2nd brew octoberfest suggestions

Im am going to start my 2nd batch tomorrow. I picked up a brewers best kit and got a whyeast octoberfest yeast packet for it instead of dry yeast. I also picked up another bucket for it. Any suggestions on brewing it or fermentating it. I talked to the guy at the store and he said around mid 50's is ideal. Is that a good temp.

any good suggestions before i start brewing tomorrow morning

Need to make a yeast starter. Ferment at 50. good luck. Mrmalty.com

really how come ferment that low. how long should i ferment for. When should i check it

Octoberfest yeast is a lager yeast which need to ferment at a lower temp. Never lagered before so I couldn't tell you a time line. This is probably a bit advanced for a beginner.

i didnt know that that beer was a lager or i would of picked something else. The yeast it came with said it ferments at ale temps. But i asked if their was a better yeast and he said that he had a yeast for that exact beer. but i think i have the techniques down so i think it will be ok and I have you guys here to coach me along Thanks

im brewing now. Im steeping the grains now. Im reading the directions now and it says to bring to a boil then add the extract's should i do that or after the steeping should i add the extract and then bring it to a boil

ok i just finished brewing. When i put it in my bucket i strained it and filtered out all of the hops should i have done this or it doesnt matter? Ended up with a sg of 1.060 kit called for 1.052-1.056 i got higher somehow. Also the lowest temp i can get is 60F is that going to be a problem with fermenting??

Some people strain, some don't. That's not any worry. 60F ambient might be a problem for lager yeast. Fermentation gives off heat, so your temp will actually be a few degrees higher. I would bet that it might have some funky off flavors. Also, lager yeasts tend to need a big starter due to the lower temp. If you didn't make a starter, I'd expect a longer lag time. In any case, let it ride. Maybe you'll discover something really good!

well i had a wyeast smack a pack and smacked it and got it going before i pitched it in. the packet was pretty swollen. So i should be ok. I checked it just now and it says 57 on the side of the bucket. And the ambient temp is 56 in my basement

Even with a Smackpack, you should make a starter. The Smackpack just wakes the yeast up. It doesn't start the reproduction stage. Google Mr Malty for a good pitching rate calculator. It will tell you the size of starter you need to get the correct pitching rate.

well the pack said i didnt need any starter. But 24hrs later and i started to get active fermentation. So i think i should be ok. How long should i let it sit before i check it a week 2 weeks ??

You're going to get fermentation, sure. But the fact is that these do kot have enough cells for a proper pitching rate. That's one good thing about dry, they DO have enough cells. Like I said, it'll probably fine and let it go. I'd let it go for at least 3 weeks. After that, I'm not really sure for a lager. I know most people do a diacetyl rest. But i dont know the details on that. For an ale, I let it sit for a month then bottle.

OK, here is the low down on lagers, the temps need to be low, like in the 50s low so you will want to get that temp down a bit, if you used wyeast 2633 the range is 48 to 58 degrees, 58 being the way top end, for best results you would want to keep it at about 48 to 50 degrees to allow for a bit of temp rise from fermentation. since you didn't want to make a large starter you would have needed to pitch 4.3 pouches of yeast to have the correct amount for proper fermentation as indicated in the link to MrMalty posted above somewhere. assuming you used the 2633 yeast it is a medium-low flocculating strain so it will take a long time for the yeast to drop out of the beer.

lagers take a long time to ferment possibly a month or so, I would check your gravity near the end of fermentation, when it is 80% finished you need to bump the temp up by 10 degrees for the final fermentation this is called the Diacetyl Rest, this will help eliminate the butter-like flavor that lager yeast tend to impart on the beer.

once fermentation is complete, drop the temp 3 to 5 degrees per day down to about 35 degrees, at this point I rack the beer off the yeast and into a keg or another clean fermentor. let the beer lager for a minimum of 1 week per 10 points of original gravity, so since your beer was at 1.060, you would need to lager for about 6 weeks.

When I make my Oktoberfest lager, I brew it in March and it is served at my Oktoberfest party in late September.

well the guy at the store never said i needed more than one bag of the yeast. I would of thought he would of said something if i did. Also i have the dry yeast that came with the kit. Should i throw that in as well or no. So check the gravity in about 2 weeks and then check again on week 3

I wouldn't mix ale and lager yeasts.

ok i figured that. but just making sure I think i will be ok

well just checked out the brew today. Eveerything seems to be going well. bubbling is going at a nice pace not fast and not slow. bubbling every other second. temp is holding steady on the bucket of 52. I think everything will turnout well

Dude, an Oktoberfest (any lager for that matter) is going to be a PITA to do, especially for your first brew. Do you have a way of controlling temperatures? If not, you are most likely going to end up with a funky tasting beer. Maybe even nothing like an Oktoberfest.

And personally, between the LHBS guy and the guys and gals on this forum, I would listen to these fine folks.

yea my basement stays about 52-55 during the winter. If i knew it would of been this hard to do with liquid yeast i would of stayed with the packet yeast that ferments at ale temps that came with the kit. But i think i might be alright with my friends help and you all's help. Im deff willing to listen to get help

well just checked it about a week later and bubbling is still going on. When should i check the gravity of it. Also what is the next step on what to do for the lager yeast. With rest and temps and stuff

You've got a ways to go. Wait about another week or until you get consecutive gravity readings. You then want to let it sit at 60 degrees for 48 hours. After the rest you want to transfer to a secondary to lager for 3-4 weeks at 34-38 degrees.

I find most of my mid gravity lagers are ready for the Diacetyl Rest after about 10 days fermrnting at 50. Take you hydro reading ans see where you are at if around 1.020 it is time to start warming it up if you want to do this step.

ok i will check it tomorrow or so. Theirs really no harm if i remove the lid to check the gravity of it. but if its around 1.020 is time for the rest phase ?

Yes. Just make sure and sanitize anything that goes near the beer.

yep thats a must thanx for the suggestion

well its been a 1 week and 4 days so far should i check the SG of it and if its at 1.020+- should i bring the temp up to rest it for 48 hours today ??