Altbier help

I've done a search and seen a fairly wide variety of recipes. Some with mostly pilsner malt and a pound or two munich, plus crystal and even a bit of chocolate, others mostly (or entirely) munich with some specialty grains. Some split the bill between pilsner/2 row and Munich. For specialty grains, some add melanoiden malt, others carafa, caramunich etc.

What would a traditional alt grain bill look like? I guess right now I'm thinking about for a 5-6 gallon batch: 8lb Munich, 4lb pilsner malt, with some specialty grains, either 4-6 oz. of carafa I or 1 lb. caramunich and a tiny bit of carafa for color (also depending on the LHBS supply).

Hops will be spalt if I can find, otherwise tettnang (probably just a good sized fwh and no other additions). Mash around 152? Then either WLP29 or 36 for yeast (any thoughts on these?) Ferment around 65 (60-62 freezer temp) and then lager for about 3 weeks.

Does this sound in the ballpark? Thanks!

It depends on which version of an Alt you want to make: Dusseldorf Alt, or Northern German Alt. The Dusseldorf Alt is dryer and more hop-focused than the Northern German Alt.

Jamil Zainasheff in Brewing Classic Styles has the Northern German Alt malt bill composed of 9.8lbs Pilsner, 1lb Munich, .25lb Carafa Special II, .25lb CaraMunich, 3oz Pale Chocolate, with 32IBUs (Magnum @ 60min).

The Dusseldorf recipe is 8lbs continental Pilsner, 2lbs Munich, 1lb Aromatic, 0.5lb CaraMunich, and 3oz Carafa Special II, with 45IBUs (Magnum @60min, Tettnang @15min).

Both of the recipes call for WLP36 or Wyeast 1007. I just ordered Safbrew K-97 for my batch (a Dusseldorf recipe, where I'm going to use the specifed Magnum for bittering, and Spalt for flavor and aroma), as I've heard good things about K-97 for Alts.

For recipe, there are many variations and those listed by Khiddy should produce some great beer. In the two Alts I made this year, I used WLP036 (Dusseldorf Alt) for the yeast and was quite pleased with the results. If you have the patience, this is a style that really benefits from a longer lagering period. Mine were tasty at 6 weeks from the date of brew, but much cleaner at about 10-12 weeks after the brew.

In the HBT database, Kaiser has an altbier recipe which Yooperbrew swears is great. Kai tends to embrace true German brewing techniques and ingredients, so I would trust it.

Thanks for the help. going to go with something pretty close to the dusseldorf recipe suggested by khiddy -- but no dusseldorf alt yeast at the LHBS so have to go with Koelsch. Brewing tomorrow, so we'll see how it turns out. What do you think about maybe serving this as a pseudo cask beer? What's the general carbonation for an alt?

is FWH traditional in altbiers or is that your twist on the process?

The guidelines for carbonation of Dusseldorf Alt indicate 2.16-3.09 volumes of CO2. So for me, at 35F and aiming for 2.75 (middle-high in the range), that would be 12.2PSI.

Here's a handy carbonation calculator. Good luck!

khiddy said:

The guidelines for carbonation of Dusseldorf Alt indicate 2.16-3.09 volumes of CO2. So for me, at 35F and aiming for 2.75 (middle-high in the range), that would be 12.2PSI.

Here's a handy carbonation calculator. Good luck!

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Thanks! Definitely won't be putting this on my handpump. It's gonna compete with the pils I plan to brew next week for tap space come Super Bowl time. I need more taps!

Made Kaiser's alt last year. Unfortunately we didn't use the Dusseldorf yeast. Koelsh is a totally different beer and, for my taste, inferior.

If you're gonna do the Dusseldorf style, use the Dusseldorf yeast.

arturo7 said:

Made Kaiser's alt last year. Unfortunately we didn't use the Dusseldorf yeast. Koelsh is a totally different beer and, for my taste, inferior.

If you're gonna do the Dusseldorf style, use the Dusseldorf yeast.

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dang. turns out the Dusseldorf is only a May seasonal release, so I guess I should have put this off til spring... we'll see how it goes. This is definitely hopped towards the Dusseldorf style.

I don't know if any of your local HB shops carry Wyeast, but their German Ale yeast is year-round and (I've read) the same strain as WL037.