Clean Crisp Flavour

[Bribie G]

Roger that.

Im using a mauri 514 ale yeast for my lager kit.

see how it goes.

The draught kit is going to be lawn food on the w/e

514 isn't a bad yeast for a kit if you can, again, ferment it cool. I've used it in Tooheys Old type beers and it's a good yeast for that sort of beer. It should work ok in a kit "lager" as long as you keep it between 15 and 19 and definitely not above 20 or you will start getting that twang you are complaining about in your original post. :icon_cheers: However for what you are doing, the Mauribrew / Morgans lager yeast would be better.

 

[Wisey]

So most beers on the Aussie commercial market are lagers?

 

[warra48]

So most beers on the Aussie commercial market are lagers?

Yep, even when they're called Ale, Bitter, Draught etc.

 

[manticle]

General exception of Coopers

 

[foxy]

wisey

i brewed a lot of of the Morgans aussie range with the 514 ale yeast. it was recommended to me because its a D-head proof yeast that has a rehydration temp of up to 40 deg. i was never game enough to rehydrate at 40 deg - always 27 - then ferment at 19deg. ( have a fermenter fridge with temp controller - hot climates).

what i found was my beer always had no head. tasted great but no head. that was using extra malt, corn - all the goodies.
eventually, i switched to the coopers international range - using my same methods (cleaning, same water, same ale temps, malts, hops etc.) my beers suddenly had endless head! consistantly!

i can only put it down to yeast. in my experience, the 514 is a head killer. but give it go. maybe im missing something

Foxy

 

[foxy]

as for crispyness, yes the lagers of 10-12 are crisp. but if you cant manage that, go the dry enzyme. works great if you like a simple dry quaffing beer for heat

 

[Wisey]

Foxy: you have given me insight into my headless beers.

And yes in saying this from the bottom part of my headless beer.

 

[foxy]

And yes in saying this from the bottom part of my headless beer.
[/quote]

your obviously in the same position as i am: in front of the puter with a half drunk brew...

 

[Brewman_]

Lots of good info here.

My experience in achieving the same goal has been to:
Get a good kit. I have had some good results with premium coopers and brewcraft range.
Think about you additions of sugars / malts / maltadexrin etc. Reason being, you need to find what suits your taste. I like malty beer, but for a lager I prefer to tone the malt down a little, but you need to get the right balance that suits you. Experiment here.
Temp control is essential and I find that you need a fridge with a fridge mate so you have good control, not just using the fridge thermostat and a thermometer on your fermenter. Temps must be low, 10 - 12.
Lagering. As mentioned before a good long and low temp lager is the way to go. This becomes a challenge for fridge space!
Once temp control is available then select the yeast. Dry yeast is Ok and can give good results. My experience is SafLager was not to my taste, a little "sweet' or something, however other people tasted the beer and liked it - again preference. Dry yeast 34/70 I like and use a fair bit, it just seems a little drier on the finish.
Dry yeast is getting expensive, but can do the job. Once you get comfortable with brewing lagers with good dry yeast, get a liquid yeast, which gives you more choice and will work out cheaper when you make a number of starters.
Beware of short cuts.

At the end of all of this it is a learning curve, so keep good records and find what suits you.

Fear_n_loath

 

[Wisey]

I have found a brew that will find a a place in my stable for a while (till I find something that overthrows it)

Morgans Australian Lager 1.7kg
Morgans Master Blend Lager Malt 1kg
Cascade Hops Morgans Tea Bag thrown in during ferment

My gums are dripping talking