Bavarian Wheat AG help

nyer · 07-25-2008, 01:43 PM

I bought the ingredients to Edwort's Bavarian Wheat and his Pale ale. I'm hoping to do the pale ale first but I'm still waiting around for the yeast that was back ordered. Sunday morning is the only time I have to try my first AG. If I don't get the yeast in time I need to do the wheat. I could really use some instruction on what to do at what temps, what water amounts, etc. just like the pale ale recipe has. I have a keggle and 5 gal. watercooler with stainless braid and I will be batch sparging. I would really appreciate some help,the recipe is below.

Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: Wyeast 3068 Weihenstephan
Yeast Starter: Yes
Batch Size (Gallons): 5.5
Original Gravity: 1.052
Final Gravity: 1.009
Boiling Time (Minutes): 60
IBU: 10-13
Color: 3-4 SRM
Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 10 days at 68 degrees
Secondary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): None

3rd Place winner of the 2007 Alamo Cerveza Fest

Bavarian Hefeweizen 5.5 Gallon

7# German Wheat
4# German Pils
.5# Rice Hulls (if needed to prevent stuck mash)

Mash for 90 minutes at 153 degrees.

.75 Hallertau @ 45
.25 Hallertau @ 15

Wyeast Weihenstephan 3068 with starter.

Ferment 10 days at 68 degrees then crash cool & keg.

O.G. 1.052
F.G. 1.009

5.6% abv
__________________

stever · 07-25-2008, 02:04 PM

do you have any software? Got get a copy of beersmith, you can use it as a trial and it will help you calculate all these things you need. There are also some online calcs that will help you figure out how much water, the temps etc.

A couple of things you will want to do, preheat your MLT. If you need to hit 153 and the software says use 163.5 degree water, add 175.00 water to your MLT and let it sit for a bit to preheat the cooler. This will keep your heat loss to a minimum.

From throwing the numbers in beer smith it tells me

first strike is 3.5 gallons at 164.5 lets rest for 90 minutes at 153
I would then take your first runnings after 90 minutes and then sparge with 2 equals volumes to get your remianing volume needed, probably around 2.25 to 2.5 gallons each to reach 6.5 gallons (your milage will vary based on MLT deadspace and grain absorption). You can read more about batch sparge techniques at http://www.suebob.com/brew/allgrain.htm. that is a very helpful guide for the first time All Grainer.

Other than that, keep your temps steady by preheating and make sure that grain has a nice crush and you should be fine.

stever · 07-25-2008, 02:13 PM

Check out some of the videos on youtube also.

Joe has a good one.

[youtube]Zk6d1dy9jOc[/youtube]

[youtube]-1Kjo8aE8Q8[/youtube]

nyer · 07-25-2008, 02:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stever

do you have any software? Got get a copy of beersmith, you can use it as a trial and it will help you calculate all these things you need. There are also some online calcs that will help you figure out how much water, the temps etc.

A couple of things you will want to do, preheat your MLT. If you need to hit 153 and the software says use 163.5 degree water, add 175.00 water to your MLT and let it sit for a bit to preheat the cooler. This will keep your heat loss to a minimum.

From throwing the numbers in beer smith it tells me

first strike is 3.5 gallons at 164.5 lets rest for 90 minutes at 153
I would then take your first runnings after 90 minutes and then sparge with 2 equals volumes to get your remianing volume needed, probably around 2.25 to 2.5 gallons each to reach 6.5 gallons (your milage will vary based on MLT deadspace and grain absorption). You can read more about batch sparge techniques at http://www.suebob.com/brew/allgrain.htm. that is a very helpful guide for the first time All Grainer.

Other than that, keep your temps steady by preheating and make sure that grain has a nice crush and you should be fine.

I don't have any software yet and to be honest when I look at the free ones they confuse me. I really want to just go by a written set of directions that someone who knows what they are doing wrote. I want to keep things as simple as possible for my first few AG batches. What temp. do you think the sparge water should be?

**Edcculus** · 07-25-2008, 02:37 PM

Here is a step-by-step walkthrough

1. If possible, make a yeast starter 2 days before brewing
2. If not possible, take yeast out of fridge to warm when you start brewing. Smack the pack.
3. Preheat Mash Tun with hot water
4. Heat 3.5 gallons of water to 168F
5. Dough in with wheat and pilsner and let settle to 153F
6. Mash for 90 min. Come and check temp and stir every 15 min or so.
7. Start heating 5 gallons of mash water to 175F
8. Pre soak the rice hulls in water
9. At the end of 90 minutes, drain the rice hulls and mix them with the grain.
10. Take first runnings and re-circulate a few times
11. Drain mash tun
12. Batch sparge round 1 with 2 gallons or however much will fit in tun
13. Do the same thing again. You should collect a total of around 6 to 6.5 gallons of wort between first runnings and both rounds of batch sparging.
14. Add all wort to boil pot and begin to boil
15. Add in hops at correct times during the boil
16. After the boil (60 min) cool wort as fast as possible
17. Sanitize racking cane, carboy, airlock
18. When cool, rack wort to carboy.
19. Aerate well
20. Pitch yeast and put on airlock.

nyer · 07-25-2008, 02:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Edcculus

Here is a step-by-step walkthrough

1. If possible, make a yeast starter 2 days before brewing
2. If not possible, take yeast out of fridge to warm when you start brewing. Smack the pack.
3. Preheat Mash Tun with hot water
4. Heat 3.5 gallons of water to 168F
5. Dough in with wheat and pilsner and let settle to 153F
6. Mash for 90 min. Come and check temp and stir every 15 min or so.
7. Start heating 5 gallons of mash water to 175F
8. Pre soak the rice hulls in water
9. At the end of 90 minutes, drain the rice hulls and mix them with the grain.
10. Take first runnings and re-circulate a few times
11. Drain mash tun
12. Batch sparge round 1 with 2 gallons or however much will fit in tun
13. Do the same thing again. You should collect a total of around 6 to 6.5 gallons of wort between first runnings and both rounds of batch sparging.
14. Add all wort to boil pot and begin to boil
15. Add in hops at correct times during the boil
16. After the boil (60 min) cool wort as fast as possible
17. Sanitize racking cane, carboy, airlock
18. When cool, rack wort to carboy.
19. Aerate well
20. Pitch yeast and put on airlock.

Thats exactly what I'm looking for, thank you so much. I am doing one of these Sunday morning, I can't wait.

**Edcculus** · 07-25-2008, 02:50 PM

I'm brewing my Amarillo Smash on Sunday too. If its possible, make your yeast starter when you get home from work today. I usually brew on Sundays, so that is the first thing I do when I get home.

nyer · 07-25-2008, 02:56 PM

I'm praying I get my yeast in the mail today, if it doesn't show I may drive an hour to a homebrew store and see if they have it. If I don't find it the starter for the wheat starts tonight. Thanks again.