Lagering Help

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

covered95

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2007
Messages
99
Reaction score
0
Location
Bremerton, WA
I made two all grain lagers but need help with what to do next in the lagering process. I made the rocky racoon honey lager and a dopplebock.

Both have been in primary in my garage for a week at around 50-52 degrees (after pitching at 70 degrees for 24 hours to get things going).

I am not sure what to do next. Do I...

1) move inside for a diacetyly rest then transfer to secondary and store at 34-38

2) Store at 34-38 for a few days, move inside for a diacetyl rest and then rack to secondary at 34-38

3) Rack to secondary, diacetyl, 34-38

Could you help me out with this and possibly explain why I would do it in a certain order. i read the wiki and couldn't really figure it out.

Not sure what will get me the best results as this is my first trip into lager land. Thanks for any help you can give.
 
I wouldn't crash cool it to 32 before a diacetyl rest. You need the yeast to still be relatively active in order for them to clean up the diacetyl.
Generally, it's primary @ high 40's to low 50's. Raise to 60*F for 24-48 hrs for diacetyl rest, then rack to secondary or clearing tank and lager @ 32. I suppose you could always crash cool in the primary after the diacetyl rest. Then transfer the brew to a keg or even bottle for conditioning.
 
What I always do is primary ferment for about two weeks (I pitch into cooled wort, though, at 50 degrees) and use a big starter. When I think it's about 75% done, I check the sg and taste. Some yeasts require a diacetyl rest, and some do not. If there is no taste at all of any diacetyl, I skip the rest and rack to secondary. If I suspect there's some diacetly, I raise the temperature to the mid-60s for 24-48 hours. Then rack to secondary. I then keep it at 50-55 degrees for another week or so, then gradually start dropping the temperature. I think a good figure to shoot for is 5 degrees per day until you're at 34 degrees. Then lager for 4-6 weeks.
 
For a doppelbock, I'd lager that a few months to let it mellow out so the alcohol bite isn't that sharp. I ferment my lagers around 45 or so for a couple weeks, take out and let warm up to room temp and hold there for a couple of days (regardless of the yeast strain), then gradually (about 2 degrees/day) bring it down to around 30 or so. Depending on the batch, I'll keep it there for at least 2 months (for normal strength) to over 1 year. I have a batch of Samichlaus that I made in 12/05 and it has been lagering since 9/06 at 35. I've found that the longer I lager my batches, the smoother they are and the better the end product.
 
Back
Top