Question about my California Common

I did a California Common this weekend (SWMBO had to make an unplanned trip out of town Saturday, so I decided it was brew day) and am really hoping this is ready to drink by Christmas to share with the family. I pitched Saturday night (Wyeast 2112 California Lager), started seeing activity in the airlock mid-morning Sunday, and it's hovering right around 65 degrees and bubbling away.

In my head, this is how I see it working:

-It's going to stay in primary until at least next Sunday, probably Monday, because we're leaving town for the Thanksgiving weekend. Assuming it hits FG (OG was 1.043), I will rack to secondary at that point
-I'll set it in my back stairwell - probably around 40 degrees - for 7-8 days and then bottle
-3 weeks in the bottle leading up to Christmas, also in the stairwell around 40 degrees (probably colder as it gets deeper into December)

...just curious if anyone has any thoughts on whether they think this will be ready to drink

It'll be tight, but you'll probably have a fairly good beer by Christmas. After you bottle, keep it out at your warmer room temperature for a week or so before you put it out on your stairwell at 40F.


TL

I think this will work, but you will need to give it a week or two at 65F to carbonate.

I did a CC a while ago in way less ideal conditions than you seem to have. It blew out the airlock twice and still turned out fricken awesome. You'll have a good one for Christmas for sure. Be sure to save some for new years too!

For anyone following along at home...

This went into secondary about half an hour ago. Hit the expected FG on the money, and tasted...how can I put this....freaking brilliant (which is understating).

It's now chilling (literally) in my cool back stairwell. Hoping to see it clear up in a week or so.

Anyone have any thoughts on clarifiers if it doesn't? I tried researching them last week and it made my head spin - I'd like to take as much out cloud as I can (clarity DOES mean something to me, at least with this particular brew) but still leave enough yeast to bottle carbonate.

I could suck it up and leave the haze, but I'm sort of going for the "wow" factor with the family at Christmas (I'm new to homebrewing this year and they're all excited to sample).

I have a California Common that I brew quite regularly. I use white labs California lager yeast. I have found that you get big change in the flavor if you ferment at 58º to 62ºF, They still taste great if fermented at Higher temps (up to 68º), but if you try it again ferment at 60º.

the good new is that I regularly turn my common around in 4weeks. but that is with keeping the secondary at 60º, I'm not sure having at 40º might add time to the process.