something wrong with this recipe?

It says to ferment for 2 weeks at 65F, isn't that a little high? White Labs website says the optimum temp for fermentation is 50-55F.

5 gallons, extract with grains
OG = 1.038, FG = 1.010, IBU = 22

Ingredients:

4 oz. black malt
4 oz. dark crystal malt (90° Lovibond)
6 2/3# US 2 Row
4 AAU Hallertauer hops (1 oz. of 4% alpha acid)
2 AAU Saaz hops (2/3 oz. of 3% alpha acid)
Munich Lager yeast (White Labs WLP838)
1 cup dark creme de cocoa
1 cup cherry liqueur

Step by Step:

Steep black and crystal malts in 2.5 gallons of cold water. Gradually raise heat to 150° F, hold 30 minutes.
Remove grains and rinse them back into the pot with hot water. Stir in dry malt, bring to boil. Boil 15 minutes,
add Hallertauer hops. Boil 45 minutes, add Saaz hops. Boil 15 minutes, remove from heat, cool 15 minutes. Add to
fermenter along with enough chilled, pre-boiled water to make 5.25 gallons. Cool to 65° F, pitch yeast. Seal and
ferment for two weeks at 65° F, then rack to secondary and age in a cold dark place (45° F) for a month. Prime
with corn sugar, add liqueurs and bottle. Bottle condition cold (40° F) and dark for two months or more.

Not that it matters but I converted this to AG, I just haven't changed it on my pc yet.

1 cup dark creme de cocoa
1 cup cherry liqueur
+
Fruity esters from High fermentation temperature

Sounds intentional.

What the heck is that beer called?

The Pol said:

What the heck is that beer called?

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Saranac Black Forest Lager

I've had Black Forest quite a few times, It is supposed tp be a Schwarzbier in style. I don't recall it being fruity.

2nd Street Brewery said:

I've had Black Forest quite a few times, It is supposed tp be a Schwarzbier in style. I don't recall it being fruity.

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I had some not too long ago, was good, but it wasn't fruity at all, it was pretty toasty but i don't remember fruit.

As for the temp, my weizenbock was sitting noticably higher than the other carboys that were at 75*F, i'd put it at around 85-90 degrees, and the yeast still got a foothold and was fermenting, it's down to around 75-80 now and is going like crazy, so i wouldn't worry too much as long as it ferments...

I'm brewing a NB 1554 clone tomorrow. Similar grain bill and yeast. Also similar ferment temp recommendation.

The May/June issue of Zymurgy has an article covering doing just that. Fermenting at higher than reccomended temps with various yeasts and noting the production of various byproducts and their effects on flavor. The notes on the WLP830 (German Lager Yeast) were "slightly fruity, some alcohol and solvents".

I believe the black and crystal malts, and in your case the liquers, mask most of that effect.

The other upside, is there is no diacetyl rest required, as the high fermentation temp cleans up the diacetyl already.

is the reason the recipe says to ferment for 2 weeks so that you make sure fermentation is complete before putting it in the fridge for a month at 45F? Or is it that lager yeast takes longer to burn out than ale yeast?

I was going to throw it in a corny for the cold storage and leave it in the fridge for 3 months. is this ok or should I transfer it out after a month and then transfer it back so I can get rid of some of the sediment?

Lagers usually take longer, but I always thought that had more to do with the temp they were working at than the yeast themselves. In any case, two weeks doesn't hurt.

UPDATE:

I've had this on co2 for a few days so I sampled it. Far from being carb'd even at 25+ psi. Right now, the 2 cups of liquor it calls for seems to be the overwhelming flavor and I'm not too happy about that. I'm hoping once it carbs up and has a little more time in the fridge that it gets a little better.

the_bird said:

Lagers usually take longer, but I always thought that had more to do with the temp they were working at than the yeast themselves. In any case, two weeks doesn't hurt.

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I think your right Bird. From my experience lagers will fement just as fast as ales when done @ the same temps. The slower metabolism is merely due to the lower temp.