Smith & Lentz Versatile Pils
Smith & Lentz Brewing
This is a homebrew-scale recipe for the German Pils from Smith & Lentz Brewing in Nashville, Tennessee. Below, we explain how the recipe can be adjusted for a range of variations.
ALL-GRAIN
OG: 1.044 FG: 1.006
Batch size: 5 gallons (19 liters) IBUS: 45
Brewhouse efficiency: 72% ABV: 5%
MALT/GRAIN BILL
8.5 lb (3.9 kg) Weyermann Bohemian Pilsner
HOPS SCHEDULE
1.3 oz (37 g) Mount Hood [6% AA] at 60 minutes 2.6 oz (74 g) Tettnang [5% AA] at whirlpool for 20 minutes
YEAST
White Labs WLP800 Pilsner Lager
DIRECTIONS
Mash the grains at 148°F (64°C) for 60 minutes. Vorlauf can begin 5 minutes into the mash; runnings will be clear by the time 60 minutes is up. Run off into the kettle. Sparge the grains and top up as necessary to obtain 6.5 gallons (25 liters) of wort—or more, depending on your evaporation rate. Boil for 90 minutes and whirlpool, following the hops schedule. Chill the wort to slightly below fermentation temperature, about 50°F (10°C). Aerate the wort and pitch the yeast. Ferment at 52°F (11°C) until the gravity has dropped to about 1.024, then allow the temperature to rise to 56°F (13°C) for a diacetyl rest for 4 days. When fermentation is complete, step down by 4°F (1–2°C) per day. Lager for about 6 weeks at 36°F (2°C), then package and carbonate to about 2.75 volumes.
BREWER’S NOTES
Subtle changes in process and fermentation have a huge final impact on beers as delicate as pilsners. Brewing different pilsner styles, you don’t need to start from scratch to have two (or five) completely different beers pouring from your kegerator. Just be patient with fermentation, stepping down the temperature, and conditioning time. Here are a couple of variations, though many more are possible:
Czech-style: Increase the malt to 9 lb (4.1 kg) and keep the water profile neutral (we just use Nashville water). Keep the same two hops additions but change the variety to Saaz, which also will lower the IBUS; you can adjust the 60-minute addition to aim for 35 IBUS total. Increase the mash temperature to 154°F (68°C) but shorten the mash time to 45 minutes to make sure you don’t over-convert. Boil for 2 hours instead of 90 minutes. When packaging, carbonate to 2.5 volumes.
Italian-style: Follow the German-style template above but adjust wort ph to about 5.05 during whirlpool. Allow fermentation to rise to 56°F (13°C), then 58°F (14°C) after 3 days. Dry hop with Hallertau Blanc (40 percent) and Hop Head Farms’ Zuper Saazer (60 percent) for 3 days before stepping down the temperature and lagering.