Bock with a Pilsner Yeast

[TipsySaint]

Hoping to brew Friday. Just finishing up a Czech Pils and want to split the cake to make two 5 gallon batches.

I was thinking of making a Maibock or Festbock, making one standard and one with tart cherries.

But i'm concerned about the yeast. Will Pils play nice with a Bock?

 

[MrPowers]

Which yeast did you use?

 

[JM-brew]

If your pils came out good, I'd say go for it. I have a dopplebock I brewed with Mexican lager yeast from a previous beer on tap right now that came out great! There are commercial breweries that use one house yeast strain for various styles controlling pitch rate, oxygenation, and fermentation temperature. If the yeast is healthy and your pitching from a previous batch, you should be golden

 

[TipsySaint]

It's a mixed fermentation 3 packs of WLP840 and 2 packs WLP800. At last taste lager was damn good!

 

[JM-brew]

It sounds like if anything, you probably could dump some yeast and trub before you rack your Bock onto the cake.

 

[TipsySaint]

that is the plan. I want to make 10 gallons and split the cake though.

 

[schematix]

I find the differences between lagers yeasts to be extremely subtle. Almost any can sub for another.

Ales are a totally different story though.

 

[TipsySaint]

This is only my 3rd lager, but yeah that has been my view as well. I was just concerned due to discrepancies in descriptors: ie Malty vs Crisp kinda thing

 

[schematix]

In my experience it has more to do with how you mash it than the yeast.

 

[505-Brewer]

If the czech yeast throws diacetyl would be my only worry.

 

[jmarkkaufman]

I believe I remember Jamil Zainasheff saying he uses only one lager strain. I don’t remember which one that was but it was to the effect of pick one and use it for all your lagers. I believe it was in an episode of Brew Strong. It was years ago.

 

[Vale71]

If the czech yeast throws diacetyl would be my only worry.

The diacetyl-bomb yeast is actually WLP802, which is one of my favorites BTW. WLP800 is quite clean and anyway you would have a lot of WLP840 in the mix ready to clean up any unwanted diacetyl.

 

[TipsySaint]

I'm currently washing it and will give it a shot this weekend.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

WLP800 Pilsner is actually an ale yeast, rather than a lager hybrid, but nobody told the Czechs before they started making lager with it...

 

[SoCal-Doug]

To get back to the O/P. Yes, a pilsner/lager yeast will play nice with a Bock. Just be aware of (1) it may throw sulfur and need time and (2) it may throw diacetyl and need a d-rest and time to clean itself up. Be patient with it, don't take shortcuts, and you will be rewarded.