Beer Forum

I'm getting ready to do my 1st lager. Bo pils using 12.5 lbs of wyerman floor malted bo pils malt and .75 lbs of carapils. Is a protein rest beneficial with this malt? From what I have been able to gather , some do and some don't. So to those who have done this style , what would you do? This is the recipe from BCS. Thanks.

As you have guessed, there are conflicting opinions about the need for a protein rest. A protein rest will reduce haze, but if you overdo it, you will lose head retention. If you are comfortable doing step mashing and can quickly raise the temperature from one step level to the next then do it. If not, then skip it. Being your first lager, I would skip it and work on getting the rest of the process down first. I would be more concerned about the length of the boil. Diacetyl is a big concern when using pilsner malt. A 90 minute boil is normally recommended to get rid of the precursors.

Wayne

Bugeater wrote:As you have guessed, there are conflicting opinions about the need for a protein rest. A protein rest will reduce haze, but if you overdo it, you will lose head retention. If you are comfortable doing step mashing and can quickly raise the temperature from one step level to the next then do it. If not, then skip it. Being your first lager, I would skip it and work on getting the rest of the process down first. I would be more concerned about the length of the boil. Diacetyl is a big concern when using pilsner malt. A 90 minute boil is normally recommended to get rid of the precursors.

Wayne

I know my good friend Bugeater meant DMS, not diactyl here. Note, though, that a nice long diacetyl rest will greatly reduce diacetyl, a common off flavor in lagers (yes, I'm aware that it's permissible in low amounts in Bo Pils).

so, +1 on the 90 minute boil, and when your beer has gotten down to around 1.022 or so, raise the temp up to the 60's and let those yeastie beasties reduce the diacetyl for you for a few days. Let your nose and tastebuds determine when it's done, not the clock or calendar. Then, slowly lower the temp a couple degrees a day (so they don't get shocked and fall out dormant) until you get down to lagering temps in the 30's. Leave it alone there for a few weeks, and you'll have a nice, tasty pilsner ready for lawnmower season.

HTH-
Good Luck!

Ok , I am leaning towards skipping the protein rest. I plan on pitching a decanted 3 qt starter at 45 f and letting it free rise to 50f where I will hold it till I get to about 1.025 - 1.020 , then raise the temp to 62f for 5 days.... Then xfer to keg and lager at 34f for 6 weeks. I do plan on a 90 minute boil for this one. I can make clean ales , but I had to do a little research on lagers, because for every answer I found , I had another question..... Then I started reading up on decoction mashes, but decided to keep it simple for this one. Should I expect to use a blowoff tube or will a normal airlock be ok for this? I suspect fermentation will go slow enough not to need a blowoff tube, but not really sure.

grainman wrote:Should I expect to use a blowoff tube or will a normal airlock be ok for this? I suspect fermentation will go slow enough not to need a blowoff tube, but not really sure.

Never had a lager blow off. They're well-behaved ferments.

Elbone wrote:

grainman wrote:Should I expect to use a blowoff tube or will a normal airlock be ok for this? I suspect fermentation will go slow enough not to need a blowoff tube, but not really sure.

Never had a lager blow off. They're well-behaved ferments.

Ok, so Just an airlock will do.... Thanks

Bugeater wrote:As you have guessed, there are conflicting opinions about the need for a protein rest. A protein rest will reduce haze, but if you overdo it, you will lose head retention. If you are comfortable doing step mashing and can quickly raise the temperature from one step level to the next then do it. If not, then skip it. Being your first lager, I would skip it and work on getting the rest of the process down first. I would be more concerned about the length of the boil. Diacetyl is a big concern when using pilsner malt. A 90 minute boil is normally recommended to get rid of the precursors.

Wayne

Thanks for the help. I will definately be process focused on this ..... Don't want to put 2 months into a lager and have to dump it. BCS calls for lagering at 40f . I have read in several other places that lagering as close to freezing as possible is better. Am I simply clearing the beer during the lager stage , or are the yeast still cleaning up?

The yeast are still cleaning up during the lagering phase, but if you give your beer a good, several day diacetyl rest in the 60's then you should be okay to drop it close to freezing if possible. I find a good halfway point and lager around 35 degrees for 4-5 weeks before serving. And yes, you can carbonate the beer during this time if you prefer. Just give the beer a couple weeks lagering before starting to carb it up. I would also get your diacetyl rest temps up to around 65degF as this will really help to accelerate the cleaning up of any buttery flavors produced by the yeast. BTW, which strain are you going to use?