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Vienna Cream Ale

Intended to make Jeff Renner's CAP with Ale yeast (a CACA, I guess). Added some extra malt from his recipe to account for my expected lower efficiency. Brew shop sent Vienna rather than 6 row... go figure. I didn't find out until later. So I guess this is a Vienna Cream Ale (VCA).

Brewer: Derric Email: -
Beer: Vienna Cream Ale Style: Vienna
Type: All grain Size: 5.5 gallons
Color:
5 HCU (~5 SRM)
Bitterness: 45 IBU
OG: 1.054 FG: 1.015
Alcohol: 5.0% v/v (3.9% w/w)
Grain: 9 lb. German Vienna
3 lb. Corn (raw)
Mash: 65% efficiency
Heat 4 qts water to 170F in pot for cereal mash.
Pre-heat oven to 153F.
Pre-heat mash tun w/ hot water (direct heat tun).

8:00 - Mash in cereal to hit 153F. Put into oven.
8:35 - Check cereal mash - @ 148F - increased oven temp.
- Mash-in main mash - hit 146F exactly!
8:45 - Take cereal mash to boil. STICK STICK STICK! - had to transfer to another pot and clean the burned grain off the pot.
8:55 - cereal boiling OK (had added some water).
9:30 - combine mashes, hit 154F (had to move to large mash, off
direct fire).
9:50 - added ~ 1 Gal. boiling water to mash to reach 158F. (If I'd known I was using Vienna I wouldn't have mashed so high!!!).
10:35 - strained out thinnest of mash, brought ~2 Gals to boil.
10:38 - decoction boiling (preparing to mash-out).
11:00 - Began sparge - FWH 1.5 oz Saaz
11:19 - Early runnings - 1.060@154F -> 1.071
- Stirred and re-vorlauf'd (thought mash was channelling but wasn't)
11:35 - 1.030 -> 1.041
- Stirred and re-vorlauf'd
11:45 - 1.014 -> 1.025
12:05 - Done - 1.037@135F -> 1.048+
Boil: 90 minutes SG 1.042 7 gallons
12:15 - onto fire
12:35 - boil
12:45 - Added boiling hops, 1 oz N Brewer
14:05 - Add 0.75 oz Saaz flavor, 1 tsp Irish moss, chiller into pot
(took this long to get the volume down)
14:15 - Add 0.75 oz Saaz aroma, flameout ~5.5 gal
- chilling begun with tap water
14:34 - @ 100F moving from tap water to iced water & pump
14:46 - Below 80F -> 1.070
15:19 - @ 70F -> 1.064, racked into fermenter
15:28 - Done - topped up fermenter to 5.5 gal 1.054
Hops: 1 oz. Northern Brewer (8.5% AA, 90 min.)
2.25 oz. Saaz (3.75% AA, 10 min.)
.75 oz. Saaz (aroma)
Yeast: Started with beer bottle bottom yeast from WLP001. Didn't start in time so re-hydrated Coopers Ale yeast and put that into starter.
Five hours later, rolling krausen. Pitched into fermenter.
12 hours later, massiver fermentation, 24 hours after that, practically done.
Log: 09 Oct 2002 - Racked. High gravity! - 1.024. Too high, too sweet. HOwever, no activity, so appears to be finished. Attempted to restart it.
11Oct2002 - Added yeast energizer. Nothing.
13 Oct 2002 - re-hydrated Safbrew S-33 and pitched it. Nothing.
Discovered that malt was Vienna. It should have been 6 row or plain pale ale malt. That and the high mashing temps may explain the high FG.
20 oct 2002 - saw what looked like white mold appearing... tiny bits.
22 Oct 2002 - mold was bubbles! It was starting slowly again. Was cloudy again. WHy??? Did it just take the yeast that long to break down higher sugars?
23 Oct 2002 - still producing bubbles on top.
12 Nov 2002 - Measured 1.015.
13 Nov 2002 - bottled w/ 4+ oz corn sugar (3/4 cup).
Carbonation: 2.5 volumes Corn Sugar: 4.92 oz. for 5.5 gallons @ 70°F
Tasting: 20 Nov 2002 - After one week carbonating, it is still fairly flat.
Has good taste tho' a little sweet for what I think I was shooting for. Quite bitter enough. At this stage, I think it is very good.

Recipe posted 11/20/02.