes


Check the AAUs of your cascades though. It seems like this year I've got some that are 5%, and some that are near 9%. You'd want to use 1 ounce at 60 minutes of 8-9% AAUs. If they are lower, closer to 5%, you would want to use a bit more like 1.25 ounces or even 1.5 ounces.

For an American pale ale, I'd mash at 152-154.