German Octoberfest

[CrealCritter]

Day 14 - racked into secondary 5 gallon carboy for the long lager phase. Starting temp 55 degrees, then drop the temperature 2 to 3 degrees every day until 35 to 40 degrees. Then keep it at 35 ~ 40 degrees for a minimum of 4 weeks. Then raise the temperature 2 to 3 degrees everyday until 55 is reached. Then you can bottle it. This is as close as I can get to simulating a cave over a German winter, which is how the Germans originally made lagers. I plan on lagering at 35 degrees for 7 to 8 weeks. This is a Octoberfest after all.

I did sneak sneak a little bit during racking, it was really good This will be the last post with pictures until bottling, see ya in about 3 months.

Forgot to add... I'm washing this lager yeast. Just another fancy phrase for saving yeast to reuse for the next batch of lager style beer. Syphon beer off the yeast bed in the primary. Add about 1 quart water, mix water in the carboy and pour into a sterile container. After a day or so there should be three separations, the bottom is trub (you don't want this) the middle is active yeast (this is what you want) the top is beer and water (you don't want this either).

After about 2 hours the three separations are getting more noticeable in the 1/2 gallon canning jar. Should be real distinct after a day or so. I'll syphon off the middle and store in a sterile jar in the refrigerator until next lager brew. Of course sanitation is the most important part of all of this.

 

[CrealCritter]

So here is the separation I was talking about after refrigeration for a little over 24 hours.

The dark top layer is beer and water, the middle layer is active yeast, the bottom layer is nasty trub. You can really see how the trub compacted from my first picture, in the post above.

I syphoned off the top layer and tossed it down the drain. I then syphoned the middle into a sterile pint canning jar and tossed the trub down the drain. I managed to get a little over 3 cups of active lager yeast, which is a lot. Label/Date and store in the refrigerator, it should be viable for well over a year. This lager yeast cost $8.00 for a little package, if i continue washing, I won't have to buy it again.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

This lager yeast cost $8.00 for a little package, if i continue to wash yeast, I won't have to buy it again.

Dang! That stuff is high - good thing you can keep it going!

 

[sumi]

This is so interesting. I'm learning loads here, by reading these threads If I get to a point in future where I may decide to brew my own, I'll know where to come for tips!

 

[CrealCritter]

This is so interesting. I'm learning loads here, by reading these threads If I get to a point in future where I may decide to brew my own, I'll know where to come for tips!

My daughter sent me this picture said it reminded her of me when I brew.

 

[CrealCritter]

Day 31 / lagering day 17 @ 36 degrees F - very thick yeast bed has formed on the bottom of the carboy, the beer itself is ultra clear. It has at least 14 more days left to lager.

I have three 5 gallon ball lock corny kegs coming. I may just keg this Octoberfest instead of bottling it. But I won't gas it with CO2, instead I'll naturally carbonate it, the same as I do when I bottle.

 

[CrealCritter]

Lager Day 30 @ 37 degrees in my keezer. A few more weeks to go.

 

[CrealCritter]

Just pulled the Oktoberfest out of the keezer where it has been lagering @ 35 degrees for 40 days. I'm going to let it come up to room temperature so we can bottle it in 2 days. I'm kind of excited about this one to see how it turns out. I bought a packet of cask yeast to naturally carbonate in bottles. Since I'm pretty sure all the original yeast has pretty much had it being so cold for 40 days. It's originally how the German made lagers, Oktoberfest included.

Its a nice looking dark beer, that's crystal clear when I shine a light through the glass. It almost looks like candy in there.

Really thick layer of trub and yeast, in the bottom. Lager yeast is bottom feeding.

I hope it tastes as good as it looks and I didn't screw anything up with it. We'll see in a couple of weeks. Fingers crossed.

 

[CrealCritter]

Day 42 / Bottling day 1 - bottled 54 12oz long necks. Taste test, tasted like an Oktoberfest. I don't think I screwed it up.

My 2nd oldest son is bringing me 3 ball lock Corny kegs this weekend, so I'll be brewing another batch this weekend. I have to figure out how I'm going to use the kegs as primary fermenters first. Lager needs to primary ferment @ 55 degrees, so I have to ferment in my keezer (temperature regulated freezer).

 

[CrealCritter]

Day 52 / Bottle day 9 - Lightly carbonated and most definitely a Oktoberfest. The first drink brings back memories of fall and the annual release of commercial breweries seasonal Oktoberfest beers. It's extremely clear (not cloudy) yet dark shaded with a caramel colored head, it has a sweet caramel & toasty bread crust flavor. No hop aroma, just the clean aroma of sweet toasty German malts. There is next to no bitterness from the German tradition hops in he mouth, yet there is a faint bitterness on the back of throat with each swallow. I'm pretty confident this will all but disappear with a little more aging.

After only 9 days in the bottle, I was surprised to see any carbonation at all, but it's lightly carbonated It only gets better tasting from here. I suspect after 3 or 4 weeks of bottling conditioning will bring this Oktoberfest to its peak. Lagers take a long time and careful temperature control during fermentation, but are worth the wait in my opinion. You simply can not achieve a complex, yet elegant taste such as this, with ale yeast.

My phone battery died, so I'll snap a frosty mug pic next taste test.