Did I rack my lager too soon?

[firenemus]

Hello.
Background
I started a pilsner lager 2 weeks ago with a starting gravity of 1.046. I pitched two packets of Saflager W-34/70 and notice airlock activity the next day. I maintained a temperature of around 50* F for the first 12 days and increased it to around 64* F for the last two days (diacetyl rest). Yesterday (two weeks after pitching) I racked the beer to my secondary and took the gravity again. By this time it had dropped to only 1.022, about 10 points higher than my target. I'm not seeing anything happening in the secondary and the beer looks fairly clear.
Questions
1. Should I have left it in the primary longer? How close to the target gravity should I have been before I racked it?
2. Will the gravity ever get close to my target now?
3. What temperature should I hold it at now? Should it start out a little warmer than lagering temps to encourage further attenuation???
4. Should I pitch some more yeast or is there enough still in suspension?

Thanks for your responses - this is my first lager and I'm afraid that I may have screwed it up.

 

[storunner13]

You probably should have left it in the primary longer. A diacetyl rest is only needed if you can taste diacetyl, and usually after fermentation is completed. Hopefully your yeast were just a little slow to ferment and will keep eating at the sugars. I'd bring it back down to cold ale fermenting temperatures to encourage it to finish. Perhaps at around 60˚. Pitching more yeast would probably not have a significant effect.

Hopefully you haven't screwed up too badly. I would wait and hope the beer will dry out a little more. In the future, you shouldn't rack to a secondary until you have taken a hydrometer reading to see if it's at the FG or a few points away. Then you can taste for diacetyl and warm it up accordingly.

 

[cwheel]

For what it's worth, I recently did a European bock extract kit from BB. OG was 1.068, and I did a similar temperature control as you. Kept it around 60 degrees for a few days (as instructed), and then started lagering at about 50 degrees. After two weeks, I racked to secondary, but foolishly didn't check the SG. It was 1.030. Target is closer to 1.018. So I raised the temperature back up to 60 degrees for 4 days, and the SG is back down to 1.020.

I would just raise the temperature back up to 60 degrees for a few days and see what happens. You're not going to ruin the beer by doing so.

As an aside, I would love for someone to chime in and explain the differences that you are likely to see if you use yeast that can ferment both at a lager temperature and ale temperature. Does the yeast ferment in a manner that results in a different beer taste?

 

[firenemus]

Thanks storunner13 and cwheel for your prompt responses.
So...interpreting what has been stated; there should still be enough yeast in the beer to drop the gravity a few more points - maybe?
But what if it doesn't drop anymore? Do I run more of a risk of infection since there's still fermentable sugars and not that much alcohol?
Thanks!

 

[Yooper]

Thanks storunner13 and cwheel for your prompt responses.
So...interpreting what has been stated; there should still be enough yeast in the beer to drop the gravity a few more points - maybe?
But what if it doesn't drop anymore? Do I run more of a risk of infection since there's still fermentable sugars and not that much alcohol?
Thanks!

Maybe. Then do another diacteyl rest when you get to 1.020 or so.

You don't run a risk of infection, just bottle bombs if bottling. And too-sweet beer. If it's stuck, you'll have to repitch. But see if you can get it going again first.

Next time, make sure you don't rack until you're at FG. No matter what, ale or lager.

 

[firenemus]

Next time, make sure you don't rack until you're at FG. No matter what, ale or lager.

Thanks Yooper - will do!