Lager in primary or rack to secondary?

Simple as that really. I'm bringing my first lager down in temp after the d rest. Should I just leave it in there on the cake or transfer to a secondary bucket? It's been in primary for 2 weeks fermenting with wyeast 2633.

I could also cold crash and transfer to a keg and lager in there but i don't really want to take a keg out of action for several weeks (I only have 2 at the moment).


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Lagering is actually a slow fermentation process, so leave it in the primary. Cool it down to 38f and just let it sit for six to eight weeks. It'll be fine and taste much better if you leave it on the yeast.

aiptasia said:

Lagering is actually a slow fermentation process, so leave it in the primary. Cool it down to 38f and just let it sit for six to eight weeks. It'll be fine and taste much better if you leave it on the yeast.

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I have a lot of head space in my primary. I was wondering about lagering in a vessel with a bunch of headspace. I make 10 gallon batches in a 15.9 gallon vessel.

Still a good idea?

I always lager on primary. Advisable or not, I've had as much as 2.5 gallons worth of headspace. I've yet to have anything go seriously awry.

The headspace should not be an issue if you lager in the primary. It will be co2 which was released during the fermentation.

If you transfer to secondary I would be concerned. All that head space would be air and not co2.




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I'm the sole dissenter, I guess!

I wouldn't dream of keeping a lager, which is "crisp" and without yeast character on the yeast cake for 2+months, no matter what the vessel.

I normally keep a lager in the fermenter for 10-14 days, and then rack and lager. When it's done, and the diacetyl rest is over, the beer will certainly not benefit from an extended time on the yeast cake, and will pick up unwanted yeast flavor and character.

Yooper said:

I'm the sole dissenter, I guess!

I wouldn't dream of keeping a lager, which is "crisp" and without yeast character on the yeast cake for 2+months, no matter what the vessel.

I normally keep a lager in the fermenter for 10-14 days, and then rack and lager. When it's done, and the diacetyl rest is over, the beer will certainly not benefit from an extended time on the yeast cake, and will pick up unwanted yeast flavor and character.

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While I typically don't secondary I think for a lager I would probably rack to kegs and "secondary" there. I've got more than 5 gallons worth of head space in my fermenter and I don't think it makes a perfect airtight seal. I know from some industrial experience in the semiconductor industry, O2 is hard to keep out, even in a "sealed" space.

Yooper said:

I'm the sole dissenter, I guess!

I wouldn't dream of keeping a lager, which is "crisp" and without yeast character on the yeast cake for 2+months, no matter what the vessel.

I normally keep a lager in the fermenter for 10-14 days, and then rack and lager. When it's done, and the diacetyl rest is over, the beer will certainly not benefit from an extended time on the yeast cake, and will pick up unwanted yeast flavor and character.

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Make that two. I use the same schedule. Yeast flavor and character are things I DEFINITELY do not want in a lager. If I want those, I'll brew an ale.

2 weeks in the fermenter; then rack to keg for lagering.

Cheers all. I'm thinking I'm going to rack in a few days after I get my next load of grains in so I can harvest the yeast and use in a dunkel.

The only question is whether I should use a bucket with some headspace for this? How about bottling and lagering in there?

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Yooper said:

I wouldn't dream of keeping a lager, which is "crisp" and without yeast character on the yeast cake for 2+months, no matter what the vessel.

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Sorry to exhume an old thread, but i'm still learning on the fly whilst my first lager ever is in the cooler.

So, if leaving a lager in the primary for "2+ months" may draw yeast flavors what about ~1 month? My lager's OG is only ~1.047 and I don't have any suitable vessel to be a secondary for this batch size. I also don't keg so I have no CO2 to top off a larger vessel.

Thanks everyone.

Tippsy-Turvy said:

Sorry to exhume an old thread, but i'm still learning on the fly whilst my first lager ever is in the cooler.

So, if leaving a lager in the primary for "2+ months" may draw yeast flavors what about ~1 month? My lager's OG is only ~1.047 and I don't have any suitable vessel to be a secondary for this batch size. I also don't keg so I have no CO2 to top off a larger vessel.

Thanks everyone.

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I think even a month can leave quite a bit of yeast character in a lager, which generally should be very "clean" and crisp.

If you don't have a large vessel to lager in, you could always lager in the bottle after the beer is carbed up.

Yooper said:

I'm the sole dissenter, I guess!



I wouldn't dream of keeping a lager, which is "crisp" and without yeast character on the yeast cake for 2+months, no matter what the vessel.



I normally keep a lager in the fermenter for 10-14 days, and then rack and lager. When it's done, and the diacetyl rest is over, the beer will certainly not benefit from an extended time on the yeast cake, and will pick up unwanted yeast flavor and character.

Click to expand...

Do you bring the beer up to temp for the diacetyl rest in the primary, then transfer it to the secondary and then cold crash?

dhelegda said:

Do you bring the beer up to temp for the diacetyl rest in the primary, then transfer it to the secondary and then cold crash?

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That would really depend on how you plan to package the end result. Would you be bottling or moving to keg?

Yooper said:

If you don't have a large vessel to lager in, you could always lager in the bottle after the beer is carbed up.

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Got it, thank you. Great idea to carb in the bottle first.

I actually had a brain storm yesterday on my predicament. What about transferring to my over-sized secondary BEFORE the D-rest? That way, wouldn't the remaining ~25% of the fermentation produce enough CO2 to form a protective layer? Also, wouldn't the primary still have lots of CO2 in it which one could, literally, pour it into the secondary?

I'll take the bottle lagering route though as I'll be able to skip an extra transfer step.

Thanks again!

Tippsy-Turvy said:

Got it, thank you. Great idea to carb in the bottle first.

I actually had a brain storm yesterday on my predicament. What about transferring to my over-sized secondary BEFORE the D-rest? That way, wouldn't the remaining ~25% of the fermentation produce enough CO2 to form a protective layer? Also, wouldn't the primary still have lots of CO2 in it which one could, literally, pour it into the secondary?

I'll take the bottle lagering route though as I'll be able to skip an extra transfer step.

Thanks again!

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No. I mean, yes, there would be some co2 still being produced but once fermentation slows/stops, there isn't much and Boyles Law and the laws of physics come into play also!

What I'm saying is that while many people will tell you about this "c02 blanket" that forms and remains constant, that is not true. If it was, we'd all die in our beds at night from c02 poisoning. While in very active fermentation, much more c02 is being produced, and it does have a protective effect. But it does dissipate as gasses seek equilibrium and the air in a carboy is very similiar (if not exactly the same) as room air. Oxygen can even go into a carboy through the air in the airlock.

For a short while, that is fine. It's the long term in a vessel with a lot of headspace that is a problem.