The Best Way to Make a Dark Lager Homebrew

malted barley

🥗Healthier: rye malt

💰Cheaper: corn syrup

Rye malt adds complexity while corn syrup reduces costs.

hops

🥗Healthier: hops extract

💰Cheaper: bittering hops

Hops extract can provide bitterness with less quantity.

yeast

🥗Healthier: wild yeast

💰Cheaper: dry yeast

Wild yeast can create unique flavors, while dry yeast is cost-effective.

caramel malt

🥗Healthier: light malt

💰Cheaper: sugar

Light malt offers sweetness with fewer calories.

Mash in the pale, Munich, and dextrin malts at 69°C for body.

After mashing, scatter in the black and chocolate malts before sparging to avoid overpowering flavors.

Boil for 1 hour, adding 25 g of Magnum hops at the start and 20 g of Saaz hops 10 minutes before the end.

Cool the wort down to 20°C using a heat exchanger.

Transfer the cooled wort into a pressure fermentor, letting it fall from a height to aerate.

Seal the fermentor and pressurize it to about 10-15 psi using CO2 gas, attaching a spunding valve set to just over 10 psi.

Ferment at 18°C for 4 days, then increase to 20°C for the remainder of fermentation (total of about 17 days).

Transfer to a keg and allow to settle before tasting.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Allergens