biertourist
Well-Known Member
I've got a kellerbier (well technically a Zwickel / Zoigl) in primary fermentation currently but I'm really curious about what a typical German kellerbier fermentation profile would look like.
The beer isn't served super cold and is SUPPOSED to still have yeast in suspension and lower volumes of CO2 from being "unbunged" (IMHO, it's the German serving equivalent of British "real ale"). I'm afraid that after a diacetyl rest (this beer will need it; I inadvertently under pitched and the strain is prone to elevated VDK/diacetyl levels) if I start dropping it down to typical 34F lagering temps that all the yeast will floc and I won't actually have a kellerbier any more.
The information available on US websites even for simple things like Kellerbier recipes is pretty TERRIBLE but I'm having very little luck translating the typical German homebrew sites for this information, too. I've got a huge brewing library but again reliable Kellerbier information in English just seems almost non-existent. (If a recipe involves adding woodchips, there's something seriously wrong with it; don't try to justify it; it's inexcusable.)
I'm thinking that I'll just wait for the krausen to almost completely fall back in and then raise it up from 10C (50F) to 15C (60F) for 5 days for a diacetyl rest and then "lager" it for another week or two back at 10C (50F).
-I had a number of kellerbiers and Zwickels in Germany and Austria (and oddly enough cafes in Belgium that had imported it from Germany) and REALLY like the more typical "kellered" Pils and Helles versions; I haven't been lucky enough to try a US version so I decided to make my own but getting a reliable recipe and process is proving a significant challenge.
Adam
The beer isn't served super cold and is SUPPOSED to still have yeast in suspension and lower volumes of CO2 from being "unbunged" (IMHO, it's the German serving equivalent of British "real ale"). I'm afraid that after a diacetyl rest (this beer will need it; I inadvertently under pitched and the strain is prone to elevated VDK/diacetyl levels) if I start dropping it down to typical 34F lagering temps that all the yeast will floc and I won't actually have a kellerbier any more.
The information available on US websites even for simple things like Kellerbier recipes is pretty TERRIBLE but I'm having very little luck translating the typical German homebrew sites for this information, too. I've got a huge brewing library but again reliable Kellerbier information in English just seems almost non-existent. (If a recipe involves adding woodchips, there's something seriously wrong with it; don't try to justify it; it's inexcusable.)
I'm thinking that I'll just wait for the krausen to almost completely fall back in and then raise it up from 10C (50F) to 15C (60F) for 5 days for a diacetyl rest and then "lager" it for another week or two back at 10C (50F).
-I had a number of kellerbiers and Zwickels in Germany and Austria (and oddly enough cafes in Belgium that had imported it from Germany) and REALLY like the more typical "kellered" Pils and Helles versions; I haven't been lucky enough to try a US version so I decided to make my own but getting a reliable recipe and process is proving a significant challenge.
Adam
