Belgian Wheatwine Critique Needed

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smellysell

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What do you guys think? Anything glaring that I need to change?

Recipe Specifications

Batch Size: 5.50 gal
Boil Size: 7.74 gal
Estimated OG: 1.131 SG
Estimated Color: 31.9 SRM
Estimated IBU: 32.4 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70.00 %
Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Ingredients:
Code:
Amount        Item                                      Type         % or IBU      
1.00 lb       Rice Hulls (0.0 SRM)                      Adjunct      3.33 %        
10.00 lb      Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM)            Grain        33.33 %       
7.00 lb       Wheat, Torrified (1.7 SRM)                Grain        23.33 %       
4.00 lb       Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM)              Grain        13.33 %       
4.00 lb       Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM)                     Grain        13.33 %       
3.00 lb       Honey Malt (25.0 SRM)                     Grain        10.00 %       
1.00 lb       HR Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM)             Grain        3.33 %        
1.00 oz       Magnum [14.00 %]  (90 min) (First Wort HopHops         32.4 IBU      
1 Pkgs        Trappist Ale (White Labs #WLP500)         Yeast-Ale
 
I would reduce the carapils and honey malt (no more than a pound each). Belgian beers are known for their good attenuation, so I would up the basemalt, and maybe add in some (1-2 lbs) sugar (either cane, or something with a bit more flavor if you want it). I might also reduce the chocolate malt, there are not many Belgian beers that are that roasty.

Other than that it looks good to me, good luck.
 
I probably should have been more specific that I'm not really looking for a traditional Belgian style beer, more of a wheatwine with some Belgian yeast character.
 
I probably should have been more specific that I'm not really looking for a traditional Belgian style beer, more of a wheatwine with some Belgian yeast character.

I think no matter what you are trying to make that much carapils and honey malt in a 1.130 beer will be sickly sweet.
 
+1 to knocking down the carapils and honey malt. You're already looking at the possibility of attenuation issues, and 4lbs of carapils will do you no favors in that department. Between that and 7lbs of torrified wheat you're going to have more body than The honey malt is more of a taste preference. If you like the flavor, go for it. If you haven't used it before, be aware that 3lbs of honey malt will be very noticeable.
 
Eliminate the carapils and honey malt completely for the reasons stated above. Also, it is exceedingly difficult to achieve such a big beer using all grain. Expect the need to over-sparge, then boil off excess volume. If you undershoot the OG, have a gameplan to bump it up with candi sugar or other fermentables.

This article may be of some help:

Brew Your Own: The How-To Homebrew Beer Magazine - Techniques - 21% Alcohol All-Grain Beer
 
Eliminate the carapils and honey malt completely for the reasons stated above. Also, it is exceedingly difficult to achieve such a big beer using all grain. Expect the need to over-sparge, then boil off excess volume. If you undershoot the OG, have a gameplan to bump it up with candi sugar or other fermentables.

This article may be of some help:

Brew Your Own: The How-To Homebrew Beer Magazine - Techniques - 21% Alcohol All-Grain Beer

Ok, sounds like the consensus is to cut down the carapils and honey significantly, but why do you say get rid of them completely? I plan on doing a big sparge and boiling off a lot.
 
Carapils has two purposes: increasing head retention, and increasing body/mouthfeel. With all that wheat, you'll have no problem with head retention. In a beer that big, one of the challenges is to keep the sweetness to a minimum and the mouthfeel less than syrupy. Again, no need for carapils.

Honey malt also increases the sweetness, which, again, you want to avoid. IMHO, there is no place for it in a barleywine-type brew.
 
Ok, how does this look? I left a little of the honey in there because I want a little of the honey flavor, but what you guys are saying about the sweetness makes sense. Think even just a pound of it is too much? I don't want anything that's sickly sweet, but I'm hoping for a nice sweetness to this.

Ingredients:
Code:
Amount        Item                                      Type         % or IBU      
1.00 lb       Rice Hulls (0.0 SRM)                      Adjunct      3.33 %        
12.00 lb      Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM)            Grain        40.00 %       
7.00 lb       Wheat, Torrified (1.7 SRM)                Grain        23.33 %       
5.00 lb       Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM)                     Grain        16.67 %       
1.00 lb       Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM)     Grain        3.33 %        
1.00 lb       HR Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM)             Grain        3.33 %        
1.00 lb       Honey Malt (25.0 SRM)                     Grain        3.33 %        
1.00 oz       Magnum [14.00 %]  (90 min) (First Wort HopHops         31.3 IBU      
2.00 lb       Candi Sugar, Dark (275.0 SRM)             Sugar        6.67 %        
1 Pkgs        Trappist Ale (White Labs #WLP500)         Yeast-Ale
 
Ok, how does this look? I left a little of the honey in there because I want a little of the honey flavor, but what you guys are saying about the sweetness makes sense. Think even just a pound of it is too much? I don't want anything that's sickly sweet, but I'm hoping for a nice sweetness to this.

Ingredients:
Code:
Amount        Item                                      Type         % or IBU      
1.00 lb       Rice Hulls (0.0 SRM)                      Adjunct      3.33 %        
12.00 lb      Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM)            Grain        40.00 %       
7.00 lb       Wheat, Torrified (1.7 SRM)                Grain        23.33 %       
5.00 lb       Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM)                     Grain        16.67 %       
1.00 lb       Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM)     Grain        3.33 %        
1.00 lb       HR Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM)             Grain        3.33 %        
1.00 lb       Honey Malt (25.0 SRM)                     Grain        3.33 %        
1.00 oz       Magnum [14.00 %]  (90 min) (First Wort HopHops         31.3 IBU      
2.00 lb       Candi Sugar, Dark (275.0 SRM)             Sugar        6.67 %        
1 Pkgs        Trappist Ale (White Labs #WLP500)         Yeast-Ale

Yuri? Sock? Bueller? Anyone?
 
Lose the C60 (it's basically dark carapils). If you're dead set on honey malt, use no more than a pound. The recipe is starting to look a little more reasonable.
 
Lose the C60 (it's basically dark carapils). If you're dead set on honey malt, use no more than a pound. The recipe is starting to look a little more reasonable.

Fair enough, final recipe unless I hear more ways I'm showing my cluelessness.

Thanks for the help guys!

Ingredients:
Code:
Amount        Item                                      Type         % or IBU      
1.00 lb       Rice Hulls (0.0 SRM)                      Adjunct      3.33 %        
14.00 lb      Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM)            Grain        46.67 %       
10.00 lb      Wheat, Torrified (1.7 SRM)                Grain        33.33 %       
1.00 lb       HR Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM)             Grain        3.33 %        
1.00 lb       Honey Malt (25.0 SRM)                     Grain        3.33 %        
2.00 oz       Magnum [14.00 %]  (60 min)                Hops         52.2 IBU      
3.00 lb       Candi Sugar, Amber (75.0 SRM)             Sugar        10.00 %       
1 Pkgs        Trappist Ale (White Labs #WLP500)         Yeast-Ale

Probably should have added this from the start, but the whole reason I'm doing this is I got a bunch of raw wheat that I want to experiment with.
 
A pound of chocolate in a wheatwine? Might be WAY too much. Belgians don't use chocolate (I think). You will get plenty of color from the dark sugar. If you must, keep it to a 1/4# and use Carafa (dehusked). BTW what is your SG and IBU? Might need some more hops. Looks like you might be out of balance. Check my Wheatwine in my dropdown. I think if you just had Pale, wheat honey malt and sugar it will make a fine beer. Might want to up the wheat to 50% also...
 
Ok, this is the recipe I decided to go with. It's mashing as I type.

Ingredients:
Code:
Amount        Item                                      Type         % or IBU      
1.00 lb       Rice Hulls (0.0 SRM)                      Adjunct      3.33 %        
14.00 lb      Wheat, Torrified (1.7 SRM)                Grain        46.67 %       
10.00 lb      Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM)            Grain        33.33 %       
1.00 lb       Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM)     Grain        3.33 %        
1.00 lb       Oats, Flaked (1.0 SRM)                    Grain        3.33 %        
2.00 oz       Magnum [14.00 %]  (60 min)                Hops         54.3 IBU      
1.50 oz       Fuggles [4.50 %]  (30 min)                Hops         10.1 IBU      
2.00 lb       Candi Sugar, Amber (75.0 SRM)             Sugar        6.67 %        
1.00 lb       Honey (1.0 SRM)                           Sugar        3.33 %        
1 Pkgs        Trappist Ale (White Labs #WLP500)         Yeast-Ale
 

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