100% wheat beer

Every once in awhile I get an itch to try something crazy so I think my next experiment will be a 100% wheat beer. I've only done some light searching at this point but there's not a lot of information out there from guys who have done this. There's this HBT post which also has a link to a good Basic Brewing video.

Most of the posts have focused on BIAB. I definitely see the merit in doing it this way, but I kinda want to try it with my existing setup (keggle w/ false bottom, fly sparging).

My typical mash in procedure is to continuously recirculate as I slowly pour the grain in. I like doing this because it catches every little grain particle that falls through the false bottom. I never have stuck mashes, and that's including a 50% oat beer I did without any rice hulls.

But I think for this 100% wheat I will use rice hulls. Before I begin adding grain, I'll get the pump recirculating, and dump a couple big handfuls of rice hulls in so I can get a good filter right on top of the false bottom. I'll also mix in some hulls with the grist before mashing in.

I'm also planning on doughing in at 1.25qts at 125* for a protein rest. I'll probably rest here for 20min or so, after which I'll add an infusion of boiling water to get to about 155*. After 45min of saccharification I'll pull a medium-thickness decoction with the intention of getting to mash-out. Cross my fingers, and then start sparging and running off!

I'm going to aim for a 1.060 beer but plan for like 60% efficiency so if it's higher or lower I won't be beating myself. Probably make it in the vein of an APA and pitch with 1968 (the house yeast).

Brew day is scheduled for Mar 2nd or 3rd so look for updates then! Feedback welcome.

I made one using home malted wheat. I used rice hulls and I would recommend them as cheap insurance but the runoff wasn't particularly scary in any way. Here's the link to the post, the beer is at the bottom of the first post.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f36/easy-wheat-malting-picture-guide-322877/

I've done it before with a BIAB. Just use a malted wheat (duh). I used Breiss white wheat. One other thing I want to mention is to use a yeast with some character and/or some hops for flavor. It has the potential to be pretty bland, but it also can be quite refreshing and really tasty if done right.

Mike37 said:

I've done it before with a BIAB. Just use a malted wheat (duh). I used Breiss white wheat. One other thing I want to mention is to use a yeast with some character and/or some hops for flavor. It has the potential to be pretty bland, but it also can be quite refreshing and really tasty if done right.

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Good to know. I'm going to use the London ESB strain - I usually pitch low around 62 and slowly rise to 68 but maybe I'll start it at 68. It will have a good dose of Centennial and Citra finishing hops.

What kind of malt flavors do you get? Sometimes I feel like I get a crisp lemony thing when I use some wheat but I can imagine how 100% really skews it in one direction. I should mention that I plan on using malted red wheat because I want the richer, breadier flavors of red wheat. White is much milder and nuttier.

Red wheat would be really nice! With white, I do get a lemony crispness with sort of a wheaty cracker or flatbread background. Very light, almost delicate flavors.

michael dawson, formerly of northern brewer and brewingTV, brewed a Grätzer/Grodziskie, a low ABV, highly hopped traditional Polish beer made from all smoked wheat malt and blogged about it.

I'm dying to try brewing one with some Polish hops

NB also sells smoked wheat malt

One thing that comes to mind is conversion. Does wheat have the enzymes necessary to convert itself? I always thought it needed some help. Maybe I'm wrong?

As long as its malted wheat it'll self convert. I think I remember reading that it has more conversion power than 2 row, but I could very easily be wrong.

Sounds awesome - I just brewed my Bacon Brown recipe recently. It's the Moose Drool recipe increased to 1.065 OG and using 30% smoked malt. One of the few beers I brew exactly the same recipe every time I make it.

Mike37 said:

As long as its malted wheat it'll self convert. I think I remember reading that it has more conversion power than 2 row, but I could very easily be wrong.

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I'm not worried about conversion - wheat has plenty diastatic power.

kanzimonson said:

I'm not worried about conversion - wheat has plenty diastatic power.

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Good to know, I've been thinking wrong this whole time! Good luck with your brew!

I did 2 all wheat beers and had better success lautering with a 50min protein rest. I used spelt hulls. Extraction was lower than usuall at both brews. I used 35/65 dark/light wheat malt and just one hop addition at flame out Nelson Sauvin 1oz/5gal. and WY 3068.
It turned out tropical fruity, smooth and very delicious.

I've heard a lot of recommendations (for normal beers) not to take a protein rest too long because it can overly breakdown the proteins and leave you with worse head retention. But obviously there's a lot more protein in this grist to be broken down. So maybe I'll go a little longer than planned.

Did you mash out on either brew?

wickman6 said:

Good to know, I've been thinking wrong this whole time! Good luck with your brew!

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Maybe you'd been thinking of flaked wheat, such as used in a witbier? Flaked wheat is unmalted and has no diastatic power.

Update, I brewed this today and it was a great brew session. I pretty much followed the procedure I wrote in my original post. Efficiency was right on at 60% so I'm glad I planned for it to be low. Certainly the entire pound of rice hulls I used is partly to blame for decreased efficiency.

Some variations: I mashed in for a 128* protein rest at 1qt/# and then 25 minutes later I added more boiling water to raise to saccharification. Unfortunately I didn't prep enough water and the mash only got up to 146. So I actually did my first decoction here. I pulled a pretty thick decoction, raised it to 158* for 15 minutes, then boiled for 15 minutes, and added back to the mash to get to 154*. I used iodine to check for conversion at this point and it was actually done, so I began the final step immediately. To mash out I pulled a thin decoction and boiled for 15 minutes before adding back.

I had zero problems with flow, it was kinda impressive. I didn't really even notice that it was different than an all-barley beer. I loved doing the decoction, it was only the third time I've done one. In the course of boiling the grains, the aromas were really interesting to note. It started like a tangy hay kind of smell, but then it turned into this sweet and bready aroma. Hopefully some of that will come through in the end!

60min boil with 14g of Columbus for bittering (targeting about 40 IBUs), and then I tried the "hop standing" method I just read in the newest BYO magazine. At flameout I had my whirlpool running and I added 1oz of Citra and Centennial each. I ran the whirlpool for 30 minutes, in which time it got down to about 180*. I then added another oz of each and whirlpooled for another 15 before chilling.

Pitched at 62* with 1968, OG 1.061 so should be ready in a week!

Please post how does it taste 100% wheat beer. I'm really curious to attempt something similar

Alrighty, here's the final update. This has been on tap for a couple weeks now and I love it.



FG = 1.014 which is pretty typical for this yeast strain. The color appears to be a little darker in this pic than it actually is. I'd say its SRM is in the 7-10 range. I'm surprised by this, although I guess the color can be attributed to the red wheat and the decoctions.

It definitely has some chill haze - big surprise there. At this point I think it's about as clear as it'll get naturally. Pours a nice head and leaves some decent foam lace as you drink. The head has average retention, and leaves these thick proteinous floaters on top of the beer as it dissolves!

Aroma is intensely fruity and citrusy - lots of lemon, oranges, and cranberries. Imagine the aroma of a tequila sunrise without the tequila. There's also a bit of vanilla in there and a background of some fermenting bread dough.

Body is medium to heavy and it starts with a very filling and full mouthfeel. This fades to a light sweetness along with lemons and orange juice. Then the hop bitterness kicks in and I get a quick, spicy, resiny burst. The bitterness lingers nicely so it almost seems like it finishes dry. You certainly want another sip. I'd almost compare the finish to something like a double IPA that definitely has some sweetness, but has just enough bitterness to tone it back. Obviously this beer is not that intense, but I'm trying to equate the similarities in balance.

Despite this seeming like a pretty simple recipe, there are a lot of little things to comment on. First let's talk about the wheat. The main things I think the wheat brings to this beer are extra body and that big lemony flavor. I feel like in other beers you can get some of that lemon flavor with only 10% wheat - this really took it to the max. When I first let my wife taste it, she asked if I used real lemons in the beer! It's not that strong, but it is definitely a defining characteristic. But to be honest, you could probably give this beer to someone and they might guess it's a typical 50/50 wheat/barley American beer. Delicious, but surprising how "normal" it still tastes.

Now onto yeast. I use the London ESB strain in a lot of beers and I love it. I think it worked well enough here but it's worth commenting on a few things that I know it contributed to. First, some of the sweetness and also body are going to partly be due to this yeast's lower attenuation levels and its natural flavor profile. I've also found that it decreases bitterness compared to a Cal ale yeast. It would be difficult to enter my beer in a competition, but if fermented with Cal ale I think it could easily be a straight IPA - it would have just a bit more dryness upfront, and the flavor profile would be a little more subdued to let the hops out even more.

Lastly, I'm really glad I did this whirlpool hop experiment. The hop flavor and aroma is unreal in this beer. You would think that it at least has a small amount of dry hops, and a huge amount of finishing. I'm especially impressed in the hop flavor - it really permeates the whole thing. Even more interesting is that I pick out more and more flavors the more glasses I drink (but you might be able to blame that on the drankin').

So I don't know if I'll be recreating this experiment just because the low efficiency is kinda wasteful, but give it a try and see what you think!