The Numbers came out bang on OG1.046 FG1.010. The haze is clearing slowly but it tastes great already. The Hersbrucker hops could be stronger. They may come through with age. I think my main problem is I kegged from fermenter to Corny and with the dip tube going to the bottom I have to wait for the trub to settle.Hey @christoffhawkins, I just brewed a very basic german-style lager recipe recently with this yeast around the same temp as you. I'm about to keg it and will post an initial impression in a couple weeks. I believe the idea behind this strain is that it produces no sulfur and very little diacetly. Ideally, you should be able to condition it more like an ale with results more like a lager.
You are definitely on the bleeding edge, here. Check our these two posts below where the strain is being discussed and perhaps post your thoughts there. I'm sure your experiences and your opinion would be valued, especially as that beer clears up further! You can also find some links there with additional information about what makes this yeast different and how it can be expected to perform.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/lalbrew-novalager.703173/page-2
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/warm-fermented-lager-thread.592169/page-48
And definitely welcome to the forum! Your first post is about a German pils with an experimental yeast?!! It's good to have you
Are you able to keep your keg cold? If you have room in your kegerator, I would leave it in there and give it time to settle. I would do the same thing for an ale.
Fantastic! Mine went from 1.050 to 1.009. I'm soft crashing it now and will probably keg tomorrow night when I have the free time. Good choice with the Hersbrucker. I bet they come through a little more once the beer settles out. Feel free to post your recipe if you want and we can let you know any thoughts.
Hi guys this is the recipe I brewed with the Novalager. Please advise me on what you think.
Looks like a recipe that will make a fine beer. I am not sure how "traditional" 9% wheat malt is in a "Bavarian Pilsner." Wheat can add a little bit of haze to a beer, but I use about 9% in my American IPA recipe and it drops clear after a few weeks in the keg.
Thanks for sharing! I would say much the same as Cascades. I think that looks like a solid recipe. He's right that the wheat could cause it to clear a little slower and maybe isn't traditional if you care about that. I have beers with 20% wheat that drop crystal clear after a few weeks, though. Regardless of using wheat, the beer will take some time to clear. If you've got it in there for head retention then you might be surprised how well the beer would turn out with just pils/lager malt.
Thanks for sharing! I would say much the same as Cascades. I think that looks like a solid recipe. He's right that the wheat could cause it to clear a little slower and maybe isn't traditional if you care about that. I have beers with 20% wheat that drop crystal clear after a few weeks, though. Regardless of using wheat, the beer will take some time to clear. If you've got it in there for head retention then you might be surprised how well the beer would turn out with just pils/lager malt.
I'll give a few other thoughts but these are just preferences/opinions that you might consider if you want to make changes. Take them with a grain of salt and listen to your taste buds
Honestly, if you're nailing the process and enjoying the beer perfectly as is then don't think you have to change it. If you want to play around with it, though, then look into later hop additions and maybe think about adjusting water profile and bitterness. I would absolutely drink this beer, though
- You could add some later hops if you want. A reasonable 10, 5, or flameout addition shouldn't drown out the malt flavor. With only one 30 min addition the hop profile will be nice, but probably pretty subtle. I do a decent late addition and hopstand on my Czech pils, but that's just personal preference. You could also increase the IBU some depending on your taste.Tastes differ but I love a firmly bitter pils.
- You could probably cut down the mash to 60 mins if you want, unless you find the 90 mins is getting you a few more points or increased fermentability. With the 220v Grainfather you could also explore something like a hochkurz mash. It would be easy enough to do with your system and could improve fermentability and head retention. Plus, it's just fun to me. Your process is obviously working, though!
- How's your water profile? Looks like you're using acid malt to adjust pH. Water for a pilsner is usually pretty neutral but I do add a little gypsum for the sulfate and calcium. It's still pretty modest at around 20 ppm of each. A little calcium could also help your yeast flocculate out, though. I also use campden tablets to neutralize the chlorine/chloramine in my water ever since I had a chlorophenol issue ruin a couple beers. If you're newer to this then maybe check your water report and keep that in mind. Any water preferences aside...chlorophenols are terrible.
Sorry I don’t know. I have only been brewing for a year and this is my 3rd attempt at Lager, so I’m still learning about different yeast etc.
Yeah, I started out doing the same thing with wheat. Different people will have different thoughts on the matter but I think most would agree that you can still get good head retention without the wheat. Wheat can help with head retention and maybe it's the easiest way for you to do that. Just be aware that it also introduces other factors into the equation like higher protein content, more variability across wheat varieties, potential challenges to milling, etc. The higher protein can potentially cause chill haze, for example. Tinker with it and see what works for you. I like wheat, and I use it often, but other factors can come into play when you use it.
That's great! It sounds like you're well ahead of things. Again, if the beer turned out great then maybe you don't have to change much. Chlorophenols weren't a problem for me for several brews. Maybe it was just a spike of chlorine in my water source but now I use campden each time to be safe. For other recipe changes...I would only make changes if you want to make changes. I tweak to see if I can improve something. When I really, really like a recipe I save it and brew it the same way. The more you learn the more variables you'll have at your disposal to change. I'm just glad you're enjoying!
Learning to taste is part of the journey. One way is to get a couple different versions of a similar style. See if you can find out the hops/yeast they use and start trying to pick out differences. Try your beer and start looking for flavors that relate to each component. For the hersbrucker I typically get some spicy, grassy, and definitely some fruity notes. The malt will contribute cracker, bread, etc. You might get some fruitiness or maybe light sulfur (think faint burnt match) from the yeast but you might not. Specific to the novalager yeast you might have some apple flavors or other low notes of fruit. The big question to ask is what's prominent in the beer, though? Is it mostly crackery, spicy, etc? If you're tasting predominantly bready and noble spice then maybe the yeast isn't contributing too much, for example.
Thanks for the advice I will definitely put this into practice. Another problem is identifying off flavours and what causes them. I have a Shipyard IPA clone on the go at the moment. I kegged it and an odd smell has appeared as the beer matured. It’s almost clear and the head is good. No taste of hops whatsoever. The beer is drinkable but there is something wrong with it. I’m not experienced enough yet.
For this you...honestly might get more help by re-posting in a separate thread to ask the question. We've strayed pretty far from the Novalager yeast topic so people won't even know to read this and give you any advice
If you do that feel free to tag me and I can jump in to help, but other people will also be able to share their thoughts.
Well guys another 10 days and this Lager is turning out to be great. I don’t know that much about brewing Lager but I do know when it tastes good. I brewed the exact same recipe a few months ago and it took me eight weeks to get to this stage because This time I used Novalager and aN air stone to force carbonate. The hops are now coming through and the head looks good. I must admit the head retention is not lasitng but it still tastes and feels like the sas is in there. Maybe next batch I will go back to sugar for the carbonation.
Great to hear! Please let us know your experience too. I think many of us are curious about what patterns we will see with this yeast as more people brew with it. I brewed a test batch with it and posted in the warm fermented lager thread. Here is the most informative post I put over there. It also links to my original post with some recipe info and everything. Let me know if you have any questions.
Here is a post he had in the "Who's Brewing This Weekend" thread with some more info.
Cut and paste a recent reply I posted on a Reddit comment recent:@CascadesBrewer, who is in this thread, also brewed a WC pils with it. I don't think I've seen an update on how that beer went but I'm hopeful he'll post one when he has time, or link us to it if he already updated
Thanks for the reply! That's good to hear that several members of the club are reporting back fruity notes even across a range of temps. In a straight clean lager I found the esters noticeable but not unpleasant. It does have a nice crispness, though. I would use the yeast again but it most likely will not become a go-to for me. I can also get a pretty crisp, clean lager at 62F with 34/70, which is hard to beat. I can't speak to the pressure fermentation side but I could see those malt additions making it feel less crisp. Regardless, it sounds delicious!
I would note that the club was mostly brewing versions of a West Coast Pilsner on a framework that suggested Citra and Mosaic hops. The rep from Lallemand said that NovaLager really shined in the trendy "hoppy lager" styles, which pushed it that way. I would have to use NovaLager in a more traditional Pilsner style recipe to really pick out the impact. It is something I would like to do, but there are a few dozen things I would like to brew over the next few months.
Yeah, I think NovaLager vs W-34/70 head to head would be the best comparison. That seems to be the space where NovaLager is targeting, more into the warm-ish fermented lager space where W-34/70 has a good reputation. I suspect if you are fermenting at 50F, there are better options than NovaLager...but I could be wrong.
I am not sure about the copper wire trick, it might work...but the "low sulphur" might be more of a misleading marketing claim than anything. The description actually says:
Ah, perhaps its that, I will be sure to let it age and vent the keg often, tasting is difficult right now. Its hard to tell weather its rotton egg or matches im smelling but perhaps the fruitiness of the NZ hops is throwing me off
Regarding the reports of fruitiness, the West Coast Pils style guidelines for this AvgBrü stipulated a fair amount of fruity American hops. Nearly everyone who did a split batch of Novalager and Diamond/34-70 reported much greater hop expression in the Novalager batch. That was my experience as well. Also, it is reported that Novalager is capable of biotransformation, which could create noticeably fruity character. So, WCP isn't a style where we can draw meaningful conclusions on subtle esters which would be much more noticable in a simple classic lager. That said, tasting panels have noted a slight red fruit character, IIRC.
I did 52F for 3 days, then 55F for 2 days, then 62F to finish. I kegged on day 14 because I needed a fermenter for a brew day. Probably could have used an extra week or so for cleanup, but their website says full fermentation in 6-7 days. So....
