Briess Wheat DME v LME

chode720 · 03-21-2009, 06:15 PM

I just got done brewing a Hefeweizen and the color came out darker than I wanted. I use a late malt extract addition and added 75% for the last 15 minutes. I was hoping for a nice yellow color, but it came out more as a deep gold/orange color.

When I was checking the Briess website, they say their wheat extract is a 2-6 Lovibond and this is the number I used for my recipe. When I looked closer, it says the Wheat LME is a 2-6 and the DME is 6-10.

It doesnt make sense to me that the DME would be that much darker than the LME. Has anyone else seen/experienced this before and know if these numbers are right or not?

Cheers

Tenchiro · 03-21-2009, 06:26 PM

Extract Hefe's are always going to have at least a slight orange tint to them. I have brewed them with both LME & DME and unless you can do a full volume boil you are always going to see it a bit. Even then from what I have read the straw color most people shoot for is very hard to attain with extract.

ArcaneXor · 03-21-2009, 06:55 PM

I have not brewed a pure extract batch in quite a while, but you may be adding too much heat to your kettle. To minimize darkening, turn down the heat until the boil is just barely sustained. A gentle, rolling boil is all that's needed to isomerize alpha acids and drive off undesirable compounds like chlorine and DMS.

chode720 · 03-21-2009, 07:14 PM

I am planning on switching to a full wort boil. I figured the darker color came from this, not a difference in extract color. However, because the numbers are listed different on the Briess website, I was wondering if anyone knew if there is a difference in color between the Briess Wheat DME and LME or it is a typo.

Briess Malt & Ingredients Co.: Malt Extracts LME and DME (this says 2-6)
http://www.brewingwithbriess.com/Assets/PDFs/Briess_PIS_CBW_Bavarian_Wheat_DME.pdf (this says 6-10)