Festbier Bee Cave Brewery Oktoberfest Ale

Thanks ed!

Pics alittle blurry but it came out great. Brewed june 9 and after primary had in my chest freezer for 2 months on gas. Its delicious! Nobody can tell its an ale as well. Repitched kolsch cake like you did and worked like a charm. Thanks for the reciepe.

Brewed 10 gallons of this, and split it between Wyeast 2565 and S04. The S04 finished at 1.017, and the 2565 finished at just a hair above 1.010!!! Is that going to be too dry?

Just finished kegging this. Split 10 gallons into 65/60F fermentation and 8 gallons at TX room temp 72-75.

I kegged:
5g of cold ferm
5g of warm ferm
3g of cold ferm

I oaked 4g of warm ferm + 1g of cold ferm blended
Ill keg the oak barrelled one in a week. This will net me three beers for our oktoberfest, and I plan on getting a 1/6 of live oak's oaktoberfest too

This is beer after being brewed 12 days ago. I whipped it up quick for an octoberfest party. I used a big starter of wyeast american ale II that I got from a local micro-brewery. Just thought I would share. Thanks ed for the great beer!

I'm planning on hosting a Post-Oktoberfest the first weekend of November. Slawre5, and anyone who's fermented for around 2 weeks have any recommendations or changes in yeast to speed up the process?

I'm a little late to the game but ready to play!
Thx

Quick question. Any idea how this would go as a pumpkin beer? I got all the ingredients, started my yeast starter last night and am brewing this Saturday. Now I'm thinking I want a pumpkin ale for thanksgiving. Heaven forbid I brew 2 batches just have time limits.

bdub03 said:

I'm planning on hosting a Post-Oktoberfest the first weekend of November. Slawre5, and anyone who's fermented for around 2 weeks have any recommendations or changes in yeast to speed up the process?

I'm a little late to the game but ready to play!
Thx

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Just use a high flocculating ale yeast with good attenuation. S-05, wlp001, 1056, etc. and make a BIG starter. Aerate well after cooling and you should be set.

Just about to ferment my batch of this. Decided to make this a lager and altered the recipe just slightly to get into a Oktoberfest profile, same grains though just different weights slightly.

Using Wyeast 2633 and going to ferment around 50-52 F.

Thanks for the killer recipe!! I was checking the carbonation last night for our Halloween party this coming Saturday and it was amazing! I'd put it up against the mass-produced stuff any day. I dropped the fermenting temp by 5 degrees a week for 4 weeks, then cold crashed it for a few days before kegging and it's crazy clear. It's been keg conditioning for about 4 weeks now.

I took some advise from another post and shook the carboys after about 10 days to try to get that krausen to fall, that did help a lot. Due to a bad thermometer I missed my OG by a bit (mash temp was way too low) but it finished nice at 1.013.

I'll have feedback from lots of friends after next weekend.

So brewed this about 3 months ago true to orignal except i use wyeast instead of white labs, cold conditioned it after primary was done, WOW this is a great beer a new staple on my schedule, thanks Ed for the reciepe!!!!

I brewed this 12 days ago and everything seems to be going well except for one thing. It is still fermenting at a decent rate. The airlock is still bubbling about every 6 seconds. Any words of wisdom?

Matthewjscott said:

I brewed this 12 days ago and everything seems to be going well except for one thing. It is still fermenting at a decent rate. The airlock is still bubbling about every 6 seconds. Any words of wisdom?

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yeah...

you can't rush beer. it'll be done when it gets done.

matthewjscott said:

i brewed this 12 days ago and everything seems to be going well except for one thing. It is still fermenting at a decent rate. The airlock is still bubbling about every 6 seconds. Any words of wisdom?

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hydrometer

I checked it and it was too high. I will just need some patience, I guess

Well this went over crazy well at our annual Halloween party. Pretty much emptied 2 kegs of it in one weekend. Everyone loved it. Next year I may need to bump it up to 15 gallons.

slawre5 said:

Just use a high flocculating ale yeast with good attenuation. S-05, wlp001, 1056, etc. and make a BIG starter. Aerate well after cooling and you should be set.

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Thanks. Brewed 11 gallons on 10/11. Had a strong bubble with-in 6 hours in the fermenter and transfered last night to Keg's with an FG of 1.02. This should be a delicious beer for my Novemberfest! Thanks

That is a pretty high FG. I dont think it had finished when you kegged.

Made this for a friend's wedding after party. Twas a big hit! This is my third Oktoberfest recipe and I have to say this will be the recipe from now on.

bknifefight said:

That is a pretty high FG. I dont think it had finished when you kegged.

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Unfortunately it didn't. Ran out of time before my party. I've added notes to give it a full 3 weeks fermentation before I cold crash. Taste and color were right on par, just a little low on the alcohol side (fine when you're guests are devouring 25 gallons in a night!)

Last pour at the bottom of the keg

I brewed a split batch with S04 and Kolsch yeast. The S04 was great after only 3 weeks.. the Kolsch version was not very good. I've let the Kolsch version lager for about 6 weeks, and it's fantastic. I always forget how much that yeast benefits from lagering.

Am planning to brew this this weekend.

However, I do not presently have a fridge to "lager" this beer for 2 months at 39 F. Best I can do is keep it at around 64 F.

Could anyone tell me how these higher temps will effect the outcome and .....

if it is even worth attempting if I can't condition at 39 F ?

I used a Kolsch yeast, Kept it around 65 degrees and it turned out very mellow but still a good beer!!

Ed's recipes are very solid and I haven't had a bad one yet. Very easy to do, play with, and substitute.

That's reassuring so think I will give it a ago.

Just a quick question, Ed says Ferment at 65 degrees for 1 week, drop to 60 for 2 weeks, then crash cool for a few days at 39 before kegging.

However, the White Labs website says:

Optimum Fermentation Temperature: 65-69°F
Does not ferment well less than 62°F, unless during active fermentation.

Any thoughts from Ed or others ?

I regularly ferment White Labs Kolsch yeast @ 60 F with no issues.

I fermented at 62 and it turns out great! I let it age for about four months and it turned out to be one of the best beers I've made yet.

Thinking of making this as my first keg beer. Keezer in production I used the yeast calculator and it says i need two vials, with a starter for a 5.5 gallon recipe. Sound about right or is it overkill?

Nice beer looks good. Subscribe!

Is there anything special about the grain bill that makes this more amenable to fermenting at ale temps. I ask because I was thinking of changing up the grain bill to do 4lb of each, the pilsner, munich, vienna (and omitting the caramuich and caravienna) and fermenting as suggested. Im new-ish to brewing so want to start with the equalized grain bill and vary the grain qty each time i brew it to taste the difference. I may end up back at Ed's grain bill but I figured its a worthwhile experiment, for me anyway.

I would be happy to hear any opinions on this little experiment and what you think the results could be and why.

Thanks
Ayup

Hey guys this look ok? I added a little more hops to up the IBUs. Ed's recipe shows 25 IBUs and the brew builder only hit around 18 when entered. I am looking to brew this this week for a campout in Helen GA(small German style town) the 1st week in October. Thanks in advance.

Has anyone fermented this with a lager yeast? I finally have the ability to lager and was looking for a good October fest to brew up this month so it might be ready in time.

Any suggestions on a good yeast to use for this recipe and for a first time lagerer

D_Nyholm said:

Has anyone fermented this with a lager yeast? I finally have the ability to lager and was looking for a good October fest to brew up this month so it might be ready in time.

Any suggestions on a good yeast to use for this recipe and for a first time lagerer

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Oktoberfest is a lager so stick with whatever the recommended Oktoberfest yeast is. Probably something like German lager?

crusader1612 said:

Oktoberfest is a lager so stick with whatever the recommended Oktoberfest yeast is. Probably something like German lager?

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Yeah, though this recipe is quoted as an Oktoberfest with an ale yeast so I figured I'd make it as a true to style lager instead. Just never used a lager yeast before and didn't know if there were ones that were more forgiving for this style or not.

What Hallertau was used in the original recipe. I have mittlefrau at home but the AA is only 3.5.

Hey Ed, or anyone for that fact. I am going to brew this this weekend. My question is I prefer to bottle. I see you call for it to sit at 39 for a month on gas. Would you recommend the same thing if I am going to bottle?

Sorry looks like it is two months but the questions remains the same

With my Oktoberfest, I will be bulk aging at 34* for 2 months in secondary, then bottle. Let condition for 3-4 weeks @ room temp, then chill @ fridge temp for a few before consumption. It works for me.

taking a shot at this today after work...thanks for the recipe!

After a 2 week primary at 60 (swamp cooler) I cold crashed it for 5 days at 40°F (johnson controlled fridge in the garage) and then allowed it to come back up to 70°F (house) to bottle. Its carbonating at 70°F (house) now and then I will condition it in bottles at ~55°F for 2 months (cellar ie crawl space - dont want to run the fridge at 40°F in a hot garage for 2 months). Tasted good before bottling!

This looks good! I just did a Kolsh and could have used the yeast. Bummer