Share your Kolsch opinion!

[SteveHeff]

I brewed up a lager recipe with an ale yeast. I used WLP 029 Kolsch/German ale yeast. Since I don't have regulated cold temperature fermentation capabilities, I decided to use the Kolsch yeast and ferment it as cold as I could get it in my basement.

Here's the breakdown of the recipe and steps for my 5 gallon batch.

9# Vienna
10 oz of each of the following: dextrine, C10, carared, Munich malt.
Hops- 1oz hallertauer at 60 and 1 oz of saaz at 5 min.

Mashed at 149 for 75 minutes. Batch sparged. Boiled for 90 minutes. Cooled and pitched my starter. Fermented at 54 degrees F. Moved to my living room (at 66 degrees) for 2 days for a diacetyl prior to kegging.

9 days later, I had stable gravity. I moved to my keg and carbonated it to 2.2 volumes over 3 weeks.

I happy to say that the final product is very good, however it still lacks that lager quality, as I expected.

I'm curious as to what kind of brews the community has made with Kolsch and what kind of results did you get? What temperatures have you fermented at?

 

[JonM]

That looks like a really nice recipe!

I've used Kolsch yeasts in the past and they turn out great. I usually keep Kolsches really simple, and just use Pilsner malt, maybe with a little bit of carapils or something.

Kolsch yeasts produce a lager-like quality, but different. I've found that one of the most lager-like of the ale yeasts is Wyeast 1007, German Ale Yeast. I used it on a Mocktoberfest last year, and it was really awesome. I bet it'd be great in a Vienna-heavy recipe like you've got there.

EDIT: And, FWIW, after an oops or two on my part, I learned that the two most popular Kolsch yeasts, WLP029 and Wyeast 2565, are not the same. The Wyeast likes to be really cool, the White Labs likes it a little warmer, like in the 60s.

 

[unionrdr]

First & foremost, WL029's range is 65-69F where it works best, per manufacturer's PDF. 54F is cold for that one. Never used it that cold. It's probably the only kolsch yeast that gets lager-like balance & that crispness on the back at those temperatures. You'll notice I said "lager-like". It's not a lager yeast. But rather, an ale yeast with lager-like qualities. In medieval times, the yeasts typically used had more "range", if you will. They would be fermented at cool room temps for ales & colder temps for lagers. It took centuries to develop separate strains. So it's becoming my belief that this particular yeast may be closer to those yeasts of old to give such dual qualities.
All that said, I use it in my hybrid lagers to get those lager-like qualities of balance & crispness in ales that use lager/pilsner malts & hops in order to make them even more lager like than kolsch like.

 

[Mikemcn]

Kolsch is a great style of beer. I usually brew it late spring for early summer drinking. What has worked for me is a simple grain bill usually Pilsner malt with some wheat malt( like 10%) definitely ferment cold (~55F) with a good starter I have never had a problem with either WLP or wyeast products.

 

[jerrya100]

I have only used it once so far. But I fermented at 65. Then slowly brought it down to 40 and let it sit for about 4 weeks. This gave it that crisp clean flavor.

 

[chief_joe500]

Ive read about the banana flavors and all that due to high ferment temps. I'm doing a Kolsch w/ Wyeast Kolsch yeast. Took taste at primary to secondary transfer- taste great- took taste at a gravity reading-taste great-on bottling day took a taste-taste great. On my last bottle shike bottling it came up short so I poured in a glass and it sat there about 5 minutes. Then i took a drink and it tasted like bananas. Think all batch will now taste like that? Was it just beer exposed to oxygen that quickly made the flavor come on? I fermented in garage at low 60's yeast took off like crazy-but was gone for few days and cold snap hit and temp got to 50 so i brought back in and finish ferment at 63 for another week-secondary same temp for 2 weeks...any feedback for hopes it will be all good would be comforting so i dont have nitemares!