California Common Bock?

[Pumbaa]

Been trying to figure what to make next so I hit up the recipator for some ideas and came across the European Bock recipie, thing is I dunno if I have the fridge space to make a lager type beer so I got me a thinkin' . . . .

Steam (California Common), if I understand it right, is just a lager fermented at ale temperatures, what would happen if I just fermented at the ale temperatures for the bock?

I tinkered with the recipie a bit to crank up the ABV a bit but this is what I am looking at. . . .

1lb American Crystal 60L
2oz American Chocolate
Steep at 155f for 45 minutes

6lb light LME
3lb light DME
boil for 90 minutes

1oz Cluster 7%AA (60 minute)
1oz Saaz (15 minutes)
1 teaspoon Irish Moss (last 15 minutes)

Wyeast #2565 Kolsch

Look like it might work out?
Should I consider a different yeast if I do go the steam route?
Or should I just quit thinking and make it fit in the fridge?

 

[drengel]

sounds good like that although its neither a common or a bock. if youve got the space in the frig then why worry, use the bock yeast instead of kolsch and itll be a good, almost doppelbock type beer. if you really want to make a steam style beer then i would only use the cali common yeast necause it can take higher temperatures. this comes from my experience, which was a bad one, making steam beer. i thought any lager yeast would do and threw in some pilsner lager yeast to an otherwise good steam recipe. the beer took forever to ferment and smelled really bad which later became really bad tastes. i wound up putting the beer on a trail that all the bums in town use in hopes that someone might drink it.

 

[drengel]

i just looked up some doppelbock recipes for myself and thought i might tel you what i saw. if you want to brew something like a doppelbock (since you want high abv) then just replace your light dme with amber or dark or a combo. otherwise youre already there. heres what i thought was interesting, alkthough most the recipes use bavarian lager or munich lager or some yeast like that, in quite a few recipes wyeast german ale yeast was used. im not sure the difference between wyeast german ale and white labs kolsch (i think iread on the white labs website that the kolsch, although it is listed a s german ale yeast works better for lighter beers like kolschs rather than dark strong beers like this). but the wyeast must work ok cause i saw it listed on 4 or 5 different recipes. i might use it myself to make a doppelbock soon.

 

[Pumbaa]

LOL just noticed while checking out the wyeast site Kolsch is a ale yeast.

The fridge space is a iffy thing, I would have to empty out my 2nd fridge, only thing in it really is soda and then freezer stuff, and then deal with SWMBO . . . if I could just talk ther into a 3rd fridge JUST for brewing . . .