first lager woes

[wncbrewer]

So I brewed my first lager last week and have encountered nothing but trouble. I bought wyeast munich lager but the guy at the lhbs warned that it was old and may not do anything, so against my better judgment I brewed, chilled to 70* after the boil then let it sit overnight to get to my desired 50* degree primary fermentation temp, then I pitched the yeast and walked away. Three days later I hadn't seen a bubble come through the lock yet, so I went back to the lhbs for fresh yeast, he didn't have any more wyeast so I left with a packet of s-23, which I rehydrated and pitched. That was two days ago and I still haven't seen any action in the lock. Frustrated, I got out "how to brew" by palmer, where I found that pitching rates are more critical, ie higher, in lagers. I'm thinking that that measly packet of s-23 is just reproducing and not fermenting yet. I'm frustrated as hell and if it doesn't do something pretty soon, im gonna warm it up and pitch a 1056 starter ive got...advice or criticism would be appreciated

 

[cfonnes]

Give it a day or two more, then measure gravity.

 

[wncbrewer]

Ok so minutes after I made the post, I started seeing some action in the lock, albeit slight...next question is...is this beer gonna taste like a stick of butter since I obviously underpitched?

 

[KAMMEE]

Long lag times are common with lagers, but if you hadn't thrown in the s-23 you probably would have under pitched by quite a bit. Did the Wyeast swell at all? Let it ferment, do a diacytel rest after three weeks (read up on that process) and you'll help minimize the butter flavor if there is any at all.

 

[ECarroll51]

@wncbrewer

thats why you always make a starter, not only to multiply your Yeast cell count but also to see if your vail or smackpack is good

 

[binaryc0de]

Never had good luck using liquid yeast without a starter for a lager. I've had better luck either using dry lager yeast or making a big yeast starter.

 

[wncbrewer]

Thanks guys, the smack pack didn't swell at all in about 7 hours. I'll do a diacetyl rest and make a big starter next time. Thanks for the input

 

[wncbrewer]

Also,

Anyone have a good estimate on how much it would cost me to build a lagering cabinet, assuming I can find a minifridge used and cheap? I would like to be able to lager year round, right now I'm kind of at the mercy of mother nature and this is about the only time of year I can get by with it