Bottling Lager

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Blueman89

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I'm planning to bottle my lager tomorrow. It's at 51 degrees. If I move it upstairs tonight, to 68*, do I still use the lesser amount of priming sugar. Or do I prime at normal rates. Or, do I split the difference.

Beer Smith breaks it down like so-
51*- 3.28oz
68*- 4.12oz
Should I just use 3.6oz or so and call it good?
 
Use the amount that represents the temp it will rest at for 3 weeks, which should be around 68-70. In your example... this would be the 4.12 ounces. What it lagered at doesn't matter.
 
Lager means you ferment cold. It has nothing to do with bottling. Just bottle normally sugars and temps. I would around the time it has carbed up. Place it back in the fridge for a couple days and enjoy. The lagering process has been completed if your ready to bottle.
 
I really dislike those priming calculators! The reason it asks for temperature is so it can "guestimate" the amount of residual co2 in the solution as cold liquids hold onto co2 better than warmer ones.

The thing is, lagers are almost never fermented at 50 degrees and left there. Often, a diacetyl rest is done at a much warmer temperature so that co2 will dissipate out of the airlock.

If the beer never ever got above 50 degrees, then it's fine to use that temperature. But if you're bottling it after it's been at 68 degrees overnight (although I don't know why you'd do that), then use 68 degrees. You should always use the highest temperature the beer reached during or after fermentation.

I like to use 1 ounce of priming sugar per gallon for most lighter lagers, and 4 ounces of priming sugar for 5 gallons for "heavier" lagers like bocks.
 
If the beer never ever got above 50 degrees, then it's fine to use that temperature. But if you're bottling it after it's been at 68 degrees overnight (although I don't know why you'd do that), then use 68 degrees. You should always use the highest temperature the beer reached during or after fermentation.

+1, if you've warmed you beer back up, then go by that. I think those calculators for temp are beneficial IF you've cold crashed, or are coming straight from your lager and are bottling cold. But if you've let your beer warm up to room temp for bottling (like I'm doing now with my vienna lager which I pulled back inside last night.) Then treat it as a normal bottling session.
 
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