Lager work arounds

[NickL]

So I've only got room for one carboy in my fermenting cabinet. Which is fine for ales because if they need a secondary then I can just throw them in the closet and the cabinet is available for the next batch. But how would one go about brewing a dopplebock or an ocktoberfest? They have to be in the fridge for months. Plus bottle condition in the fridge. Which means I don't get to brew while those are sitting in there.

Anybody know of a way to brew these beers without the needing to tie up the cabinet for months?

Winter is coming up so i thought about putting them outside in a shed but i was worried about the temperature swing (about 35f~65f average over the winter)

 

[StoneHands]

If you're bottling your lagers, bottle them after fermentation is finished, let them carb up at room temp, and then "lager" in the bottle with the bottles in the fridge. However, I think this is less than ideal, I think it's better to bulk lager either in a carboy (after transferring out of primary) or in a keg. This process really means your ale and lager ferments aren't that much different. This being said, I haven't lagered in the bottle. If you can get a dorm fridge for lagering in the carboy, that's your best bet.

 

[HowardMBeers]

I only lager in the fermenting fridge for a week or two. Then I keg and let it lager as I drink it...

 

[Driftless_Area]

Wyeast 2124 Bohemian Lager ferments well at ale or higher lager temps. Use a swamp cooler and ferment as low as you can. Look up the Brewing TV episode on lager workarounds. I found this very helpful.

 

[stbnj]

I am just did a Bier De Garde and a Baltic Porter, both styles that require lagering. My plan is to bottle, carb up at room temp, and then place the boxes of bottles on the Patio to take advantage of the winter temps.