How long to lager for Helles?

[darthkotor]

Hey there, new to this community. I have to say how much I love the fact that everyone seems to reference sources and has detailed reports of what they are doing. Very refreshing.

I was just curious as to how long you lager for? I have seen 3-4 weeks, and I have seen 2-3 months (I figured its just a difference in style). I wanted to know what you have had the best success with for Helles styles.

Also : I am thinking about brewing a Marzen this month to enjoy in October, any issues with the 6 month lagering time? I figure I will lager in a keg, so air and light won't be an issue.

Again, thanks for being such an awesome community. I have scoured the past few months worth of posts.

[Owenbräu]

Depends on whether you are warm or cold fermenting. If doing a traditional cold fermentation, then the 1 week per degree plato is a fair rule of thumb. That said, once you hit EVG, are fully carbonated and by-products are cleaned up, all you really need to do is wait long enough for the beer to drop clear. Once you hit your stride, knowing your yeast and process, then I think 4-5 days per degree plato is attainable.

[darthkotor]

Awesome, thanks for the heads up. I am pretty familiar with my process, but I am using WLP838 for the first time this week.

March is quickly disappearing from my view, so I wanted to get my Oktoberfest Brew out of the way to do some Helles split batches done.

[Roachbrau]

Like AA said, it depends on the fermentation schedule. If you're holding primary temperature (or raising it) long enough to clean up byproducts, clarity is the biggest determiner.

838 is fairly quick to drop, but I've found it still needs a solid 4-6 weeks to really shine, until then it has always had sort of a weird sulfury flavor for me.

[Bryan R]

I think it really depends on your fining and filtering as well. If neither is chosen(which is PERFECTLY acceptable) 6 weeks is probably going to be the minimum you can get by with, when using a Bavarian strain.

[darthkotor]

I am planning on using Biofine clear, which I add to the final container (in this case, a keg).

I have been learning the hard way that my Helles always tastes best just as I am finishing the keg around week 4-6 of lagering (essentially 6-8 weeks after brew day). I am trying to get a few into the pipeline so I can lager for 8-16 weeks and see how it comes out then.

I think I will use 5 days/degree of Plato as a base line and adjust as necessary. I also picked up WLP 860, which I believe Roachbrau used as a split batch test. I am very excited to see how that turns out.

[Owenbräu]

860 is one of my favorites.

[Bryan R]

I think 16 weeks will be too long. I can taste flavor degridation after about 8 weeks, but ymmv. Speaking traditional 12-12.5p helles here of course.

[darthkotor]

I think I would finish it before week 16 rolled around. I know the last few batches didn't last long.

What about Marzens brewed in March to be tapped in October? Any brewing advice, or just do a traditional Oktoberfest (13.9P, 30ish IBU, Copper color around 12-14SRM). I was planning a mix between Vienna/Munich/a touch of Caravienna.

[ajk]

Looks like I like mine lagered much longer than some here. When I use the Weihenstephan strain, it's usually at about week 11, lagered at 1°C, that something magical happens and my Helles starts being wonderful. That said, I used the Augustiner strain for my most recent batch, and it was ready after about week 6.