German Pils Sorta like Prima Pils...

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Joined
Jan 17, 2009
Messages
709
Reaction score
8
Location
Conroe
Recipe Type
All Grain
Yeast
Nottingham
Yeast Starter
No
Batch Size (Gallons)
5.5
Original Gravity
1.051
Final Gravity
1.008
Boiling Time (Minutes)
90
IBU
33.6
Color
3.6
Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp)
14 days @ 58F
Secondary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp)
7 days @ 68F
Additional Fermentation
7 days @ 38F
Tasting Notes
Crisp, dry, and very tasty. Well balanced w/ a slight emphasis on the hops.
This is a somewhat "american-ized" German Pilsner, but it is still within style (ignoring the Nottingham of course!). The FWH added a really nice, smooth bitterness and the late additions give it a distinct but subtle Saaz aroma that is just oh so wonderful!

W/o sounding too biased, this is honestly one of the best pilsners I've ever had. Definitely the best recipe I've ever come up with (probably more because of its simplicity). :)

Obviously this would work well w/ a lager strain, and that's one of the next things on my list...but I've long been a proponent of using Notty at the bottom of its temp range because it's cheap, easy, and produces some fantastic beers IMO. I might push it even further next time, but fermented at 58F this thing is clean as a whistle. I dare you to tell me it doesn't taste like a lager!

Recipe: Pilsish Ale
Brewer: Chad
Asst Brewer:
Style: German Pilsner (Pils)
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (35.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 5.50 gal
Boil Size: 7.39 gal
Estimated OG: 1.051 SG
Estimated Color: 3.6 SRM
Estimated IBU: 33.6 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item % or IBU
9.50 lb Pilsner (2 Row) Ger (2.0 SRM) 95.00 %
0.50 lb Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM) 5.00 %
1.00 oz Saaz (US) [5.80 %] (90 min) (First Wort Hop) 22.5IBU
1.00 oz Saaz [3.50 %] (20 min) 7.0 IBU
1.00 oz Saaz [3.50 %] (10 min) 4.2 IBU
1.00 oz Saaz [3.50 %] (0 min) -
1 Pkgs Nottingham Dry Yeast

----------------------------

Single infusion @ 148F for 60 min.

224.jpg
 
I was thinking of doing something like this with a Kolsch yeast based on the Bohemian Pilsner recipe from Brewing Classic Styles. Nottingham is pretty clean but isn't lagery at all right? Maybe I could do a side-by-side with nottingham and see how that goes. I have very soft water here, very close to pilsen profile.

Edit: just read your notes, sounds like you think it is pretty damn lagery. Sounds good to me. I'm doing a blonde w/ some nottingham at about 62 right now. I really like notty, but haven't gone into the 50s with it. Garage is 52 right now and house is 62.
 
how long did you boil that pilsner malt for? I get mixed results when i search, some say 60 min some say 90. I think I'm going to brew a beer like soon, I need something for my non IPA friends.
 
Maybe I could do a side-by-side with nottingham and see how that goes.

Definitely worth it IMO. It's a lot of fun tasting two identical batches w/ different yeasts. I did this w/ a Munich Helles expecting the WLP029 to be cleaner, but I actually ended up liking the Notty batch quite a bit better. They both came out quite clean, but the Notty was a little drier and had less of the "bready" aroma that I seem to always get from the WLP029.

FWIW, I fermented both @ 60F. At 58F, this batch seems even cleaner, and I would say it absolutely tastes lager-like. I'm kind of curious how low it will go though so I might have to test that out on the next batch. :)
 
I'm sorry.. I can't see anything except your avatar.

I have EYES you know! :D

how long did you boil that pilsner malt for?

90 min...however, that's only because I've always read that's what to do w/ Pilsner. I've yet to test out the differences myself, but I figure an extra 30 min can't hurt right?

I think I'm going to brew a beer like soon, I need something for my non IPA friends.

I'm having my dad (ML drinker) test it out tomorrow, but I'm expecting him to think there is too much bitterness even though the FWH does smooth it out a lot IMO. You could probably back off on the late additions as well if your friends aren't hop lovers.
 
one more nitpicking question:

your saying that you get 22 IBU from the FWH, which is what i would expect from a 90 min calculation, but I thought FWH was supposed to calculated as a 20 min addition?
 
one more nitpicking question:

your saying that you get 22 IBU from the FWH, which is what i would expect from a 90 min calculation, but I thought FWH was supposed to calculated as a 20 min addition?

You know it's funny you ask because I spent like 30 minutes during the mash trying to figure out how to account for the FWH, and I still don't feel like I totally understand it...but I will say the bitterness came out just about perfect (IMO).

Somebody please correct me if I'm wrong, but from my admittedly limited understanding, I thought FWH gave the same # of actual IBUs as a standard bittering addition. It's just the perceived bitterness that is different.

And I think the 20 min reference is referring to the effect it has on taste/aroma, but again I am not even close to an expert on FWH. This was actually the first recipe I designed using it.
 
Gonna brew this today as I have plenty of Pils drinkers in the neighborhood. I had a tough time with Notti Dry yeast last time I used it, as in really slow to get going.
 
I'm curious as to how much like a pilsner this really ended up being, given that you used an standard ale yeast? I've never done something like that before, but i would expect the character of the beer to VERY different than a pilsner.
 
i would expect the character of the beer to be VERY different than a pilsner.

Not sure why. :)

The grain bill and hops are pretty standard pilsner and Notty is very clean/neutral for an ale yeast...especially at the bottom of its fermentation range. I'm going to brew a split batch (1/2 German lager, 1/2 Notty) sometime soon to compare side by side, but I can't imagine it being THAT distinguishable. Notty is capable of coming out really really clean IME.

I had a tough time with Notti Dry yeast last time I used it, as in really slow to get going.

Yeah the packet I used for this last batch was guilty of this as well. Took almost 36 hours before activity was visible. Fortunately the beer turned out just fine in the end. :)
 
Just racked to 2ndary after 2 weeks @ 60F and the dry Notti worked out great. Had a taster and OMG this beer taste like a crispy pils with the Saaz hops. Can't wait to keg!
 
just brewed something similar to this the other day. omitted the carapils and changed the hops up, didn't FWH either (i'm not comfortable at all with how that relates to the final beer). added some magnum for my bittering charge, started with saaz and some hallertau for flavor and then hit it hard with saaz at the end. came up WAY short on volume (i didn't account for the damn plug hops absorbing wort and think i boiled too hard, but i was determined to avoid DMS)... I'll shoot back a pic and some tasting notes once she's done. it's fermenting very well at 57 in my basement as we speak. i accidentally cooled it down to about 54, so it took roughly 30 hours to get a good krausen formed, but all is good. thanks for the idea.
 
I'm on my 2nd batch with similar recipe, actually did an all grain Heineken clone but used the Notti dry ale yeast so I wouldn't have to lager it. Very nice crispy ale that everyone thinks is a Pils. From brew day to tap out of keg in 4 weeks for a fakey Pils. :mug:
 
Just for clarification, what is the "Additional Fermentation: 7 days @ 38F"... I don't recalling having seen something called "Additional Fermentation" before.
 
i'm pretty sure that's a lagering step. The recipes follow a template so I'mn guessing that the thing listed as "additional fermentation" is really the third thing in the process, but gets listed second because of the template.

reordering...

Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 14 days @ 58F
Primary, cool fermentation.

Secondary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp):
7 days @ 68F
Diacetyl rest to let the yeast clean up byproducts.

Additional Fermentation: 7 days @ 38F
Short lagering phase or crash cooling stage.
 
might brew this one soon....

do you still recommend notty at 58 verus something like wlp029 german ale/kolsch? or a hybrid lager

also if i decide to do this with exra light pilsn DME (2row + alittle carapils) instead of allgrain, do you recommend adding alittle sugar to help it finish low?
 
Been a long time, but I'm back and should be brewing again soon. :) Building a house ended up being a royal PITA but the brewery will be up and running soon.

do you still recommend notty at 58 verus something like wlp029 german ale/kolsch? or a hybrid lager

I've tried wlp029 in a lot of recipes, and while I think it makes a great beer it just isn't quite right for a pils IMO. It has a very distinctive 'bready' aroma and doesn't finish quite as low in my experience. Plus pitching a couple packs of Notty is way easier than building a starter. :)
 
Brewed this last week and it's coming along nicely. I have my fermentation chamber set to 58F but I've seen it dropping down to around 53F with no perceivable difference, nice steady BLUB from the airlock.

I made a mistake and topped it off closer to 6 gallons, which brought the OG down to 1.044 or so. We'll see how badly that screwed it up in a few weeks I guess.

One question: can I lager this in a keg and then serve directly or does the lager step produce a lot of sediment that I need to rack away from?
 
A Prima Pils Clone is on my "to brew list". Curious on anyone's perceptions of this beers character to the original. I did a Helles Ale with Notty last week and the hydrometer sample is sitting at 1010 and has that "crisp" Notty character when done at low temps. Still green but gives me even further confidence that it would be perfect for a fakey pils! I'm a little worried about the late hop additions as I know Victory has commented not to go too late when making a run at this. I think the Saaz is likely right and was going to bitter with Northern Brewer.
 
Great beer! I accidentally topped up an extra gallon and it came out very nicely regardless. It was closer to warsteiner than prima pils for me but that could be the dilution. Everyone who tried it loved it! Thanks for the recipe!
 
Realize this is an old thread but looking to brew a hoppy pils, along the lines of Founders PC Pils using Chinook, Cascade and Centennial.
Any thoughts?
 
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