bernerbrau
Well-Known Member
After 6-7 lagers, I am determined to brew one that actually tastes "lagery" and doesn't take a dang week to get going.
So, this time, I did it by the book, and for the first time I had a vigorous fermentation going, at target temp, in less than 48 hours. I may be jumping the gun on this, but I call that a preliminary success. Here's a breakdown of what I did differently.
1. Temperature
Previously I had to crank my fridge temp up to the 60-70 range for a few days to get the yeast started, even with a starter. After cooling the wort, I put the temp controller all the way down to 45 for this, taped the probe to the side of the carboy, and waited several hours for the wort to come down to pitching temperature.
2. Aeration
Previously I would depend on the "splash the wort" and "shake the hell out of the carboy" methods for aeration. Not this time. I went whole-hog on this one. Bought me an aeration stone and filter assembly from the LHBS, then dropped by the local welding shop, where they hooked me up with the regulator and fittings to hook the assembly up to a 20-pound oxygen tank. Gave me a pretty hefty discount, too, since I was a homebrewer and not a welder (apparently homebrewers drive a large chunk of their business lately).
I boiled the aeration stone and tubing for 15 minutes, hooked it up to the filter already plugged into the O2 tank, and cranked it up. Had a slight mishap where I opened the main valve too far and spilled some wort over the sides of the carboy. Despite some fussing, I couldn't manage to get a gentle flow with the main valve all the way open, so I ended up cranking the main valve slightly, and let it bubble for 2 minutes.
3. Cell count
I said "Screw it" to liquid yeast and attempting to build up a starter. Too many headaches and heartbreaks (I have one lager that tastes like a too-fruity Belgian because I forgot to decant the starter before pitching).
Since I was preparing mason jars to wash the cake from a previous brew, I set aside one jar with boiled, chilled water, dumped off about 1/8 of the water, added 2 packets of Saflager W-34/70, and let soak for about 7 hours prior to pitching. After chilling and aerating, I gave the whole thing a good shake and dumped it in, water and all.
The Result
Within 24 hours of pitching there was a thin yeast layer on top of the wort already. 48 hours later there was a thick, healthy layer of krausen on my lager, big enough to compete with some of my pale ales. At 45 degrees, no less. All my previous lagers would sit, flaccid and motionless, for at least a week before showing any sign of fermentation.
The Moral
If in doubt, check your process. Also, and this is something I didn't pick up on when I first started doing lagers, but aeration is at least as important to lager brewing, if not more so, than temperature. Just having a freezer and a temp controller isn't going to brew you the best lagers. Shaking the hell out of the wort is fine for ales, but it will only do so much for lagers. Having some method of active aeration is as crucial. If you're gonna drop $100-200 on a freezer setup to do lagers, you might as well splurge on oxygen as well.
The hard part now is going to be waiting the 10-14 weeks before I can actually taste the final product!
So, this time, I did it by the book, and for the first time I had a vigorous fermentation going, at target temp, in less than 48 hours. I may be jumping the gun on this, but I call that a preliminary success. Here's a breakdown of what I did differently.
1. Temperature
Previously I had to crank my fridge temp up to the 60-70 range for a few days to get the yeast started, even with a starter. After cooling the wort, I put the temp controller all the way down to 45 for this, taped the probe to the side of the carboy, and waited several hours for the wort to come down to pitching temperature.
2. Aeration
Previously I would depend on the "splash the wort" and "shake the hell out of the carboy" methods for aeration. Not this time. I went whole-hog on this one. Bought me an aeration stone and filter assembly from the LHBS, then dropped by the local welding shop, where they hooked me up with the regulator and fittings to hook the assembly up to a 20-pound oxygen tank. Gave me a pretty hefty discount, too, since I was a homebrewer and not a welder (apparently homebrewers drive a large chunk of their business lately).
I boiled the aeration stone and tubing for 15 minutes, hooked it up to the filter already plugged into the O2 tank, and cranked it up. Had a slight mishap where I opened the main valve too far and spilled some wort over the sides of the carboy. Despite some fussing, I couldn't manage to get a gentle flow with the main valve all the way open, so I ended up cranking the main valve slightly, and let it bubble for 2 minutes.
3. Cell count
I said "Screw it" to liquid yeast and attempting to build up a starter. Too many headaches and heartbreaks (I have one lager that tastes like a too-fruity Belgian because I forgot to decant the starter before pitching).
Since I was preparing mason jars to wash the cake from a previous brew, I set aside one jar with boiled, chilled water, dumped off about 1/8 of the water, added 2 packets of Saflager W-34/70, and let soak for about 7 hours prior to pitching. After chilling and aerating, I gave the whole thing a good shake and dumped it in, water and all.
The Result
Within 24 hours of pitching there was a thin yeast layer on top of the wort already. 48 hours later there was a thick, healthy layer of krausen on my lager, big enough to compete with some of my pale ales. At 45 degrees, no less. All my previous lagers would sit, flaccid and motionless, for at least a week before showing any sign of fermentation.
The Moral
If in doubt, check your process. Also, and this is something I didn't pick up on when I first started doing lagers, but aeration is at least as important to lager brewing, if not more so, than temperature. Just having a freezer and a temp controller isn't going to brew you the best lagers. Shaking the hell out of the wort is fine for ales, but it will only do so much for lagers. Having some method of active aeration is as crucial. If you're gonna drop $100-200 on a freezer setup to do lagers, you might as well splurge on oxygen as well.
The hard part now is going to be waiting the 10-14 weeks before I can actually taste the final product!