Ale vs Lager Oktoberfest

I decided to try an ale yeast and a lager yeast on the same batch so that I could better understand the different tastes contributed by the different yeasts and fermentation schedules.

So I started with (basically) Edwort's Oktoberfest Ale recipe:

Volume 30L
OG 1.062
IBU 25

3.2kg Pilsner
3.2kg Munich
1.2kg Vienna
320g Caramunich
320g Caravienne
200g Raw Barley
40g Tettnanger 60 min
20g Hallertauer 30 min
20g Hallertauer 15 min

Then I split the batch into two and fermented the ale at 65f with us-05 and the lager at 50f with dry lager yeast.

After a week the ale was down to 1.012. The lager was at 1.020. After the second week the lager got down to 1.013.

Hydrometer samples show the lager to be much clearer looking and much cleaner tasting. The ale tasted fine, but was noticably fruitier next to the lager. The lager yeast definitely allowed the maltiness to come through more. I'll be interested to see how they stack up after the lager has been lagered.

Cool! I used to do experiments like this often - split a batch and do one half with 1272, the other half with 1450, or do half as a hefeweizen and half as an American wheat, etc. but I've never done it with half lager half ale! I'm interested to see how they stack up after the lager lagers for a bit.

Both of these beers turned out well. The ale was much more fruity and estery. The lager was way more malty and sweet.

It was a great experiement to understand the difference between ales and lagers.