Hefeweizen Recipe
 

I'm putting together a hefeweizen recipe, thought I'd throw it up here to see if anyone had any suggestions. I'm aiming for a golden colored bavarian-style hefe with a nice, thick white head. I like a good amount of banana, so I'll probably ferment around 68 F.

5.25 gallon batch, 3 gallon boil

Base Malts
3 lb Wheat DME (65% wheat, 35% barley)
3 lb Wheat DME (Late addition - last 15 minutes)

Specialty Grains - Steep around 155 for 30 minutes, rinse with water at 170
1 lb Pale Wheat
1 lb Flaked Wheat
0.5 lb Munich Malt
0.5 lb Vienna Malt

Hops
0.75 oz Whole Leaf Hallertau, AA 4.1% at 60 minutes
0.25 oz Whole Leaf Tettnanger, AA 6.3% at 15 minutes

?Irish Moss - 1 tsp at 15 min?

Yeast - 2 packs Wyeast 3068 Weihenstephan Wheat

OG = 1.056, FG = 1.014, ABV = 5.55%
IBU = 11.96, SRM = 4.76


How does this recipe look? Appreciate any comments...

Why two packs of wyeast? I used one pack and it blew the top off my fermenting bucket.

I'm not going to be making a starter so I figured it's best to go with 2 packs. Mr. Malty suggests 205 billion cells for 1.056 OG, and each pack has 100 billion - so 2 packs should do it. I'll be using a blow-off tube on a 6 gallon carboy and hopefully won't have any issues.

what is the benefit of the late addition of the 3lb of DME at 15 minutes?

I want to keep the color light. I've heard that adding extract later in the boil can help keep the color lighter, although I'm not sure if this applies only to liquid malt extract. But in any case, splitting the addition of the DME increases the hops utilization and keeps the ibu's around 12, instead of 8, which is what it would be if I boiled all 6 lbs for the entire 60 minutes.

Why the Irish moss? No real need to clarify a hefe (IMO)

Looks good other than the Irish moss. Cut that out unless you're after a kristal hefe

3068 is a BEAST!! A 6.5 gallon carboy has BARELY enough headspace for a 5 gallon batch using that yeast at 68F. May I suggest a blow off tube, or even better a Burton Union collection vessel.

Recipe looks tasty. I'd drop the Moss, too. No need for it.

Sounds good.

Where are you going to get the DME in that ratio?

I'd like to also chime in with regards to 3068....I barely had enough head room in my bucket. Lid almost blew off. Luckily I caught it in time and was able to replace the air lock.

I'm also curious about the 15 min malt addition. If you are seeking a lighter color, I don't think that's necessary with DME. I could be wrong. Either way, please share your results!