Doppelbock (and lager) conditioning

[rivertranced]

I brewed a doppelbock similar to that in BCS, and it is currently lagering in my kegerator (slightly on the warm side for a lager, but it'll have to do).

I think this beer will get better with time, so I plan to bottle it and let it condition for a while. I'm assuming I'll need to add a bit of yeast to kick start the carbonation process after 3 months of lagering.

Once I let it carb at fermentation temp for 3-4 weeks, can I age this beer in my cellar next to my ales (between 50-60 degrees)? Or do lagers *need* to be aged at lagering temps?

 

[StoneHands]

With higher gravity lagers, especially a doppel, I think it's actually better to cellar them at cellar temps and not colder. With a lighter lager, I think you'd want to go colder on the storage.

My last doppelbock I lagered for about 3 months, did not add yeast at bottling. It took forever to carb, probably 2 months (it probably would've gone faster had I added yeast). It was good after it carbed, not awesome or anything, but I stored it for 6-8 months in the upper 60s, and got absolutely fantastic after that. The dark fruit tastes and aromas that you look for in a doppel really came out over those months. I think the warmer temps allowed that to happen. I'm going to bottle all my doppelbocks like this from now on, and store them for a while and let them do their thing.

 

[rivertranced]

Thanks, StoneHands. I appreciate your first hand experience. I think I might add a bit of yeast, and then store at my normal cellaring temp for several months.

It seems I've been cellaring a lot of my beers recently...I need to start brewing some immediate gratification beers!

 

[qzpm150]

Any update on this? I had my doppelbock lagering for about 10 months and I'm ready to bottle. Should I add yeast? and if so how much? Or do I just bottle normally and wait it out?

 

[rivertranced]

Any update on this? I had my doppelbock lagering for about 10 months and I'm ready to bottle. Should I add yeast? and if so how much? Or do I just bottle normally and wait it out?

Sorry for the delayed response! You've certainly dealt with this by now. But, worth sharing my experience in case others have questions.

I have brewed this beer twice now and let in lager for 8-9 months each time. I added yeast the first go round and the carbonation came out fine. I did *not* add yeast the second time, and it took quite a bit longer to carbonate but it still came out great. In fact, to aid in carbonation I moved the beers to room temp (about 65*) which sped up the process.

Were I to do it again, I probably would not bother adding yeast in the secondary (unless i was pressed for time). Additionally, I have been very happy with the strategy of a long lager in the fridge followed by a decent length conditioning at cellar temp for this big beer.