try dry yeast first. Maybe future batch with liquid WLP800
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research irish moss or whirlfloc?
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Mash in with 1.5 qt/lb at 145F. Hold it for 20 min. Raise it to 158F. Hold it for 30 min. Raise it to 168F. Hold it for 10 min.
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collect wort until the pre-boil kettle volume is around 6.5 gallons and the gravity is 1.044
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Target a mash temperature range of 152 to 156 °F (67 to 69 °C). If you are making a lower gravity beer, use the higher end of this temperature range to leave the beer with a bit more body. While this may seem like a fairly high mash temperature, keep in mind that lager yeast will consume more of the tri-saccharide maltotriose than the average ale yeast. While we don’t want bock-like body, we do want the fully attenuated beer to still have a fairly full mouthfeel.
When making lagers, I like to get the wort down to 44 °F (7 °C), oxygenate and then pitch the yeast. I let the beer slowly warm over the first 36 hours to 50 °F (10 °C) and then I hold this temperature for the remainder of fermentation. This results in a clean lager, with very little diacetyl. The idea is to reduce the diacetyl precursor alpha-acetolactate, which the yeast create during the early phase of fermentation. With a warmer environment, the yeast form more alpha-acetolactate and the finished beer contains more diacetyl. Given time and the proper conditions, active yeast will convert the diacetyl to other compounds with a higher flavor threshold, but the lower the initial amount of diacetyl, the less there will be in the final beer. If you start or ferment your lager warmer, you will need to do a diacetyl rest during the last part of fermentation. To perform a diacetyl rest, warm your beer up about 10 °F (6 °C) until fermentation is complete and the yeast have had a chance to eliminate the diacetyl. In any case, don’t rush things. Good lagers take time and they ferment slower than ales, especially when fermented cold. Once the beer has finished fermenting, a period of lagering for a month or more at near freezing temperatures can improve the beer.