Comments on: Lager Brewing Thoughts

By: John

John — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 21:12:28 +0000

Guys,

Thanks for the feedback. I appreciate the thoughts.

I think it’s going to come down to the quality of Munich malt extract…which sounds like a question for another post.

By: Jason

Jason — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 20:58:09 +0000

I think you’re being over cautious. If you are confident enough and your all-grains have turned out well, then you should give it a shot with all grain. Your brew day would be no different with an all-grain ale than it would be for a lager so why worry about it? Once the beer is brewed, then worry about the lagering but I wouldn’t change your process.

I hope it turns out good! I’m getting ready to bottle my first lager. I brewed a Munich Dunkel and it’s been lagering for 3 months.

Cheers,
Jason

By: Brian

Brian — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 19:07:11 +0000

Just go for it. Brewing a lager isn’t any different than brewing an ale. It’s the fermentation that is different.

In my opinion good lagers are created the in the week(s) before brew day when growing up the yeast to pitch.

By: Mike

Mike — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 18:06:31 +0000

The dilema is ease of brewday vs. cost of a bad batch. The all grain route will certainly cost less “to screw up” but it will cost you in time.
You most certainly can perform a lager yeast fermentation, but you’ll need colder winter temps to be able to actually LAGER the beer after fermentation is done.

By: Señor Brew™

Señor Brew™ — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 13:54:47 +0000

I say go for it. I mean what is mashing, but preparing your own “extract”?

By: Chris

Chris — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 12:12:22 +0000

John, if your basement has a stable temperature, sure go for it. It would need to be around 45F-50F. I have a digital temp controler and my temps are very stable. I think this is important for temperature swings. I know lager temps don’t swing as much as ales, so you may be okay. I am going to start to brew lagers as soon as I use up my brick of Nottingham. Keep us posted on the temps on your fermenter. It should take around two weeks to complete. Your recipe looks good for a first lager. Use plenty of yeast, usually twice the amount of an ale recipe.

Chris