Dry Hopping Indian Pale Lagers

[BKBrews]

Hi everyone,

After some advice on dry hopping an Indian Pale Lager.

I made an Indian Helles Bock, that I then pitched the entire WLP860 Munich Helles yeast cake into from a 1.050 Munich Helles that I lagered in the FV for a month.

The Helles Bock went off like a rocket, with about 12-24 hours lag and then dropping from 1.068 (pitched 13/08/2017) to 1.019 as of last night. I bumped it up to 18 degrees for a diacetyl rest last night, but struggling to come up and currently sitting at 15 degrees. Hoping it jumps up during the day.

My ferment schedule from here on out is going to look something like this -
Now - Sunday morning: 18c
Sunday night: 10c
Monday morning: 9c
Monday night: 8c
Tuesday morning: 7c
Tuesday night: 6c
Wednesday morning: 5c
Wednesday night: 4c
Thursday morning: 3c
Thursday night: 2c
Friday morning: 1c
Lager in FV until the following Saturday/Sunday, then keg.

I'm dry hopping with 60g Galaxy, 30g Vic Secret, 30g Moutere (Brooklyn) and 30g Waimea in a 28L batch. I'm thinking probably a 5-7 day dry hop, so maybe chucking it all in on the Monday night of the 1c lagering week and making sure I definitely keg the following weekend? Interestingly enough, my last beer (best beer I've made to date) was dry hopped for about 10-12 days (not on purpose - life got in the way) with Mosaic and Cascade and is easily my most aromatic beer yet with zero grassy notes (2 months down the track in the keg).

Anyone with experience on this would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Dave70]

If you're still getting strong aroma after two months I'd stick with that method. I'm lucky to get three weeks generally. Grassyness has way more to do than hop selection than the length of time the beer sits on the hops. At least in my experience.

 

[BKBrews]

If you're still getting strong aroma after two months I'd stick with that method. I'm lucky to get three weeks generally. Grassyness has way more to do than hop selection than the length of time the beer sits on the hops. At least in my experience.

Difference is, last beer was an ale, which was basically at 18 degrees for the full 10 days of dry hopping (except the last 48-72 hours of cold crashing).

I'm just interested to see whether anyone has experience dry hopping a lager and has worked out the best method. I haven't had much success myself, dry hopping after cold crashing, which is essentially what I will be doing this time. The WLP860 has quite a distinct taste/smell to it as well, so it's going to take a pretty well thought out dry hop to counteract that. Samples I have tasted are good, but it's definitely got that Euro/German lager taste going on and the fruit from my all whirlpool hops is struggling to punch through.

Beer will be about 7% and 60 IBU.

 

[BKBrews]

FYI this beer is now kegged, refrigerated and carbing up. Finished at 1.016 for 6.8% and 60 IBU. Tastes bloody delicious and the melon/mango/passionfruit aroma smells like juice. In the end I left it at 1 degree (once it got there) for a weekend, dry hopped on the Tuesday, then kegged last night for 7 day dry hop total. Can't wait for it to carb!