3 hefe's in one day!

This year for summer I'm going to have some hefeweizen on tap for sure. I'm going to do my first 15 gallon batch! I am then going to split it into 3 carboys then add different stuff to each. One I'm going to leave alone so I can start enjoying it right away. The next I'm going to add 10 lbs of blueberries to the 2nd. And the thrid I'm going to add honey to. That one will be drank last. Last year I made a blueberry hefe and it was pretty good. Only used 5lbs of blueberries. With 5lbs I couldn't taste blueberry very much so this year I'm doubling the amount!!! Last summer I made what I called "Happy Birthday Hefe!" using a few lbs of honey (that I diddn't boil, only brought up to 150*F and let cool ALL while covered) and it was GREAT! Everybody LOVED it! I have also fallen in love with a german yeast by WYeast, 3068 Weihenstephan Weizen. Going to make a starter and just dump it into all 3 carboys..... man I can't wait. Getting around to the grain bill and such, how does this sound?

13lbs wheat malt
12lbs 2-row us pale
1lb melanoidin
1/2lb carafoam
1/2 lb crystal 20

1oz chinook 60min
1oz amarillo 5min
1oz cascade 5min
.5oz chinoook 5min
.5oz sorachi ace 5min

@16 gallons with 80% efficency this beer should have an OG of 1.050 be 4.3 lovibond and have ~20 ibu's. I know german weizens don't have any hop flavor but I like the yeast characteristics of the german yeasts. Why not have some bananna and clove flavors in with the american hops! How does this recepie sound?


:EDIT: I should probly note that I will be treating this as a 10 gallon batch until the boil is over, then I'm going to dump in 5 gallons of water as I'm chilling to bring the volume up to 15 gallons. :EDIT:

where do you order your yeast from? Last hefe i made with WL300 was not up to snuff. Given the flavor and bitterness of hefe, do you really think that the hop variations are needed, my novice opinion would be to go with no more than 2 varieties of hops.
But then again, my last hefe i made 1/2 the batch with cherry extract and could not finish a single bottle!!!

Personally, I would not use a strongly flavored hop like chinook, it might fight the esters and phenols.

If you want to go with American hops why not try Liberty or Mt. Hood. The cascade and amarillo might be a little to fruity and citrusy, and not sure I would do any late aroma additions.

I as well plan to brew some nice Bavarian wheat beers during the coming of the summer. I plan on making a Weissbier, Hefeweizen, and a Dunkelweizen (one after another). I plan on reusing the yeast cake by just pitching in the wort of the next batch into the fermenter after I bottle the previous batch. The yeast I plan on using is the 3068 Weihenstephan Weizen. I hope it comes out well and I can't wait for the nice summer brew!

I'd skip all those late addition hops completely. The beer you're talking about doesn't require hop flavor, and those hops would be far more welcome in future pale ales, etc.

I'm kinda confused. Don't people put lemons and sometimes oranges in their hefeweizens in the bars? Figured I'd negate that step by lightly hopping the beer up. It's going to be 15 gallons, that's only 1oz of finishing hops per 5 gallon batch. I've had german weizens and I have to admit that besides the wonderful maltiness and killer funky tastes from the yeast they've fallen short of what I imagined them to taste like. So I figured a touch of chinook, a brutal hop, some sorachi ace(that has been reported to have a lemony taste when used very lightly) as well as the citruis bomb of amarillo and some of the most american hop I can think of, cascade, complete with it's citruisy aroma. Are the use of hops such as this in such a small amount a bad balance for a good american hefeweizen brewed with this yeast? And how about that grain bill? Is it missing something or is it too complex?

bluedragoon85 said:

I as well plan to brew some nice Bavarian wheat beers during the coming of the summer. I plan on making a Weissbier, Hefeweizen, and a Dunkelweizen (one after another). I plan on reusing the yeast cake by just pitching in the wort of the next batch into the fermenter after I bottle the previous batch. The yeast I plan on using is the 3068 Weihenstephan Weizen. I hope it comes out well and I can't wait for the nice summer brew!

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Sounds AWESOME! From what I understand about this yeast(maybe all yeasts that produce clove flavors)is that the clove flavor is produced when the yeast is reproducing not when it is fermenting. A large pitch might negate alot of the cloviness where a small pitch you will have higher. Is it this yeast I'm thinking of or is it all that produce certain flavors? Can anyone else chime in on this subject?

Grimsawyer said:

I'm kinda confused. Don't people put lemons and sometimes oranges in their hefeweizens in the bars? Figured I'd negate that step by lightly hopping the beer up. It's going to be 15 gallons, that's only 1oz of finishing hops per 5 gallon batch. I've had german weizens and I have to admit that besides the wonderful maltiness and killer funky tastes from the yeast they've fallen short of what I imagined them to taste like. So I figured a touch of chinook, a brutal hop, some sorachi ace(that has been reported to have a lemony taste when used very lightly) as well as the citruis bomb of amarillo and some of the most american hop I can think of, cascade, complete with it's citruisy aroma. Are the use of hops such as this in such a small amount a bad balance for a good american hefeweizen brewed with this yeast? And how about that grain bill? Is it missing something or is it too complex?

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I think oranges in Witbiers (most have orange peel in the recipe anyways) and maybe in American wheats might be OK, but never understood why someone would put fruit in a Hefe. Hefeweizens are supposed to have very little in the way of hop flavor or bitterness, and are typically made with low AAU noble hops. The yeast is what provides the clove and banana flavors and the hops will likely overpower those flavors. Why spend 7 bucks on the 3068 if you want to overpower it with hops, just make an American wheat, use Nottingham or Safeale 04 and add whatever hops you want.

I agree. Hefe's are pretty basic - some 2-row and wheat malt and rice hulls if you need them for your mash. I'd also recommend staying with 1 or 2 hop types.

I've never really enjoyed fruit with hefes. It just doesn't mix well with the funkiness in my opinion, especially if you use WL3068. Now, if you go Belgian White or American Wheat, the fruit may be a bit more harmonious, especially if you use a nice clean, crisp american yeast.

But ultimately, it's your beer. So do what you want!

said forget the 15 gallon batch, i'm only doing a 10 and I'm dropping all the finishing hops. Last hop addition will be 15 min. 1oz goldings.

10lbs wheat
8lbs 2row
1lb carafoam
1lb melanoidin
.5 lb crystal 40

2oz willamette 60min
1oz mt hood 60 min
1oz goldings 15 min

3068 Weihenstephan Weizen by WYeast

also appropirate amounts of yeast energizer and yeast nutrient.

mashin at 150, saved back 3/4 lb of grain for right as I start to sparge. I can toss it in, the starches won't be converted and it'll be nice and cloudy! Won't have to worry about irish moss on this brew!

i think i've made something like 7 weizens in the last couple of months. they're coming out better and better! i'm going to keep at it all summer!