Fiesta Brew - Pasteurized Brewer's Wort - Brewers Yeast

So I checked out a LHBS today and they had these brew kits called "Fiesta Brew"

All it was is a box with a "bladder" I guess you could call it of pre-made Wort.

So looking at the Wort, it has some floaties in there, but its not the yeast...

Anyways, its called a "Continental Pilsner"

Has anyone tried these kits? What should I expect from a kit like this? I got a bag of yeast, but no hops? (I guess they are already in there based on the box)

I have the instructions, but, based on all the help I've gotten on here, I'd take advice from here before an instruction kit any day.

Here are some photos to clarify:






Thanks all

It looks like it is a pre-boiled/hopped wort. Just pour that bad boy into a sanitized carboy, rehydrate the yeast and pitch.

Edcculus said:

It looks like it is a pre-boiled/hopped wort. Just pour that bad boy into a sanitized carboy, rehydrate the yeast and pitch.

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Thanks.. Haven't seen a kit like this yet. Seems pretty easy :rockin:

floaties in the wort bag are probably some hops...

vespa2t said:

floaties in the wort bag are probably some hops...

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I was hoping that was the case... kinda suck.. I like adding them myself

This kit seems a bit too easy, even though it IS only my second batch.

How are you controlling temperature? Will need to be on the cool side since it is a lager.

You dont really need to worry about rehydrating those yeast, I've pitched a couple Fermentis yeasties dry as per instructions and they took off like a champ. Get that sucker into a sanitized fermenting vessel, aerate it and let those yeasties feast and party like it's 1999...

The floaties are more than likely hop flakes.

Is there a date on the kits, IIRC fiestabrew is out of business, and has been for a couple years....In fact teh googelz shows only one site that has fiesta brew listed and that is a dead link...

I thought they also tried the 3 liter bottles with wort and an airlock kit as well.

conpewter said:

How are you controlling temperature? Will need to be on the cool side since it is a lager.

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I can either ferment in a room with a range from 18-23c (64.4 -73.4), or in a basement as low as 10c (50F)

i tried festa brew blonde is was OK and it got me into making beer again now i do AG only,here is the website. my kit came from a canadian brew store.

Magnotta::Festa Brew::Home

Revvy said:

The floaties are more than likely hop flakes.

Is there a date on the kits, IIRC fiestabrew is out of business, and has been for a couple years....In fact teh googelz shows only one site that has fiesta brew listed and that is a dead link...

I thought they also tried the 3 liter bottles with wort and an airlock kit as well.

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My bad guys... the kit state "Festa Brew" not "Fiesta Brew" (I guess I was so eager to party I'm seeing things)

The yeast pack states 05-2009 but I don't see an expiry on the box or the bladder

Magnotta::Festa Brew::Home

So what's a good pitching / fermenting temperature for a Pilsner?

The instructions state:

Use wort that is at room temperature (17-25c, 63-77F)

In a separate sanitized container, pour the dried yeast sachet into 250Ml (1 cup) of pre-boiled water that has been cooled to 25-30c, 77-86F (warm to touch).

Allow the wort to ferment 3-5 days at room temperature (17-25c, 63-77)

It says that after you rack to put it in a cold room with a temp of 1-4c (32-39.2F)
There is no way I can get my basement that cold... that's near freezing!!!

Wow, as I keep reading these instructions, I'm blown away by how crappy they are... They basically say that you only need to let the bottle stabilize for 10 minutes after bolting before you can drink them...lol (I'm thinking this is if you use CO2 to carbonate and keg)

I'll scan the instructions so you can see/critique.

Hopefully people can read this:

That's weird, they don't provide any instructions for carbonating with corn sugar. I would think if you were advanced enough to have a kegging setup, you wouldn't be messing with premade wort. Then again, everyone is different

nowise said:

That's weird, they don't provide any instructions for carbonating with corn sugar. I would think if you were advanced enough to have a kegging setup, you wouldn't be messing with premade wort. Then again, everyone is different

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Yea, I thought the same thing... I don't have that kind of gear. Then I found a second set of instructions stuck under the box flap, which was exactly the same as the first set of instructions, but the end was changed to use priming sugar instead of CO2.



I guess one set are for Kegs, the second are for bottles. Nice of them to hide it on me eh?



OG was 1.050

Deacon240 said:

You dont really need to worry about rehydrating those yeast, I've pitched a couple Fermentis yeasties dry as per instructions and they took off like a champ. Get that sucker into a sanitized fermenting vessel, aerate it and let those yeasties feast and party like it's 1999...

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I should have just taken your advice and pitched the yeast directly into the fermentor.

I mis-read one of the instructions where it says to dump the yeast into the warm water, let hydrate for 5-10 minutes then gently mix. I gently mixed it as soon as I put it in. Is that going to damage my yeast? After stirring the yeast, it turned into like a soup (I guess that's what the instructions mean when they say "Slurry")

Its step 6 and 7 on my scan...


Dammit I hope I did not mess up the yeast!!!!

I guess I'll find out in a few hours/days, depending on how long it takes to begin fermenting.

Relax, you didn't mess up your yeast.

Nurmey said:

Relax, you didn't mess up your yeast.

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Cool. I was "pretty" sure I was ok, but I got a little panicky.

After, all the steps in making sure I was very sanitary, not risking anything, then taking care to follow temperature directions for the water to re-hydrate the yeast, ect... I then re-read that and thought ****!!! LOL

Thanks for the info

Yea, its actually better to re-hydrate the yeast. They will be much more viable. Dumping dry yeast into wort will produce fermentation. Rehydrating helps the yeast re-establish their cell walls in a neutral environment. This is important for their development and fermentation of your wort.

Ok, so 14 or so hours and nothing. I'm thinking it might be too warm down there for a proper fermentation.

What temperature range should I be looking at for a Pilsner?

Throw those instructions away. You did good by rehydrating, and here's the real yeast instructions: http://www.fermentis.com/FO/EN/pdf/SaflagerS-23.pdf

Hydrating in "10 times it's own weight" = 115ml, but I'm sure 250ml won't do any harm. Notice the fermentation temperature. If you ferment that at room temp., that's gonna be one fruity-ass lager.:cross: Ideally, you want to ferment it at ~50°F for about 10 days, but really until it's done. I don't know how much diacetyl S-23 produces, but I wouldn't risk not doing a diacetyl rest. Towards the end of fermentation, warm it up ~60°F for a couple days. Then slowly cool it back down (5°F per day) to somewhere in the 30s-40s. Then rack to secondary, lager for for 4-6 weeks, then bottle. That's all ideal. If you can't get that kind of temperature control, etc., I'm sure it will still be drinkable. Just get an ale kit next time... much more temperature friendly.

Cool, thanks.

So I've moved it into a room where I can crack the window open to get the temp down under 50F (SWMBO is not at all impressed hehehe)

My basement will go down to about 10c (50F) but not much under that so I might be better off using my spare bathroom that we don't use and control it from there...

So when I lager, I'll need to find a room with the same temp range huh? Outside it not an option since it can drop here to -30 / - 35 in January...

So Slightly off topic, but what's a good temperature to condition an Ale in secondary to drop down some of the sediment?

So I have it down to about 50 (46.4)

So, when you say Towards the end of fermentation when I need to begin bringing the temp up to around the 60 mark, should this be done, say at around day 7, then start dropping it down 5F on day 8,9,10, ect...until I hit the 30s-40s?

earthad1 said:

So I have it down to about 50 (46.4)

So, when you say Towards the end of fermentation when I need to begin bringing the temp up to around the 60 mark, should this be done, say at around day 7, then start dropping it down 5F on day 8,9,10, ect...until I hit the 30s-40s?

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It's difficult to say an exact timing for this. Just wait until the krausen starts to drop... maybe halfway dropped. 50-55°F is good for primary. Lagering should be done in the low 30s°F, so maybe open another window.:cross:

menschmaschine said:

It's difficult to say an exact timing for this. Just wait until the krausen starts to drop... maybe halfway dropped. 50-55°F is good for primary. Lagering should be done in the low 30s°F, so maybe open another window.:cross:

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Will do. Thanks for all the help.

Yea, should be no issue getting it to the low 30s by opening a window where I live

Ok, so one batch of Lager (Blonde Lager) has been sitting in primary for 8 days, the other Lager (A Continental Pislner) has been in primary for 9 days. The air lock on the pislner had been bubbling for a good 5 days or so. The fermenting bucket, which belongs to a friend, for the Blonde did not have an air hole so the LHBS told him to just leave a crack open on the lid of the bucket.

Temp in there has been at a constant 50F, but there is next to no Krausen in there...


Does this look normal? Both beers smell great though.

Here are some shots.

First shots are of my Continental Pislner, second set of shot is my friend's Blonde Lager







I'm getting ready to raise the temp to about 60 to begin the diacetyl rest but I'm just looking for a bit of input prior...

I currently brewing the West Coast IPA.. it a seansonal they only make once a year.

This is the 1st time Using the Festa kits too.. Instructions were pretty easy.

I have a buddy that makes 2-3 of these at a time and they always turn out pretty good.

Looks normal to me. Your friend should drill a hole after this batch and insert a grommet for an airlock.

cuinrearview said:

Looks normal to me. Your friend should drill a hole after this batch and insert a grommet for an airlock.

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That's exactly what I suggested, but he went with the LHBS' advice.

Once this batch is out of there, we're definitely going to be adding the hole.

Thanks for the reassurance on the brew everyone.

So it seems I should be good to begin raising the temperature to around 60F... What do you guys think?

Your continental pilsner looks to be done primary fermentation, which means you probably missed the window for a diacetyl rest. Give it a taste, if you taste diacetyl, lager it a couple weeks longer than you would have. Hopefully most of it dissipates.

The blonde lager looks about right to do a diacetyl rest, if not slightly late. I'd get it warmed up now (if it needs a d-rest).

menschmaschine said:

Your continental pilsner looks to be done primary fermentation, which means you probably missed the window for a diacetyl rest. Give it a taste, if you taste diacetyl, lager it a couple weeks longer than you would have. Hopefully most of it dissipates.

The blonde lager looks about right to do a diacetyl rest, if not slightly late. I'd get it warmed up now (if it needs a d-rest).

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Cool, I will sample both and start warming up the room.

Should I just leave the continental pilsner in there anyways so it warms at the same rate as the Blonde?

Thanks for the follow-up...

earthad1 said:

Should I just leave the continental pilsner in there anyways so it warms at the same rate as the Blonde?

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Yeah, what the heck... can't hurt it.

menschmaschine said:

Your continental pilsner looks to be done primary fermentation, which means you probably missed the window for a diacetyl rest. Give it a taste, if you taste diacetyl, lager it a couple weeks longer than you would have. Hopefully most of it dissipates.

The blonde lager looks about right to do a diacetyl rest, if not slightly late. I'd get it warmed up now (if it needs a d-rest).

Click to expand...

Hey man... Thanks...

Drew 2 samples, 1 from the continental pilsner and one from the blonde lager...

Both tasted FANTASTIC!!! A little more carbonation and a tad bit colder and I swear you could just drink it now!

What I have noticed from this beer and from my brown ale is that these samples were clear as water, where the Brown Ale has yeasties floating around... is this because of the type of yeast used? or because its a lager?

Anyways, no slippery or buttery taste whatsoever. Very happy with the result so far :rockin: