Lagering an Ale, would it really make a difference?

[Remos112]

So I recently have an obsession for Gouden Carolus Classic and I have worked out the recipe, bottle harvested their yeast and I am now reading all other relavant info.
On this page:
http://www.hetanker.be/nl/de-brouwzaal
They tell a few things about the brewing process so I now know to start fermenting at 21c

The interresting part though is they say after one week in primary they drop the temperature to start the "aging process" After some more digging in the description of the Classic they say this brew is lagered for 3 weeks and then bottled.

I never heard of lagering an ale, and I have even read people who cold crash everybrew before bottling EXCEPT Belgians.

Anybody ever tried lagering an ale? What would be the benefits? And would it be worth it?
Also could I lager it on the yeast cake or is racking to secondary a must?(not looking forward to this)

Thanks in advance
Remi

 

[stpug]

Lagering = cold conditioning

Every keg I brew gets "lagered" for some amount of time; ales and lagers alike.

 

[Remos112]

Lagering = cold conditioning

Every keg I brew gets "lagered" for some amount of time; ales and lagers alike.

So the beer would be at optimal drinkable sooner? I usually ferment 3 weeks, bottle ferment 3 weeks more and then put them in the fridge or my basement for further aging. No need to chance this ritual?

 

[stpug]

Knowing what you're hoping to achieve would be good. Some beers, specifically higher gravity beers (like the Gouden Carolus Classic), require an extra amount of fermentation time than "average gravity" beers due to yeast slowing as the alcohol builds. You can likely shorten your turn-around time if that's what you're after; or you can more closely follow a commercial brewers schedule if that's what you want. Your current method of 3week/3weeks/aging is fine. Bottle conditioning kind of dictates the middle 2-3 week duration. The fermentation time is a variable that can possibly be shortened without losing any finesse in the beer. The 'aging' is another variable you can easily determine what suits your needs. After bottle conditioning, put them in your fridge. Try one after 3 days; then 5 days; then 7 days; then 10 days; etc... Determine if you perceive "improvement" after a specific period of time, and if so then you'll have a better idea of your preferred amount of "aging".

 

[Home_alone1]

I’ve got my kolsch In my lager fridge in the primary so it can sit on the yeast cake to clean up a bit more , going to let it go for a month or two before transferring to my keg and then I’ll let it sit for another 2 weeks so can let the yeast drop out even more for a nice clear beer . Plan on taking 5 gallons of it to rocklahoma along with 5-10 gallons of Hefeweizen and 5 gallons of an ipa of some sort.