I'm planning on upping my brewing complexity by an order or magnitude this weekend when I attempt to a do a lager properly. So I've spent the last few days reading the boards and bothering John at Grain and Grape in order to get my method down pat. I thought that I'd post it here to get some feedback and also have a few questions answered that I have.
CZECH PILSNER
Shopping List
3000g Light Malt Extract (For Wort)
250g Light Malt Extract (For Starter)
Dextrose (Priming)
200g Munich Malt
200g Vienna Malt
120g Saaz Hops, 90g in Boil,30g Soak,
Saflager Yeast (Ferment at 10 Degrees)
Irish Moss
Finings
Sterilizer
Optional
Fridge Thermostat
Wort Chiller
Method
Create a yeast starter using some light malt, 2.5l of water at 25 degrees.
Boil the malts, 90g saaz and irish moss on the stove in 10l of water for 1 hour before turning it off and letting the 30g saaz soak for 5 minutes, at this stage put a lid on the pot to trap the hop oils.
Cool the liquid quickly, either via an immersion wort chiller or in a bathtub full of ice slurry.
Transfer to a fermenter and bring up to 20 litres. Adjust the temperature to 20 degrees and pitch the yeast. Set the thermostat to keep the fridge at 10 degrees. Planning on losing 1 litre to hydrometer testing over the period.
Wait until fermenter activity has slowed.
Bring temperature up to 20 degrees for two days for a diacetyl rest.
Transfer to a secondary fermenter for a further seven days back at lagering temperature, add finings.
Transfer to bottling vessel adding 115g of Dextrose to 19l of beer for priming (Medium carbonation).
Bottle.
Questions
What's a good ratio for a yeast starter when dealing with lagers?, I know you have to make a larger starter so I've settled on 2.5l I was thinking of 250g of LME, 2.5 l of water and two packets of yeast.
Do you usually do the diacetyl rest in the primary or secondary vessel?
I've read that it's good to bring the temperature down slowly, as much as 2 degrees per day. From a pitching temperature of 20 degrees this seems a bit excessive to me as it would take five days to reach fermentation temperature.
What kind of timeframes am I looking at for primary and secondary fermentations, I've read in Palmer that it's somewhat of a black art to learn. Should I just go by my hydrometer readings and rack to the secondary when fermentation slows or approaches 1010.
Should I age the bottles at lagering temperature as well?
CZECH PILSNER
Shopping List
3000g Light Malt Extract (For Wort)
250g Light Malt Extract (For Starter)
Dextrose (Priming)
200g Munich Malt
200g Vienna Malt
120g Saaz Hops, 90g in Boil,30g Soak,
Saflager Yeast (Ferment at 10 Degrees)
Irish Moss
Finings
Sterilizer
Optional
Fridge Thermostat
Wort Chiller
Method
Create a yeast starter using some light malt, 2.5l of water at 25 degrees.
Boil the malts, 90g saaz and irish moss on the stove in 10l of water for 1 hour before turning it off and letting the 30g saaz soak for 5 minutes, at this stage put a lid on the pot to trap the hop oils.
Cool the liquid quickly, either via an immersion wort chiller or in a bathtub full of ice slurry.
Transfer to a fermenter and bring up to 20 litres. Adjust the temperature to 20 degrees and pitch the yeast. Set the thermostat to keep the fridge at 10 degrees. Planning on losing 1 litre to hydrometer testing over the period.
Wait until fermenter activity has slowed.
Bring temperature up to 20 degrees for two days for a diacetyl rest.
Transfer to a secondary fermenter for a further seven days back at lagering temperature, add finings.
Transfer to bottling vessel adding 115g of Dextrose to 19l of beer for priming (Medium carbonation).
Bottle.
Questions
What's a good ratio for a yeast starter when dealing with lagers?, I know you have to make a larger starter so I've settled on 2.5l I was thinking of 250g of LME, 2.5 l of water and two packets of yeast.
Do you usually do the diacetyl rest in the primary or secondary vessel?
I've read that it's good to bring the temperature down slowly, as much as 2 degrees per day. From a pitching temperature of 20 degrees this seems a bit excessive to me as it would take five days to reach fermentation temperature.
What kind of timeframes am I looking at for primary and secondary fermentations, I've read in Palmer that it's somewhat of a black art to learn. Should I just go by my hydrometer readings and rack to the secondary when fermentation slows or approaches 1010.
Should I age the bottles at lagering temperature as well?