Quick Lagering Lesson

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bdeck02

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I'm thinking of lagering all my beers this spring and summer as the Texas heat rises. Its proving too difficult and cumbersome already to try to maintain fair Ale yeast temps. My apa is currently staying around 72F. A tad warm.

Anywho, I just got a secondary fridge and am hoping to do my lagering there. Can someone intelligently and concisely describe an easy lagering method to me, describing ideal temps and fermentation times? I just checked the temp in my fridge on the warmest setting and it's reading approximately 38-40f. This will be my first attempt at lagering.

Thanks so much!

B
 
You need a freezer with a temp controller to do it right. Low 30s for a month or two should he sufficient for most lagers. Essentially you ferment at the recommended temp 50-55 usually for lagers then once its complete you crank it to near freezing and let it sit.


Attempting to control the temps without a controller sounds near impossible. Also you wouldn't be able to keep it at say 68 for ales without a controller.

I use a digital one from ranco model etc 111000
 
A temperature controller should cost $60 - $80.

Totally worth it.

But you are talking about lagering ales, right? In that case, a fridge at 38-40 degrees should be fine.
 
No, I want to try to brew actual lagers and pilsners this summer. Lager yeasts. Sorry for the confusing.

How does a temp controller work with my standard secondary refridgerator?
 
The controller has a temperature probe on it that you tape to the carboy. You plug the freezer into the controller, and the controller into the wall. You tell the controller what temp you want the beer to stay at and when it hits that temp it cuts power to the freezer. When the temp goes up a degree or two it cuts the freezer back on.

You can't lager with a fridge, it won't get cold enough. You can ferment lagers if you can get it to stay around 50-55 but when it comes to the actual lagering phase you'll need the lower 30s.
 
I can get my fridge down to 34, which I think is cold enough, but get a thermometer and find what your limit is.

I bought a used chest freezer (craigslist) and a temp controller (amazon) for a combined $150, and I can fit 8 kegs and CO2 in it.

Your ideal solution may be to get 2 temp controllers and a chest freezer. Use the fridge for fermenting lagers and the keezer for lagering.

I can't stress enough how much it is worth it. A well-made home lager is unbeatable.
 
yeah, my fridge at its coldest setting is approx. 33F, and 38-40F at its warmest setting. So, it sounds like the temp controller would come in handy for the fermentation phase, then just turn the temp setting down and remove the temp controller for lagering. Sound about right?

How long does it take to ferment a lager/pils generally? How long of a period should lagering last?
 
yeah, my fridge at its coldest setting is approx. 33F, and 38-40F at its warmest setting. So, it sounds like the temp controller would come in handy for the fermentation phase, then just turn the temp setting down and remove the temp controller for lagering. Sound about right?

How long does it take to ferment a lager/pils generally? How long of a period should lagering last?

That's perfect. If you can, brew 2-3 lagers close together and let them all ferment together so you can turn the temp down and let them all lager together too.

I'm only a few brews in so far, but I've done a handful of lagers. I would encourage you to lager AT LEAST 6 weeks. I am fermenting an Oktoberfest right now that will lager for 3+ months. The great thing about lagers is that you can store them for pretty much as long as you need within reason. If you brew 3 close together, you can do 6 weeks, 9 weeks, 12 weeks to space them out over the summer. And you'll be saving the best for last!
 
That's perfect. If you can, brew 2-3 lagers close together and let them all ferment together so you can turn the temp down and let them all lager together too.

I'm only a few brews in so far, but I've done a handful of lagers. I would encourage you to lager AT LEAST 6 weeks. I am fermenting an Oktoberfest right now that will lager for 3+ months. The great thing about lagers is that you can store them for pretty much as long as you need within reason. If you brew 3 close together, you can do 6 weeks, 9 weeks, 12 weeks to space them out over the summer. And you'll be saving the best for last!

That sounds amazing, except that I can only fit one 6.5 gal carboy in the fridge. It's a standard two door, freezer top/fridge bottom Whirlpool. I think I'm even going to need to install a ply wood base at the bottom of the fridge for the carboy to sit on in order to make it happen.
 
That sounds amazing, except that I can only fit one 6.5 gal carboy in the fridge. It's a standard two door, freezer top/fridge bottom Whirlpool. I think I'm even going to need to install a ply wood base at the bottom of the fridge for the carboy to sit on in order to make it happen.

No problem.

Overall, I've noticed that my lagers take longer to ferment than my ales, so you might want to plan for a month of fermentation and eight weeks of lagering to be safe. That means nearly 3 months between batches.

If you can make an additional small batch and fit a 3 gallon carboy in there as well, go for it. :mug:
 
Right on! Thanks! I'm considering looking into a chest freezer, but I'm scared to see what it would do to my electric bill and my garage space. Oh, and can't forget about what SWMBO's verdict will be.
 
Well thank you everyone for this wonderful info!!!
Now here's a follow on question that I have - I'm looking at doing an all-extract Oktoberfest brew next week. It will be my first brew also. It's out of a "Brewer's Best" kit. Now the question I have is along these lines: the kit says to lager only up to 1 month after stepping the temp down to between 35 and 42. I thought real lagering takes longer? I have purchased appropriate liquid lager yeast for the brew. My initial plan was to lager the brew until the beginning of Sept then bottle to be ready late in the month (in true Oktoberfest fashion). So, in summary, are the instructions geared towards new brewers who want fast satisfaction? And does my plan sound acceptable/if so do you have alternative lagering suggestions for me?
Thanks!
Jack
 
Typically, yes, the instructions allow for the minimum fermenting & lagering times. You will be better off following your longer lagering plan. Good luck!

I wanted to do an octoberfest too, but dont have a lagering chamber. So I think will try the Octoberfest "ale" in the recipe section here first and see how that goes.
 
....I just got a secondary fridge and am hoping to do my lagering there. Can someone intelligently and concisely describe an easy lagering method...

As previously mentioned you'll need to invest in an external thermostat/temperature controller. There is a little down side to an external t-stat, it may not allow the freezer section to operate properly.

I can generally turn a low gravity (1.040) adjunct lager in about 4-5 weeks.
-Pitch plenty of yeast. I usually use slurry from a prior batch to do this.
-Ferment at 50 degrees for 10-14 days. I'll ramp the temp up the last few days to help it attenuate out.
-Lager at near freezing temps for a couple weeks before serving.

For bigger and or more complex beers you'll obviously need to extend out the times.
 
Okay so now I have a big question related to yeast. I was was researching my yeast strain last night and they talked a lot about second, third, fourth, etc. Generations of the yeast. How do I capture the yeast after I use it?! Just keep the sediment?
 
astropunk said:
Typically, yes, the instructions allow for the minimum fermenting & lagering times. You will be better off following your longer lagering plan. Good luck!

I wanted to do an octoberfest too, but dont have a lagering chamber. So I think will try the Octoberfest "ale" in the recipe section here first and see how that goes.

So should I allow longer than 10 days for primary fermentation as well? And should I ferment this stage at a lower temperature as well since I'm not in a rush to turn the beer?
 
For harvesting yeast, I just pour the yeast cake in a sanitized glass jar. I prefer to use something taller but don't always have one on hand. The slurry needs to be a little thin which may require adding preboiled water. I leave this in the fridge until I'm ready for pitching. I'll swirl it up and let it sit for a few minutes to let the trash settle. Then I'll suck up about 200ml with a sanitized baster from the top portion. I'll get a couple batches out of a harvest before it's mostly just trub.

If you have a carboy to use as a primary this may help with the timing. When I start to see activity slowing down is when I start to bump the temps up. When the yeast starts dropping out, I know it's done fermenting but still let it go a couple more days. After that it's on to the lagering stage. I only use one lager yeast and regardless of the beer I still use the same fermentation temps.
 
Right on! Thanks! I'm considering looking into a chest freezer, but I'm scared to see what it would do to my electric bill and my garage space. Oh, and can't forget about what SWMBO's verdict will be.

I have a chest freezer, a full-size beer fridge/freezer and now a fermenter dorm-fridge in my garage. :cross: The space they all take up is well worth the benefits.

I haven't seen much of a difference in the electricity bill, but living in Phoenix, my bill is still dominated by the air conditioning. :eek:
 
PT Ray said:
For harvesting yeast, I just pour the yeast cake in a sanitized glass jar. I prefer to use something taller but don't always have one on hand. The slurry needs to be a little thin which may require adding preboiled water. I leave this in the fridge until I'm ready for pitching. I'll swirl it up and let it sit for a few minutes to let the trash settle. Then I'll suck up about 200ml with a sanitized baster from the top portion. I'll get a couple batches out of a harvest before it's mostly just trub.

If you have a carboy to use as a primary this may help with the timing. When I start to see activity slowing down is when I start to bump the temps up. When the yeast starts dropping out, I know it's done fermenting but still let it go a couple more days. After that it's on to the lagering stage. I only use one lager yeast and regardless of the beer I still use the same fermentation temps.

So I take the yeast out of the fermenting brew? And then just stick it in the fridge like my original liquid yeast I got in the tube? And okay, so you said you bump the temps up, as in warm the brew? Just to keep the yeast active?
I suppose the question I have now is, way is the end goal of lagering?
 
So I take the yeast out of the fermenting brew? And then just stick it in the fridge like my original liquid yeast I got in the tube? And okay, so you said you bump the temps up, as in warm the brew? Just to keep the yeast active?
I suppose the question I have now is, way is the end goal of lagering?

Generally I start at 50 degrees and towards then end I'll work it up to 60 degrees. You can just as well call it a diacetyl rest. I'll leave it there until there is no question that fermentation is done.

You can rack at this point to your lagering vessel. Sometimes I'll crash the primary to 34 degrees to help clear it up before transferring to the lagering vessel. This is when you drop to temp to near freezing for several weeks. This could be another carboy or a keg. After the transfer is when you harvest the yeast from the primary and keep it in the fridge until you need it.

The best time to reuse the yeast is within the first 10 days. At the 2-3 week mark I'll proof my pitch of slurry. All that means is I make a small starter to get the yeast active again.

All this works best if you can keep the lager train rolling and what I try to do. With 3 chest freezers I can keep it going pretty well.
 
Thank you once again. But I have one final question haha: I want to keep the primary fermentation temperature around 50-60 as opposed to the 70 I've held my ales at?
 
So I take the yeast out of the fermenting brew? And then just stick it in the fridge like my original liquid yeast I got in the tube? And okay, so you said you bump the temps up, as in warm the brew? Just to keep the yeast active?
I suppose the question I have now is, way is the end goal of lagering?

I don't understand what you're asking. I'm not quite following, I guess.
 
I want to keep the primary fermentation temperature around 50-60 as opposed to the 70 I've held my ales at?

Yep. Primary fermentation for a lager will be in the low 50's.

Oh yea, the end goal for lagering is to cold store it to mellow the flavors and allow plenty of time for particulates to drop out.
 
Right on! Thanks! I'm considering looking into a chest freezer, but I'm scared to see what it would do to my electric bill and my garage space. Oh, and can't forget about what SWMBO's verdict will be.

I have two full size fridges out in the garage, one as a kegerator, and the other as a fermentation chamber. I have only noticed maybe a $5 bump in the month summer time bill. However, if you fermenting ales in the fermentation chamber, with a controller, it doesn't run all that often.
 
Okay so now I have a big question related to yeast. I was was researching my yeast strain last night and they talked a lot about second, third, fourth, etc. Generations of the yeast. How do I capture the yeast after I use it?! Just keep the sediment?

I found this video helpful.

 
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I have a chest freezer, a full-size beer fridge/freezer and now a fermenter dorm-fridge in my garage. :cross: The space they all take up is well worth the benefits.

I haven't seen much of a difference in the electricity bill, but living in Phoenix, my bill is still dominated by the air conditioning. :eek:

I hear ya! I live in Dallas, TX. Take Phoenix heat and crank up the humidity.
 
Do you have to secondary when lagering?

That might depend on how you define a secondary. For the ones that keg I believe going from ferementer to serving keg is becoming the norm. You just store the keg at near freezing temps for several weeks before carbing. After it's carb'd the sediment gets flushed out with the first few pints that are pulled.

Now my last lager was just an adjunct lawmower beer that I did just lager in the primary for a couple weeks. Then I kegged and quickly carb'd it. It turned out just fine. I wouldn't do it that way for an authentic German lager.
 
No way would I lager on the yeast cake! Not for the 6-12 weeks required. IT's just out of place for a lager, which shows every "flavor" that appears.

In my opinion, you must rack off the the yeast cake before lagering and not keep the beer on the yeast cake for the 2-4 months (or longer) that a lager takes.
 
No way would I lager on the yeast cake! Not for the 6-12 weeks required. IT's just out of place for a lager, which shows every "flavor" that appears.

In my opinion, you must rack off the the yeast cake before lagering and not keep the beer on the yeast cake for the 2-4 months (or longer) that a lager takes.

Amen
 
Yeah, definitions are important. I wasn't suggesting leaving it in primary for months, although I've read some people do and I'm sure it's still tastes like beer. Just whatever you were planning for "secondary" (dry hop, add finings, etc), you can probably do in primary then "lager" in your keg or bottles.
 
Allow me to tap into everyones collective wisdom. I'm starting an Oktoberfest tonight and I plan to ferment it 7-10 days at exactly 50 degrees F. Then rack it over to a secondary and lager it for about 3 months at 35 degrees F. Sound like a good plan?
 
Allow me to tap into everyones collective wisdom. I'm starting an Oktoberfest tonight and I plan to ferment it 7-10 days at exactly 50 degrees F. Then rack it over to a secondary and lager it for about 3 months at 35 degrees F. Sound like a good plan?

You may want to do a diacetyl rest after primary is finishing. But yes, the rest of the plan is fine!
 
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