Can you steep Vienna?

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You can steep it and you'll get flavour and colour (not a lot though, as Bobby_M mentioned, it's a base malt), you just won't get any fermentables. If you do a partial mash you get the flavour and colour AND some fermentables.
 
^ That is fantastic news for me... Correct me if I'm wrong, but if a recipe called for Vienna and I just substituted it with the correct amount of DME, I could then just steep maybe double the specified amount of Vienna to get its flavors? Or would I need more?
 
Vienna has enough diastatic power to convert itself, so if you steep at the right temperature (say between 148 and 158 F) for enough time (at least 30 mins) you are essentially doing a mash.

If you aren't in the temperature range for its enzyymes to convert the starches in the grains to sugars (say you steeped too low at 130 F), then you are going to wind up with starch in your wort. This will likely lead to a haze in your beer.
 
BrooZer said:
Can it be partial mashed?

Just for reference, partial mashing IS mashing. The partial part comes from the fact that you're adding extract to the recipe. So its not all-extract or AG, its partial-mash! :D
 
FlyGuy said:
Vienna has enough diastatic power to convert itself, so if you steep at the right temperature (say between 148 and 158 F) for enough time (at least 30 mins) you are essentially doing a mash.

In addition to proper temp, keep the water to grain ratio at about 1.25-1.5 quarts of water per pound of grain. This is typically a lot less water than the normal steep.
 
Too much water will dilute the enzymes that convert starch to sugar. In a malt like Vienna, that already has very low diastatic power, you won't get full conversion and therefore, not full fermentability.
 
Nitroustang,

I see you made an extract version of edworts haus ale. That is why Im asking about the vienna, how did it turn out? What recipe did you use?
 
I made my own custom recipe, but it is obviously flawed - the information in this thread will help a TON in replicating his recipe with extract.
 
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