ALE or LAGER

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What did you brew more of this year?

  • ALE

  • LAGER

Results are only viewable after voting.
All ales this year. Just picked up a chest freezer and a temp controller so I can try a couple lagers for next year. :ban:
 
Only Ale. I'm new and have zero way to lager. I'd like to, but all in due time.
 
Ale, but because of not having a place to maintain temps for fermentation and lagering. I hope to make some over this winter though. I made a Doppel Maibock early last year that I would really like to replicate. I intend to produce it on a commercial level when we have the tank space to lock one about for a lager for a month or two... of course, that means getting our Brewer's Notice from the TTB first... grumble... But I digress.

Short answer; ALE LOL
 
Hello said:
Only Ale. I'm new and have zero way to lager. I'd like to, but all in due time.
Click to expand...

You should have some cooler temps arriving in NC here in the next few weeks, which will give you the opportunity to lager. :mug:
 
When it cools down enough to keep the FV's between 65-69F,I'm gunna start brewing a ton of hybrid lagers. They store quite well,having mainly bittering additions with some flavor hops. Served cold,they have a nice crispness to them.
 
I built a fermentation chamber last spring and did my first ale during the summer. I found the minifridge cannot chill quite low enough so I will forgo lagers until I get a chest freezer and another controller.
 
Finally, there are some Lagerers out there. :)

I have brewed all Ales thus far this year, but now have acquired a refrigerated unit that I am converting to a ferm chamber that should work perfectly to lager beer as well. It should be easier to maintain consistent temp control vs. playing the temp swings in the winter months trying to lager in the garage.
 
My last 14 batches have been lagers. 3 of those have been fermented at 58-60°F so I guess they could be called steam beers if you'd like. I use lager yeast to ferment any beer that I want a clean yeast profile on. IPA/APA is amazing as a lager.
 
I use WL029 Kolsh yeast @ 65-69F,it's ideal range for its lager-like qualities. Makes a well balanced beer. I know most call them pseudo lagers,but I thought the term hybrid lager was more accurate & easier to say...
 
Ales. only 1 lager due to lack of patience. However, I cold condition all my beers at about 33 F for a few days/weeks when time allows it. That's a close as I get to lagering.

I like the Kolsh yeast idea.. I think i'll give it a try !


Cheers !
 
The WL029 has a temp range I can work with more easily atm. Using the same malts & hops as a lager with this yeast gets pretty darn close to a lager in color & flavor qualities. some of those qualities that make it seem like a lager are from the yeast. It's the steadiest fermenter I've ever seen. It creats those lager qualities by giving a great balance to the beer when all is said & done.
 
With the number of people on HBT with a fermentation chamber, I would have thought to have at least 1/4 of the brewers doing more lagering.
 
TTT...to get some more input on the topic. :mug: Ale is winning by a landslide so far.
 
In all honestly, I really like brewing and drinking my ales. I prefer them to any lager I've ever had, although I haven't brewed any myself. I see about bettering myself in that direction. Lord knows I can use the betterment.
 
I can't lager yet because I have no dedicated fridge or freezer for this, but I've grown to really like the more hopped beers like IPAs so I probably won't be lager'ing anytime soon...
 
I brew (and drink!) far more ales as I simply like them better. It's probably something like 20:1. I like to make a few lagers a year, and a few hybrids as well, but since IPA is my favorite style I seem to brew those about every second or third brew.
 
Yooper said:
I brew (and drink!) far more ales as I simply like them better. It's probably something like 20:1. I like to make a few lagers a year, and a few hybrids as well, but since IPA is my favorite style I seem to brew those about every second or third brew.
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I love IPAs. Right now and for the last year, I've been working on ginger beers. So far they have been far more popular than any other ale I've brewed. I guess being so clean and crisp after the totally and entirely unexpected character makes the brew. It is time for an IPA.
 
Give me an unfiltered helles or a pils that knows how to hold a head and I'll prefer those any day of the week over any ale. I do have a cellar, but the temperature there only stays in the single digit temps (celsius) for a few weeks in the spring and fall, not months. Mechanical temperature control (i.e. a converted freezer) is not an option for me, otherwise I would do it.

That's why I brew ales.
 
Definitely and Ale guy here. I've been meaning to get the stuff to build a controlled lager fermentation temperature, but I actually prefer Ales to most Lagers, so I just keep putting off buying the stuff I need.
 
Here in the tropical lowlands of Guatemala, I need temp control even to brew ales so made the transition to lagers easy. Been on a lager (and mead) kick for a couple of seasons now. Just brewed a Schwarzbeir that is happily (hopefully) sitting at 54F in primary.
 
Speaking of Guatemala,I found a cervesa called Monterrey from Guatemala City at Aldi's. It doesn't have that skunked flavor that the Mexican ones do. Actually pretty good.
 
unionrdr said:
Speaking of Guatemala,I found a cervesa called Monterrey from Guatemala City at Aldi's. It doesn't have that skunked flavor that the Mexican ones do. Actually pretty good.
Click to expand...

That stuff is remarkably drinkable. It will get that slight skunk pretty quickly since it is in clear bottles.
 
I brewed more ales, but am starting to brew more lagers. Probably 75% of the beers I brew now are lagers. Waiting is hard, but it's so worth it. I find I appreciate my beer a lot more when I have to wait for it to be ready.
 
I brew more ales; "lager season" for me is very short; I don't have a temperature controlled ferm chamber, although honestly if I did, I would still lean towards more Ales. - 80%/20% is probably my split, I really only do Oktoberfest/Marzens and Christmas spiced lagers both of which have crazy flavor profiles... my Ales ride the flavor train from basic and simple to WTF is going on in my mouth? year round.

Side note - I probably brewed more apfelwein this year than both ales and lagers combined, but I've got a couple more ales and lagers to do this year.
 
1st lager (Czech Pils) is in the new ferm chamber now. We'll see if it was worth the time/trouble in 6 weeks...

 
unionrdr said:
Speaking of Guatemala,I found a cervesa called Monterrey from Guatemala City at Aldi's. It doesn't have that skunked flavor that the Mexican ones do. Actually pretty good.
Click to expand...

Interesting. Living here in Guate for many years and never even heard of it. Will have to do some reasearch.
 

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