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Lager Problems
I'm an ale veteran but this is my first time trying to brew a lager and I've ran into a couple of problems that maybe you guys could shed some light on.
First my recipe. I'm using the Propensity Pilsener Lager recipe from Complete Joy of Homebrewing.
Extract for 5 gal
-7 lbs (2 cans) Light malt extract syrup
-1/2 lb Crystal malt
-2 lbs Light Clover honey
-2 1/2 oz Czech Saaz hop pellets (boiling)
-1/2 oz Crystal hop pellets (flavor and aroma)
-1/4 oz Crystal hop pellets (aroma, dry hopped into 2nd fermenter)
-Pilsener-type lager yeast (I used White Labs #800 yeast with a use by date that was still a few months away)
My the grains were steeped for 30 min and boil time was 60 mins.
The recipe said to primary ferment for 1 week then transfer to 2nd frementer, add crystal hops and lager for 2 weeks.
My wort was cooled to about 60 F using a wort cooler in about 15 mins. I pitched the yeast at this temp. I followed the instructions on the side of the vial to bring the yeast out of the fridge 3 hours per and shake it up as it came to room temp though I did not make up a starter the day before as I was told White Lab yeasts are pitchable right from the vial. My wort was aerated through shaking before pitching yeast. Original gravity : 1.051
My fermenter is in a mini fridge set to 50 F and it has held a temperature in the range of 51-53 F. White labs web site confirms that the optimum working temp for this strain is 50 -55 F.
After a week I wasn't noticing much activity even though there was a decent yeast bed but I was told that lagers ferment at a slower speed so I took a SG reading and it was unchanged (1.051) so I shook up the fermenter and left it to be. After two weeks I took a second reading after transferring it into the 2nd fermenter and it has gone up to 1.060.
So what's up with my brew?
Did I just get a batch of yeast that was off?
Did bacteria get in?
Also for future reference what would be the best way (recipe) to make a starter for Lager yeast?
Also should said starter be stored in a fridge or be kept at room temp?
Thanks in advance.
Even though the lager ferments in the low 50's, you are usually better off letting the fermentation start in the 70 - 75 degree range. After you have active fermentation, you then refrigerate.
When you make a lager starter, you would do the same as you do for ales, so you let it sit at 70 - 75 degrees.
did you taste it? does it taste like it fermented? is it still sweet? taste it and report back...
bacteria eats sugars too, so if it's infected you wouldn't still have a high gravity reading. either your yeast was bad (here's my reason for being a Wyeast user instead of White Labs. visual indication that your yeast is good, without making a starter...) or your hydrometer gave up the ghost...
and don't forget about the diacetyl rest...
In my opinion, pitching a single yeast tube for a lager is nowhere near enough. I usually make a 3000ml starter from the tube 3-4 days before brew day, ferment it out chill, decant the liquid and pitch the slurry.
I would never start a lager at 70-75 and cool it down. Always start at ferment temp or even a little cooler and bring it up. Two reasons;
#1 many lager strains are known to quit when pitched high and then cooled you are only putting undue stress on the yeast by doing that.
#2 if fermentation begins anywhere near 70-75 you are likely to lose the lager characteristic of the beer
Did you account for temperature adjustment when you took your first reading? Your hydrometer will be inaccurate at the 50 F you were fermenting at. It sounds like it hadn't started yet after a week, likely due to the fact that one WL vial, despite what they say, is not a good idea for direct pitch to a lager.
Make the lager starter at room temp (hopefully not much above 70) you are just going for yeast numbers and not the character imparted by the fermentation temps at this point, however you are best off with a stirplate and a very large starter for a lager. Cooling the starter, letting the yeast settle and decanting the liquid will prevent transferring off flavors from the starter to the lager. Lagers, especially a light pilsener like your recipe will allow any off-flavor to shine right through to the final product, unlike an IPA, stout, orter, etc that masks some of the problems in the brewing process.
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