When using Saflager 34/70 for a 1.048 lager would you guys pitch 1 pack, 2 packs, or 1 pack with a starter?
2 packs no starter
1 pack should be fine for that gravity.
I’ll be using that yeast myself for the first time this weekend.
Other people’s experiences seem to indicate that on the initial pitch you can avoid a long lag time and a sluggish fermentation by pitching near the “standard” rate and fermenting around 54-55 degrees. I hear it performs better on repitching, but I have no direct experience.
I’m going to try 2 rehydrated packets in 5.25 gallons of 1.050 pilsner and see how it goes.
I used 1 pack of W34/70 in my first lager with an OG of 1.049 and then 1 pack again in a schwarzbier. Did great for both however I would think that most will recommend 2 packs.
I’ve had solid results (aside from long lag time) with one rehydrated packet on a 1.050 beer, but it’s hard to overpitch a lager and easy to underpitch. If I were to use it again I’d use two packets on an average strength beer. More on a stronger one.
Edit for grammar. OCD like that. Or CDO.
At that price that Fermentis is charging for W-34/70, I would pitch one package at 16C/61F and allow the fermentation to fall to 13C/55F. A 1.048 beer is basically a starter.
I recently did a 3G batch with 34/70. I used Brülosophers accelerated method.
I made 1 mistake. I tried it on day 8 it was delicious and diacetyl free. So I proceeded to cold crash and keg it. I got diacetyl after a week or so in the keg.
Too fast. Next time I use an accelerated schedule I will leave in the fermenter at least 2 weeks to let it clean up.
In the end I used a 1L starter (krausening) to fix the beer. So all is not lost.
This was noted on the latest beersmith podcast. The guest mentioned that it’s best practice to perform a forced diacetyl test. Super easy to do, and I do them from time to time when fermenting cool.
Pull a sample, cover tightly with plastic wrap, allow to warm, remove the wrap and take a whiff.
Basically the compounds that cause it are tasteless until the beer is warmed. If one were to bottle condition a lager, it might taste amazing at bottling, but like a movie theatre once conditioned.
Thanks. I have read about this but never done it. With all the good lager recipes on this site I should.
In case this is useful…
I pitched 2 packets of rehydrated 34/70 into 5.25 gallons of 1.050 wort Saturday morning around 7:30. After 12 hours there was no airlock activity (I did not check to see if krausen was forming). After 24 hours there was no airlock activity and no real krausen (just a couple of yeast clumps floating on the surface). After 36 hours, the airlock was bubbling and there was a thin krausen that didn’t quite completely cover the surface of the wort.
I’m going to harvest some slurry from this batch, pitch it into a small starter, and pitch that at high krausen into 5.25 gallons of 1.053 marzen in a few weeks. Hopefully, that will get off to a quicker start.
Edit: I forgot to mention that I pitched the yeast at 55 degrees, and the beer has been held between 53.5 and 55.5 degrees.