Extract to AG help for Hefeweizen

Howdy,

I want to make an AG hefeweizen. The extract recipe I'm working from calls for 6.6 lbs light wheat LME (55% wheat 45% barley).
Anyone know of a good way to replicate this LME for my hefe?

Thanks in advance!

You kind of answered your own question. 55% wheat malt, if doing a German style pilsner malt would traditionally make up the rest. If making an American style you could still use pilsner or alternatively American 2-row would be appropriate for the other 45%. Set the total grainbill to match your efficiency and OG.

chickypad said:

You kind of answered your own question. 55% wheat malt, if doing a German style pilsner malt would traditionally make up the rest. If making an American style you could still use pilsner or alternatively American 2-row would be appropriate for the other 45%. Set the total grainbill to match your efficiency and OG.

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Yeah I am going for a German one. So the barley side will be pilsner malt. How about the wheat. White or red wheat or something else?

Thanks

White wheat is traditional. (though you can use red wheat, I prefer white). 50%-70% wheat malt. A quality pils for the rest. You may need a handful of rice hulls to avoid stuck mashes at the higher percentages of wheat. You may want to consider a step mash or decoction mash if you have the ability. I prefer 113-131-152.

giraffe said:

White wheat is traditional. (though you can use red wheat, I prefer white). 50%-70% wheat malt. A quality pils for the rest. You may need a handful of rice hulls to avoid stuck mashes at the higher percentages of wheat. You may want to consider a step mash or decoction mash if you have the ability. I prefer 113-131-152.

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When you do your step mash, how long do you hold at each temp??

113 (5) -- 131 (10-15) - 152 (60+ til conversion is complete)

I usually do 50% German malted wheat, 40% German Pilsner malt, and then 10% flaked wheat (not traditional, I know).

+1 on the step mash, better yet decoction mash. An acid rest really helps to bring out the clove character (if I recall correctly, the acid rest helps extract additional ferulic acid from the wheat, which is then metabolized by the yeast into 4 vinyl guaiacol aka the clove phenolic). I mash in at 110, hold it for 45 minutes, followed by a decoction up to reach 130, then as soon as I'm at temp I do another decoction to reach 154, hold that for 50 minutes, and then a third decoction up to 168 for mashout, and then sparge.

It works out to a several hour mash when it's all said and done, but I think the results are worth it. Of course, others disagree about the benefit. And others say to just simply add in some melanoidin malt to mimic the character of the decoction mash. Point is, YMMV, so do some experiments and figure out what works for you.

Then I reduce the pitching rate to keep the banana esters higher while simultaneously fermenting cold (62). Gives you strong balance of banana and clove, although slightly balanced to the clove side (which has been my experience with commercial examples of the style)

giraffe said:

113 (5) -- 131 (10-15) - 152 (60+ til conversion is complete)

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thanks for the info. i did one decoction mash out of necessity (I already had a water/grain ration that was too high, and needed higher temperature). Otherwise I only do single infusion mashes with double batch sparges.

so far, no stuck mashes. i've made wits and bevarians wheats before, but never a hefeweizen! first one.

Benedetto said:

thanks for the info. i did one decoction mash out of necessity (I already had a water/grain ration that was too high, and needed higher temperature). Otherwise I only do single infusion mashes with double batch sparges.

so far, no stuck mashes. i've made wits and bevarians wheats before, but never a hefeweizen! first one.

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A Bavarian Wheat is normally going to be a Hefeweizen (wheat beer with suspended yeast, ie cloudy and hazy). Although it could be a Kristallweizen (same things as a Hefeweizen minus the Hefe, ie clear and without yeast or haze, and usually filtered), or a Dunkelweizen (dark wheat beer), or a Weizenbock (stronger, maltier wheat beer), although if it's one of those it'd usually be listed as such. Point is, I see Bavarian Wheat, I immediately think Hefe.

Qhrumphf said:

A Bavarian Wheat is normally going to be a Hefeweizen (wheat beer with suspended yeast, ie cloudy and hazy). Although it could be a Kristallweizen (same things as a Hefeweizen minus the Hefe, ie clear and without yeast or haze, and usually filtered), or a Dunkelweizen (dark wheat beer), or a Weizenbock (stronger, maltier wheat beer), although if it's one of those it'd usually be listed as such. Point is, I see Bavarian Wheat, I immediately think Hefe.

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How do you say "Raspberry" in German? Nevermind I just googled it.

Himbeere. So, I made a Himbeereweizen!

Definitely filtered, but the pectin made it hazy anyway. I used WB-06 for yeast on that one.

Benedetto said:

How do you say "Raspberry" in German? Nevermind I just googled it.

Himbeere. So, I made a Himbeereweizen!

Definitely filtered, but the pectin made it hazy anyway. I used WB-06 for yeast on that one.

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"Rot oder grün?"

"Nein, ohne Schuss, bitte."

Sorry, I'd love to eventually make it Berlin and order myself a Berliner Weisse and laugh at that conversation with the server looking at me like I'm insane. Which, as I understand, is what happens if you order a Berliner Weisse without the rasberry or woodruff syrup.

Qhrumphf said:

"Rot oder grün?"

"Nein, ohne Schuss, bitte."

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hahaha! i never knew they made green raspberries. gunshot???

Benedetto said:

hahaha! i never knew they made green raspberries. gunshot???

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The green refers to woodruff syrup.

Qhrumphf said:

"Rot oder grün?"



"Nein, ohne Schuss, bitte."



Sorry, I'd love to eventually make it Berlin and order myself a Berliner Weisse and laugh at that conversation with the server looking at me like I'm insane. Which, as I understand, is what happens if you order a Berliner Weisse without the rasberry or woodruff syrup.

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I used to live in Berlin and I still look at it funny when someone posts in the drinky thread a picture of a Berliner Weiße without syrup. Unthinkable to me, but that's just personal bias. You can get the red syrup pretty much anywhere. The green syrup you can get from germandeli.com. I think they're from Texas.

Qhrumphf said:

The green refers to woodruff syrup.

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OH! Nice, I just did a google image search. Very cool. Never new that existed, except, of course, on St. Patricks day.

Benedetto said:

OH! Nice, I just did a google image search. Very cool. Never new that existed, except, of course, on St. Patricks day.

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Not quite the same. I haven't had woodruff to my knowledge, so someone else could confirm, but I think that it has an anise/licorice flavor. St. Pattys beers just use green food coloring.