Extract Oktoberfest

[cdunn1221]

Hi all looking to start making an Oktoberfest for the coming fall. Looking for opinions on if I should get a kit or is there a really awesome recipe I should follow.

I also wanted to know if I need to make a yeast starter. I do not currently have what I need for a yeast starter, but I do have the equipment to control temperature to lager. Do I need to put beer into a secondary??

Any help/advice would be great. I am fairly new to brewing still and this is my first lager attempt.

 

[cdunn1221]

Help?

 

[Hex23]

It is difficult to go wrong with the Northern Brewer extract kit with Wy2633.

Yes, you really need to make a yeast starter on a lager that big. You're likely going to need a pretty high cell count, so plan your equipment purchase accordingly. You could just make one large (prob. 3-4 liter) starter with a single smack pack and stir-plate, but if you don't want such a large unwieldy vessel, there are other ways: stepped starter or multiple smack packs. You'll also probably want to look into decanting your starter and that will take extra time. But generally now is a good time to be starting to think about brewing an Oktoberfest.

And, yes, you'll wand to lager in a secondary. A 5gallon better bottle would be fine, but some would prefer a glass carboy.

 

[cdunn1221]

It is difficult to go wrong with the Northern Brewer extract kit with Wy2633.

Yes, you really need to make a yeast starter on a lager that big. You're likely going to need a pretty high cell count, so plan your equipment purchase accordingly. You could just make one large (prob. 3-4 liter) starter with a single smack pack and stir-plate, but if you don't want such a large unwieldy vessel, there are other ways: stepped starter or multiple smack packs. You'll also probably want to look into decanting your starter and that will take extra time. But generally now is a good time to be starting to think about brewing an Oktoberfest.

And, yes, you'll wand to lager in a secondary. A 5gallon better bottle would be fine, but some would prefer a glass carboy.

Thanks!