Black Lager is a dark lager that homebrewers reach for when they want a project worth the extra attention. This version keeps the grain bill built around Pale malt, and leans on Centennial 8.5% to shape the finish.
Recipe at a Glance
Recipe at a Glance
| Style | Black Lager |
| Batch Size | 5 gallons (19L) |
| Boil Time | 60-90 minutes |
| Original Gravity | 1.048-1.056 |
| Final Gravity | 1.012-1.016 |
| ABV | 4.5-5.5% |
| IBU | 16-28 |
| SRM | 14-30 (brown to black) |
| Difficulty | Intermediate (lager patience required) |
Brew Day, Step by Step
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1
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Mash · ~60 min Mash the grain bill, led by Pale malt, at a steady temperature to build the fermentable sugars this style needs. Sparge slowly so you do not lose efficiency. |
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2
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Boil · ~60-90 min Bring the wort to a boil and work through the hop schedule, starting with Centennial 8.5%. This is also where you will add any fining agent for a clearer finished beer. |
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3
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Ferment · 14C (57F) Pitch White Labs WLP802 Czech Lager once the wort has cooled to fermentation temperature and hold it steady. Primary fermentation is the most active week, do not rush it. |
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4
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Condition · 4 weeks at 3C (37F) Rack to secondary (or leave in primary if your recipe calls for it) and let the beer round out at a cool, steady temperature. This step does more for the final flavor than people expect. |
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5
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Package · 1 day, then wait Bottle or keg once gravity has held steady for a few days in a row. Give it time to carbonate and, for bigger styles, additional time to mellow before your first taste. |
That’s the shape of brew day and the weeks after it. For the exact grain bill, hop schedule, and full step-by-step instructions with amounts, use the recipe card below.
What You Will Need
Sourcing your own ingredients locally is always fine, but if you want to skip a homebrew store trip, here is what’s in stock in our shop right now:
- Base and specialty grain: Grains & Adjuncts (e.g. My Brew Supply Flaked Maize Premium Beer Making Grain)
- Bittering and aroma hops: Brewing Hops (e.g. Amarillo Hop Pellets 1 oz)
- Yeast: Brewing Yeast (e.g. Craft A Brew – Safale S-04 Dry Yeast – Fermentis)
- Secondary fermenter for conditioning: Fermenters & Carboys (e.g. Carboy Caps 4 Pk Silicone Caps)
- Priming sugar for bottling: Priming Sugar (e.g. Dextrose 50 Lb)
- General kit and tools: Homebrew Equipment (e.g. Northern Brewer Homebrewing Starter Kit w/Equipment, Chinook IPA)
- Pour it right when it’s ready: a tulip glass shows off the color and holds the aroma better than a straight pint glass
Serve It Right
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A Black Lager is best served in a mug or pint, it fits the body and carbonation of this style better than a straight pint glass. Here is one from our shop: |
Ingredients & Gear for This Batch
Grain / Adjuncts |
Hops |
Yeast |
Fermenter |
Priming Sugar |
Equipment Deluxe Bottling Kit Craft a Brew Homebrew Bottler Equipment Home Bre |
Full Recipe: Grain Bill, Hops, and Instructions
Black Lager
Equipment
- 1 Brew kettle
- 1 Mash tun
- 1 Fermenter (plastic bucket or glass carboy)
- 1 Airlock and stopper
- 1 Hydrometer
- 1 Thermometer
- 1 Long stirring spoon or paddle
- 1 Auto-siphon
- 1 Bottling bucket
- 1 Bottles and caps
- 1 Bottle capper
- 1 Cleaning and sanitizing supplies (e.g. PBW, Star San)
Ingredients
For the Mash – Liquor 13 Litres (23 Pints) – Mash Time 1 hr – Temperature 65°C (149°F)
- 10 lb Pale malt Quantity 4.5kg
- 9 oz Melanoidin malt Quantity 250 g
- 3 1/2 oz Chocolate malt Quantity 100 g
- 5 1/2 oz Carafa special III malt Quantity 150 g
For the Boil – 27 Litres (47 1/2 Pints) – Boil Time 1 hr – 15 mins
- 1 oz (Hops) Centennial 8.5% When to add – At start of boil (IBU 28.5)
- 2 oz (Hops) Hallertauer Hersbrucker 3.5% When to add – For last 15 mins of boil (IBU 9.9)
- 1 1/2 oz (Hops) Hallertauer Hersbrucker 3.5% When to add – At turn off (IBU 0.0)
- 1 tsp Protofloc Other – When to add – For last 15 mins of boil
To Ferment – 14°C (57°F) – Conditioning 4 weeks at 3°C (37°F)
- 1 White Labs WLP802 Czech Lager Yeast
Instructions
Mash:
- Heat 13 liters (23 pints) of water to 65°C (149°F).
- Add the Pale, Melanoidin, Chocolate, and Carafa special III malts to the water and stir.
- Allow the mixture to sit for 1 hour at 65°C (149°F).
- After 1 hour, remove the grains and discard.
Boil:
- Heat 27 liters (47.5 pints) of water to a boil in a large pot.
- Once the water is boiling, add the Centennial hops and let it boil for 1 hour.
- After 1 hour, add the Protofloc and the Hallertauer Hersbrucker hops and boil for an additional 15 minutes.
- At the end of the 15 minutes, add the final 1.5 oz of Hallertauer Hersbrucker hops and turn off the heat.
- Chill the wort to 14°C (57°F) using a wort chiller or an ice bath.
Fermentation:
- Transfer the chilled wort to a fermenter.
- Add the White Labs WLP802 Czech Lager Yeast to the fermenter.
- Place an airlock on the fermenter and let the beer ferment at 14°C (57°F) for about 5 days, or until the fermentation is complete.
- After the fermentation is complete, transfer the beer to a secondary fermenter or to a bottling bucket.
- Allow the beer to condition for 4 weeks at 3°C (37°F).
Bottling:
- Sanitize your bottles and caps.
- Add 1-2 tablespoons of sugar to the bottling bucket and stir.
- Use an auto-siphon to transfer the beer to the bottling bucket.
- Fill each bottle with the beer, leaving about 1 inch of headspace.
- Cap the bottles using a bottle capper.
- Allow the beer to carbonate in the bottles at room temperature for about 2 weeks.
- After 2 weeks, refrigerate the beer and enjoy!
Get the fermentation temperature right on Black Lager and most of the rest of the process takes care of itself.
What Makes Black Lager the Style It Is
Like most classic beer styles, Black Lager has a long, slightly tangled history behind it, shaped as much by regional brewing traditions as by any single inventor.
The character of this beer comes down to a beer that leans on pale malt and centennial 8.5%, and White Labs WLP802 Czech Lager is doing more of that work than the grain bill gets credit for.
Style Characteristics at a Glance
- ABV: 4.5-5.5%
- Bitterness: 16-28 IBU
- Color: 14-30 (brown to black)
- Serving temp: 40-45F (4-7C)
- Glassware: a mug or pint
- Food pairings: roast pork, rye bread, smoked cheese
Common Questions
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes, the grain bill and hop schedule scale linearly with batch size. Just make sure your equipment, mash tun and boil kettle both, can actually handle the volume you are scaling to.
What is the biggest mistake homebrewers make with this style?
Rushing the schedule. Pulling a beer off yeast too early or skipping conditioning time is the most common way to shortchange a recipe like this one.
Can I substitute a different yeast strain?
You can, but expect the flavor profile to shift. Stick close to the same yeast family (English ale, American ale, Belgian, lager, etc.) if you want a result close to what this recipe is aiming for.
Keep Exploring
Once you have this one down, here are a few more homebrew recipes worth trying next:
Browse the full homebrew recipe collection for more styles, or if you are just getting into the hobby, start with one of our homebrewing starter kits for new brewers.
This recipe is for adults of legal drinking age. Please brew and drink responsibly, and always sanitize your equipment thoroughly to avoid infection.
