My First Lager

[ChefyTim]

Everyone,

I brewed my first lager last week and was wondering just how long I should ferment it for.

Recipe: Dunkel
13# Dark Munich
1.5# Pilsner
1# Melanoiden Malt
.5 Aromatic Malt
.5 Crystal 80L Malt
.66oz Mt. Hood (60min)
.120z Mt. Hood (20min)
Yeast WLP833
Double Decoction Mash
OG: 1.040

This was supposed to be a 5 gallon batch but I decided to make it a 10 gallon batch so the OG is rather low for this style.

This is what I was thinking.

2 weeks in primary @ 50F
3 Days in primary at 62-65F
2 weeks in secondary. Decrease tempurate 3-4 degrees each day until reaching like 35F (or just leave it at 50F?).

Does this sound about right?

Cheers,
Tim

 

[Yooper]

Yes, that sounds about right. But......you can't really "schedule" a lager like that. In general terms, it's probably ok. But you want to do that diacetyl rest when fermentation is approx 75% finished. It might be two weeks, or it might be more. Or less. So, a guesstimate of 10-14 days is probably as good as a guess as any. Check the Sg, and if it's 75% finished, it's time for the diacetyl rest.

I don't usually even do a diacetyl rest, unless the yeast I'm using is a notable diacetyl producer. Usually, if you pitch a large starter at fermentation temperature, and the yeast is not a great producer of diacetyl, it's not needed. I check for diacetyl, and if it's not present, just allow the lager to finish up primary.

 

[ChefyTim]

Well, I brewed the batch on 11/27, put the carboys and the starter in the cooler at 50F and then put it all together (pitched) the next day (1 week at this point). I am hoping there wasn't much diacetyl produced since everything was cooled and at the same temp. I am still seeing some activity in the carboys though.

However, I was thinking of bringing the batch to around 62-65F for 2-3 days and then bringing it back down slowly until I reach about 35F. I do think I'll should wait another few days before doing this though.

I'll take a gravity reading tomorrow and see how much it has changed.

Thanks,
Tim

PS. I love your Dogfish Head 60 recipe. The first time I made it I took it to a brew club gathering and everyone thought I had bought a couple of Dogfish bottles from the pub we were at. :rockin:

 

[carl spakler]

I've only brewed two lagers, but both times took much longer than my usual ale brewing timeline. The last one sat ~4 weeks at 48* before it was ready to go into the secondary, then another 4-5 weeks at ~35 before bottling.