Lager

[Mesa512]

Hey everyone,

So my brother and I have been brewing now for 3-4 years. We have only done ales so far. However, I now have a spare refrigerator to use. My brother and I talked it over and because we now have all the proper equipment we would like to try our first lager.

Does anyone have any advice for us for our first lager?

Is there a common mistake(s) that people make....that we could potentially avoid?

What are the important points to note about doing a lager?

My brother and I truly appreciate your help. You guys have never steered us in the wrong direction.

Thanks again, and happy new year!

 

[Yooper]

Well, the very first piece of advice I have is to make a big yeast starter. HUGE! Way more yeast than you'd think you'd need. Consult mrmalty.com and look at his "yeast pitching rate calculator" to get the proper amount of yeast.

And, make sure you ferment at the temperature range needed by the yeast strain you choose. Often that is 50 degrees. You may not have a fridge that can get to 50 degrees (mine can't) so you may need to get an external temperature controller. Try it first, to see if you can maintain a temperature of 48-50 degrees in that fridge.

 

[h22lude]

Also, if the yeast strain produces a lot of diactyl you would want to do a d-rest before the primary fermentation is over. Some yeast produce more than others so check out the yeast you are using. If you pitch the yeast around ale temps and then drop the temp you may get more diactyl than you normally would so again you would want to do a d-rest.

I have only done one lager and I did a d-rest. It came out great but I really don't know much about lagering but...I would think you could do a d-rest with any lager just to be on the safe side with no ill effect.

 

[Mesa512]

ok thanks for the advice guys!

 

[sudndeth]

This may sound stupid, buy when it says pitch 2.2L of starter, does that mean that much slurry?

 

[cswest]

Long strong boil (90 min)

Minimize the amount of trub in the fermenter

Lots of yeast- I like to start with something smaller like a Helles and then re-pitch the yeast into bigger beers

I make a 3 quart starter at room temp, when it's fermenting strong I put it my temp controlled chest freezer to bring it down to around 50. Then I decant most of the top liquid, swirl it up and pitch.

Take your time and good luck!