2.5 months since my last brew

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Soulive

Soulive

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I'm brewing the Witbier recipe below (thanks to Biermuncher) and I'm all set to go (I even have Triscuits on hand). Its been waaay too long since I've been able to brew. This is for my wedding rehearsal dinner, so several friends and family will taste it. I'm not sure where I want to mash it though. I'm thinking 152F, what do you guys think? Cheers...

4.50 lb Wheat Malt, Ger (2.0 SRM) Grain 52.94 %
3.00 lb Pale Ale (Crisp) (4.0 SRM) Grain 35.29 %
1.00 lb Oats, Flaked (1.0 SRM) Grain 11.76 %
1.00 oz Goldings, East Kent [5.00 %] (60 min) 17.9 IBU
0.50 oz Coriander Seed (Boil 10.0 min)
0.50 oz Orange Peel, Bitter (Boil 10.0 min)
1.00 items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 min)
1 Pkgs Belgian Wit Ale (White Labs #WLP400)
 
YooperBrew said:
I'd think 152 is a good temp for that beer.

At least you have the triscuits- that's important when you make this.
Click to expand...

I just have to restrain myself from throwing some Triscuits into the mash...

Professor Frink said:
I'm liking it. I'd probably mash in the 152-154 range.

And our catcher is fatter than your catcher.
Click to expand...

Schneider is listed as 196lbs, Posada is listed as 215lbs. We win!
 
It's been too long for me, too. I think the last time I brewed was right after new years - ugh! I'll brew here within a week or two, though.

I love Belgian Wits! I'm sure the recipe you've got will be fine, but as a comparison, the Blue Moon clone I've brewed a few times has the following grain bill. It's a little different, using more flaked wheat than malted wheat. Seems I remember that being more traditional for Wits, where hefe's use mostly malted wheat. I could be way off here, though.

5.00 lb Pilsner (2 Row) Bel (2.0 SRM) Grain 50.0 %
3.00 lb Wheat, Flaked (1.6 SRM) Grain 30.0 %
1.00 lb Oats, Flaked (1.0 SRM) Grain 10.0 %
1.00 lb White Wheat Malt (2.4 SRM) Grain 10.0 %

I'd consider a step at 122º if you can, otherwise I think 152º should be good.
 
Looks like a great brew for a wedding event. Congrats - both on your upcoming wedding and getting back in the brewing game!
 
Soulive said:
Thanks TL, any tweaking you'd recommend?
Click to expand...

Not really. That looks like a tasty beer. Don't be surprised if you hear of someone crashing your rehearsal dinner. Be even less surprised if you hear that said crasher has a pronounced Texas twang to his speech.

I am on a bit of a protein rest kick right now, so I would probably do one around 122-25 in the hopes I would get more of that meringue sort of head and lacing, but that's the only tweak I can think of.


TL
 
IIWY, I'd try the ol' dual-mash technique. The first mash is an adjunct mash with the white wheat, pils malt and flaked oats. You mash this for 15 mins then decoct it. Then you add this to the malt mash (which has pils and sauer malt) which should bring it up to the correct sacc temps as long as you do your calcs.

If you don't wanna go this route, then go with the single infusion, but either way, either use some sauer malt or add about .25-.5oz of 88% lactic acid at bottling/kegging time. I'm telling you, that little extra bit of sour twang really makes this beer awesome. Step back on the coriander to about .25oz, and think about adding some chamomile. Good luck!

Oh, yeah...and if your system has a propensity for stuck sparges, use rice hulls whatever you do.
 
Evan! said:
IIWY, I'd try the ol' dual-mash technique. The first mash is an adjunct mash with the white wheat, pils malt and flaked oats. You mash this for 15 mins then decoct it. Then you add this to the malt mash (which has pils and sauer malt) which should bring it up to the correct sacc temps as long as you do your calcs.

If you don't wanna go this route, then go with the single infusion, but either way, either use some sauer malt or add about .25-.5oz of 88% lactic acid at bottling/kegging time. I'm telling you, that little extra bit of sour twang really makes this beer awesome. Step back on the coriander to about .25oz, and think about adding some chamomile. Good luck!

Oh, yeah...and if your system has a propensity for stuck sparges, use rice hulls whatever you do.
Click to expand...

The ingredients aren't negotiable at this point. The mashing and the decocting are possible though. Don't worry I've got the rice hulls, I just don't include them in the grain bill...
 
Wait, now I'm thinking the Whirlfloc will negate the oats addition. I want those proteins for mouthfeel, but will they drop out from the Whirlfloc? I just use the Whirlfloc every time for good cold-break, but I don't wanna lose mouthfeel...
 
I guess I'm a bit rusty. I didn't hit my 152F target and ended up at 145F. Anybody have an idea on how I can account for the higher fermentability? I don't have any maltodextrin on hand...
 
There's not a lot you can do right now, short of some good timing and serious yeast crashing. You can always add maltodextrin when you keg, though, if you can get some by then. Or, you can just go with what you have and enjoy it. It ought to be good, even if it's a little on the thin side.


TL
 
I'd just let it be. It might be a bit thin, but for a summer-type beer that's not all that bad. Plus with the oats in there, it might not end up as thin as expected.

We don't need LoDuca, we've got Ramon "Pass me a cheeseburger" Castro
 
You can also carbonate it a bit on the high side and fluff it up, if you want. That works fairly nicely with wits, and you can see how many righteous belches you get during the toasts.


TL
 

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