Largering In A Keg

[mikelinz]

Hi guys

I have a schwarzbier that has been fermenting in a chest freezer @ 10c for the last 3 weeks down to 1018 from 1048 . I thought I would put it straight into a keg for secondary/lagering.

Can anyone tell me the process from here.

I assume it would need 4-6 weeks lagering at 4c ish
do i need to raise the temp for awhile (what to, how long for, in primary or keg???) before i drop it down to lagering temp?
When do i force carbonate? at kegging time or the end of lagering
anything ive overlooked

rgds mike

 

[Pumpy]

mikelinz

If you have pitched enough yeast at 10 C and fermented the schwarzbier you may wish to raise the temp up 6C for a diacetyl rest this gets rid of any sulphites and 4 weeks is good to lager for , if you can last that long.

I filter all my beer, force carbonate and lager for a few weeks

you may need to lager four weeks then keg your beer .

The trick is pitching enough yeast and starting it at 10c I like the WLP 830 yeast has a malty profile and attenuates well

Pumpy

 

[parrja]

For lagers I do the following:
1. Ferment for about 2.5 weeks at 10 degrees
2. Raise temp to about 15 degrees for last 3 or 4 days (to take time in primary to 3 weeks)
3. Drop to as cool as possible ready for kegging (gelatine and carbing).
4. Mix gelatine, put in bottom of keg and then fill keg with cold beer.
5. Force carb to roughly where I want it and then leave it in the kegerator.
6. Try hard not to drink it - it's usually drinkable and crystal clear after one week in the keg.

Definitely worth lagering for 4 to 6 weeks if you can hold off that long.

I've only done about 10 lagers (and 40 ales) so other more experienced brewers may be able to improve on my procedure.

 

[white.grant]

I've only recently started kegging so am wondering why you carbonate prior to lagering?

In the past when I have bottled lagers I would normally rack to a lagering jerry and let sit in the fridge for 4 weeks and then bulk prime and bottle. Certainly didn't want carb pressure building up in a plastic jerry.

So I just used that same process with a keg, I rack to the keg and lagered it for 4 weeks before carbonating.

Aprt from the beer being ready a bit faster, does it matter when you carb? or does a bit of head pressure help with the process?

cheers

grant

 

[matti]

Grant.
Lager under pressure is normal. The carbonation will ensure no oxygen get into the finished beer.
I've got my FWK lager in a jerry ATM but as soon it has finished Ill put in keg for its final Lagering stage.

The only trouble for me putting it to keg is I am going to want to drink before time.

 

[devo]

I agree with pumpy in that you should do a diacetyl rest for 24 to 48hrs. It may also help in bringing down your FG because 1.018 seems a little under attenuated.

 

[Fourstar]

you may wish to raise the temp up 6C for a diacetyl rest this gets rid of any sulphites and 4 weeks is good to lager for , if you can last that long.
I filter all my beer, force carbonate and lager for a few weeks

If it is possible for you to filter before lagering, i'd suggest so. It avoids you having to do a keg to keg transfer when you want to force carbonate, unless of course you dont mind sediment in suspension. prior to getting my filter (yesterday) All of my lagers where:

- Diacetyl rested, crash chilled and transferred to a keg
- lagered in the keg under force carbonation
- keg to keg transferred and served.

Now i can completly avoid step two and simply serve.

 

[floppinab]

It's an interesting one this, there are several on this forum who question the benefits of lagering. I tend to like the idea of lagering with at least a little bit of the yeast running around in the brew. Something in my mind (with absolutely no evidence to back it up) tells me it's beneficial to the process, so I tend to lager without filtering then filter if necessary at the end of the 4 or so weeks.

I wouldn't think either before or after carbing would make too much of a difference.

 

[JonnyAnchovy]

I'm bringing my big bock up to 13C for a few days before kegging - the question is, should I polyclar in the fermenter or in the keg? I figure I'll just do it in the fermenter after crash chilling to avoid having to do a keg to keg transfer to get rid of anything that has flocculated out..... Any reason I shouldn't ?

 

[white.grant]

Grant.
Lager under pressure is normal. The carbonation will ensure no oxygen get into the finished beer.
I've got my FWK lager in a jerry ATM but as soon it has finished Ill put in keg for its final Lagering stage.

The only trouble for me putting it to keg is I am going to want to drink before time.

Thanks Matti, that makes sense.

cheers

grant

 

[crozdog]

Gav,

The benefits of lagering are impacted by several factors eg yeast used, amount putched, pitch temp, ferment temp, diacetyl rest or not.

IMHO yeast choice has the most impact as some lager yeasts throw a lot more sulphur than others eg S189 almost none; WLP383 medium. Lager duration required to clean up post primary ferment, therefore depends largely on the yeast selected & your patience / tolerance level. I say that as those yeasts that throw a lot of sulphur need longer to clean up. Sure you may be able to drink these early but will be rewarded for your patience

I agree that you want to leave yeast in while you lager & not filter em out so there is more in the beer for longer to clean up after themselves.

Filter before carbing, not the other way around.

 

[Fourstar]

Filter before carbing, not the other way around.

I learnt that the hard way with my 1st filter attempt lastngiht. Honestly, the biggest pain in the arse! Not ot mention the beer exited like it came out of a hand pump! Glad it was an ESB! hahaha!

 

[mckenry]

I'm actually considering skipping the filtering. Just another pice of gear to clean.
This is my method for lagers and filtering doesnt make any difference to the clarity.

1. Pitch a big cold starter to a cold wort - both at around 8*C
2. Set my fermentation fridge to 10*C
3. Let it ferment out to 6 untits above est F.G. (e.g. estimated FG from beersmith is 1.014 so at 1.020)
4. At this point raise the temp to 16*C for diacetyl rest. This is debatable whether it's even required as I pitch cold to a cold wort, but I just do it anyway to be sure.
5. When it has finished completely, I will crash chill for 24 hours min, to 2*C
6. Rack to a secondary, that contains Isinglass (cryofine). I rack via a tube from one tap to the secondary tap using gravity.
7. Let it sit at 2*C or thereabouts for another 2 or 3 days, then keg.
8. Lager under carbonation pressure. I think 1 month is good, 2 better, but dont really find any of mine improve after 2 months

I used to filter between steps 7 & 8, but have been skipping it lately and have no clarity issues with the non filtered brews.

mckenry

 

[Fourstar]

I used to filter between steps 7 & 8, but have been skipping it lately and have no clarity issues with the non filtered brews.

The biggest benifit (atleast for me) with filtering is if you have to transport the beer you can be assured you will not rouse any yeast. It will be bright as a dime at the time of pouring. As i lager my beers at my folks place (big spare fridge in the garage) its convenient to filter. Previously i would have to keg to keg transfer post lagering at my folks place so i could bring it home without disturbing the sediment in the keg.

 

[cdbrown]

I'm actually considering skipping the filtering. Just another pice of gear to clean.
This is my method for lagers and filtering doesnt make any difference to the clarity.

1. Pitch a big cold starter to a cold wort - both at around 8*C
2. Set my fermentation fridge to 10*C
3. Let it ferment out to 6 untits above est F.G. (e.g. estimated FG from beersmith is 1.014 so at 1.020)
4. At this point raise the temp to 16*C for diacetyl rest. This is debatable whether it's even required as I pitch cold to a cold wort, but I just do it anyway to be sure.
5. When it has finished completely, I will crash chill for 24 hours min, to 2*C
6. Rack to a secondary, that contains Isinglass (cryofine). I rack via a tube from one tap to the secondary tap using gravity.
7. Let it sit at 2*C or thereabouts for another 2 or 3 days, then keg.
8. Lager under carbonation pressure. I think 1 month is good, 2 better, but dont really find any of mine improve after 2 months

I used to filter between steps 7 & 8, but have been skipping it lately and have no clarity issues with the non filtered brews.

mckenry

I'm thinking about doing it this way for a pilsner I've got sitting in a cube ready to ferment. Looks nice and straight forward, however I might keep it in secondary (cube) for a few weeks before kegging. The temptation will be too great to test the brew out when it's in the keg, so get the lagering done in the cube.

 

[parrja]

I've only recently started kegging so am wondering why you carbonate prior to lagering?

cheers

grant

My lagering fridge is my kegerator. By carbing and gelatining up front the keg will sit undisturbed for the entire period and then pour cleanly. If you have to move it (or shake it to force carb) at a later date all the good work the gelatine/cold has done in clearing the beer will be undone.

You could of course slowly carb it closer to the end of the lagering period. Probably makes no difference, I just like to get it all done at once and this means I can take a full carbed beer at any time during the lagering process.