Can I start lagering at 48° F?

[FSBrewer]

I don't have a temperature controller for my fridge yet so the warmest it will get is 48F. That means if I do a lager I can't "slowly" lower the temperature and the initial fermentation will have to happen at that temperature. Will this be a problem? Would it be worth waiting until I can control the temp a bit better?

 

[WBC]

All yeast's have an ideal range for fermentation listed on their website or on the package or vial. If you go outside this range then you are taking a chance of a stuck fermentation if too cold or off flavors if the temperature is too high.
Generally ales are best at 65F to 67F and lagers are best at 50F to 53F. I would wait until you have the controller but that's just me.

 

[Yooper]

There may be a lager yeast that works in the high 40s. I don't know of any off-hand, but if you find a lager yeast that can ferment at 47-55 degrees or so, you could probably manage.

 

[menschmaschine]

Actually, 48dF ambient temperature is about right for a lager. The beer itself will get above that anyway due to the heat produced by fermentation. I typically ferment my lagers (White Labs yeast) at 49dF... and that's the temperature of the fermenting beer, not the freezer. I say do it, but you'll want to pitch the yeast into, say, 45dF wort, so you don't have to worry about doing a diacetyl rest.

 

[Bytor1100]

yeah, looking at most wyeast yeasts, that is about the ideal range.

 

[FSBrewer]

I randomly ordered a couple of Saflagers because I can't get liquid yeast in here in a timely manner. I just checked the web site and the fermenting range is 9° - 15° C. 9° C is about 48° F so I hope it will be OK. I think I'm just gonna plunge in and brew it.

 

[menschmaschine]

I randomly ordered a couple of Saflagers because I can't get liquid yeast in here in a timely manner. I just checked the web site and the fermenting range is 9° - 15° C. 9° C is about 48° F so I hope it will be OK. I think I'm just gonna plunge in and brew it.

Keep in mind all of these yeast fermentation temperature ranges are optimum ranges... and "optimum" is based on criteria set by the lab. Most will ferment up to 3-5 degrees lower. I think the fermentation is just a bit slower the lower you go. If one goes higher than the optimum range, more esters and fusel alcohols are produced. You'll be fine at ambient 48dF with Saflager, you may want to even try 46-47 ambient because I've heard Saflager can be fruity at higher temps. This would probably put your fermentation temp. around 50dF.

 

[pickles]

mensch - do you put the wort in the fridge and let it cool to 45F before pitching? By this I am assuming that that diacetyl is produced as the temp drops from room temp to lagering temp? sorry to snag your thread Fsbrewer

 

[menschmaschine]

mensch - do you put the wort in the fridge and let it cool to 45F before pitching? By this I am assuming that that diacetyl is produced as the temp drops from room temp to lagering temp? sorry to snag your thread Fsbrewer

Some lager yeasts produce more diacetyl than others. Personally, I've never really noticed diacetyl in any of my lagers (I always do a diacetyl rest just to play it safe), so I don't really know what the high cut-off temps would be for increased diacetyl production. However, as a general rule in a lager, diacetyl and fruity esters are produced at higher initial fermentation temps. But this also is partially dependent on the amount of yeast pitched. With dry lager yeasts, homebrewers have gotten mixed results in regards to fruitiness, so I would play it safe with a dry yeast and pitch as cold as possible down to around 45dF. (Also, rehydrate and pitch 2 packs of dry yeast per ~5 gallons.)

I prefer to get the lager wort as cold as possible as quickly as possible. I usually achieve this by switching my immersion chiller to a submersible pump with ice water after I get it to 70dF with tap water. However, I don't see anything wrong with getting the wort to as cold as you can with what means you have, then putting it in the cooler to for a few hours to get it in the 45-50dF range before pitching. I wouldn't wait more than a few hours to pitch though so that any potential biological contaminates don't have time to start multiplying.

 

[pickles]

ah i see sounds logical