Hi Eveyone! I am planning on brewing JZ’s Oktoberfest recipe from Brewing Classic Styles this weekend. Instead of using WL820 (Oktoberfest) yeast, I am using WLP830. My question is, WLP830 gives a bit more attenuation bring my estimated FG from 1.015 to 1.011. Not huge but a little worried about drying the beer out a little too much. So, should I a) bump up the mash temp a bit maybe from 151 to say 154. b) Ferment at a lower temp like 47ish c) both d) don’t worry about it one way or another.
I should mention that I’ve never been totally satisfied with my Ofest attempts. Other people like it OK but its always been just a little fruity to my palate. I finally got my helles down so I should really try Ofest again. Will utilize pressurized fermentation this time around.
Good point. I would add that I think the 154F mash temp mentioned previously is way too high for the style and especially one with a fair dose of crystal malt. German lagers are best with a clean, dry finish IMO and mashing @ 148-150F seems like a better idea to me.
I know the style is supposed to be made with only base malt, but I’ve found a benefit to a little crystal in both it and hefeweizen. YOu might be right about a 154F mash, although I don’t think its going to be that big of a difference. Then again my MLT loses a little heat so my version of 154 is 154-150F.
I’ve brewed JZ’s Ofest recipe, as well. Didn’t care for it much. NB’s Ofest recipe (from their kit) is my favorite so far, having brewed three for four different Ofest recipies.
I already had the starter going with the WLP830, so I moving forward on that. Read through Designing Great Beers a bit to see what Ray Daniels had to say about the matter. In light of that and the feedback here I messed with the malt bill a bit. Going with a blend of Pils, Vienna, and Munich, I replaced half of the caramunich with carapils and added a little wheat malt. Going with a mash temp of 152.
