Well, I have begun the new year with my first lager-style fermentation. I have never "successfully" done a lager before. My one previous attempt was to make a marzen (or Oktoberfest, as it is more commonly known) when I had no idea that you needed fermentation temperature control. The beer never really fermented, and the resulting beer, which really was more of a wort, was consumed by a friend who helped make the beer and felt guilty that it did not work out alright. It was in no way Sam's fault, as I really had no idea what I was doing. I bought a temperature controller with some of my Christmas money and hooked it up to my beer fridge. This controller is basically a thermostat that you plug your fridge into and then the thermostat cuts the power on and off. This allows me to set the fermentation temperature to around 50 degrees, which is important to minimize dactyl (butterscotch flavor) production in lager and pilsner-style beer.
Also new to my beer process this year is active aeration using an aquarium pump and stainless steel airstone and my home made stir plate for yeast starters. The aeration really helps fermentation start faster and minimize wild yeast propagation. The yeast starter does the same thing by increasing the amount of active yeast you pitch into the wort. More on the stir plate, which was built out of a cigar box and spare computer parts, in anther post.
One of the other complicating factors in fermenting a lager or pilsner is that it takes about a week to 10 days to ferment and then another 4 weeks to "lager" in the fridge. So, we will see how it goes. Stay tuned for more information . . .
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