Lagering for ale

[MChopz]

I am currently brewing a kolsch. I reached final gravity in about 3 days at 60F slowly increasing temp a few degrees each day toward the end of fermentation to keep the yeast active. Once final gravity was reached I ramped the temp to 69F to clean up any diacetyl. Held that temp for 2-3 days then started crashing the temp for lagering. It essentially sat at terminal gravity for about 5 days prior to lagering. My question is, did I start crashing the temp too early? Is it necessary to let the yeast sit at warmer temperatures for longer than 7 days to clean up byproducts prior to lagering? Have I done effed up?

Thanks

 

[couchsending]

Sounds like you had a pretty solid fermentation. With such a low OG you honestly don’t need more than a couple days after you hit terminal. Depends on the yeast strain somewhat. You can always do a forced diacetyl test to see if there’s any in there you can’t pick up right away.

However there are some benefits to slowly cooling the beer over a period of time and even leaving it at certain temps on the way down for a little extra time. Instead of just crashing it.

Great article you can find online with tips from Matthew Steinberg of Exhibit A on brewing Kolsch. He speaks about this specifically.