No idea what to make next

[amfukuda]

I'm goin to try making a yeast starter and I want to try and lager the beer but I'm not sure what type of beer I want to make. Do you guys have any ideas

 

[progmac]

oh, so many ideas

what are your favorite commercial beers?
what temps can you ferment at?
all grain, partial, or extract w/steeping grains?

 

[amfukuda]

I have built a temp controlled freezer so I can get pretty much any temp

 

[amfukuda]

I love anchor steam and a good bock or ipa so I'm all over the place as far as tastes

 

[progmac]

if you like a lighter beer, try your father's mustache. i have tried this beer with three different yeasts, and White Labs Cry havoc (WLP862) is easily the best.

for something a bit darker and more malty, a Munich Dunkel is a great choice. I don't have a recipe, but basically do 80% basemalt, 15% munich, and 5% specialty with about 3 oz of carafa III for color. german hops

for something different, you could do a Lager IPA (IPL). Basically take your favorite IPA recipe but use a nice lager yeast in place of the ale yeast.

the most important thing with a lager isn't the recipe, it is fermentation control. pitch at minimum a 3L starter, ferment around 49-58 depending on the yeast strain, keep track until you are about 10 points shy of FG, pull out of the freezer for a diacetyl rest for 3 or 4 days at 65 degrees or more, then put it back in close to freezing in temperature. add gelatin if you want to have it ready with only about 2 weeks cold storage or do nothing and it will be ready after 4-5 weeks.

 

[amfukuda]

So after the rest put it back in at freezing straight away. Iv read something about stepping it down 2 degrees every twelve hours till you get to freezing. Does it matter or is it just preference

 

[progmac]

So after the rest put it back in at freezing straight away. Iv read something about stepping it down 2 degrees every twelve hours till you get to freezing. Does it matter or is it just preference

i'm honestly not sure. i have had no issues with cold crashing all the way after the diacetyl rest. i have heard something about this potentially causing yeast cells to explode (?) and cause off-flavors. I'm not sure i'm even describing that right, because i'm not sure.

 

[amfukuda]

While the idea of exploding yeast sounds kinda cool ill have to do a little more research

 

[timrox1212]

Since you can lager and you like IPAs why don't you brew an IPL?