Lager yeast lag time

[Reebs]

Put down my first AG lager on the weekend but the lack of action in the fermenter has got me worried.

 

Using S-23, which was re-hydrated with 23C water and pitched into the wort at 16C.

Brought it down to 10C over the next 24 hours and now its been 48 hours since pitched yeast into the well aerated wort.

I haven't whipped the lid off the frementer to get a detailed inspection but the lack of krausen on the sides appears to be indicating that things are on the go-slow or even no-go.

 

So do I:

a) Open up the fermenter and give things a good stir and possibly bring the temps up a bit.

b) Just bring the temps up to get things started.

c) Crack another beer and stop worrying.

d) Pitch the whole lot out and stick to brewing ales.

 

Hope to get your insights since this is certainly the longest lag time I've experienced.

[MrC]

c) Crack another beer and stop worrying.

I'd give it a few more days yet. 10c is a good temp for lagers but will have a longer lag time that an ale at 20C. Keeping the temp low at this stage will help keep the beer nice & clean.

[Dougal]

Agreed. Don't expect the same vigorous fermentation you get with ales. It's probably quietly growing up lots of cells at that temp.
How much yeast did you pitch into what volume of wort?

[James P]

At 16C you should have been pitching close to a pack and a half of S23. Yeast can get thermally shocked (23C to 16C is a bit of a drop) so in doing so you may get some lag whilst it acclimatises. As Mr C says, relax, at worst you will probably get a stronger sulphur smell during ferment which you can mature out of it in the lager period.

Lagers are just as easy as ales, simple rule of thumb for me is to chill to 12C and pitch two packets of dried yeast (I don't re-hydrate). Then drop to 10C for the ferment period. Has not failed me yet.

Good luck, and don't give up on lagers, they are easy!

[Reebs]

pitched 2 packs into 19L

[vdog]

Question on lager yeasts guys - if I want to make a starter for a lager (it'll be a big batch and i will need lots of yeast) does the temp that the starter ferments at make any difference to the finished beer? Basically, can I ferment it warmer (faster) or does the starter need to kick up at 10-12C like the lager itself will have to?

[Dougal]

Provided you chill it overnight when it's done and pour off the starter beer, do it at room temperature. Lager yeast reproduces best at similar temperatures to ale yeast.

[Fairlane]

I use S-23 a lot so here's my 2 cents worth....

I rehydrate at 38 deg C (I know the spec sheet says 23...) with approx 10x the amount of water and let it sit with no stirring for 30 minutes or more. This should give ample time for the cell walls of the yeast to regain integrity without being damaged by stirring. Then I will stir gently.

Next I check the temp and add enough wort (that I've cooled to approx 20 degrees) to drop the yeast by 5 degrees maximum. This is usually double the amount of the water. I will let this sit for maybe another half hour to get some metabolism under way and then I will aerate. I do this by pouring the solution from one jug to another several times and trying to splash it as much as possible.

I will then double the volume again to get the solution down to 20 deg C and do some more aeration.

When I pitch I make sure the solution is at the same temp as the wort (usually 20 deg C) and I leave it about 8 hours to kick off properly. I will typically add some DAP at this stage to help with nutrient supply and prevent any sulphides. After 8 hours the temp is reduced to 12 deg C and left there for 2 - 2.5 weeks.

Works for me every time.