Is a Hefeweizen style beer ok to start with?

Or should I start somewhere else?

I literally know NOTHING about homebrewing. Not sure about how complicated it is to make a Hefeweizen. Wondering if it would be a good place to start, or should I start with something else.

Yours Truly,
Ignoramus Maximus

If you like them(hefeweizen's) then go for it!
Do some reading and get some basic equipment(depending on your budget), keep everything clean and sanitized.
Follow some easy recipes and you will be drinking great beer in ~4-6 weeks.
Welcome to the obsession(and you will become obsessed)
(this a great place to find answers to your questions)

Thanks, Kevin.

I'm looking forward to becoming obsessed.

Most beers are fine for first-timers, but a hefe does have a few qualities that make it a great first brew.

1. Most hefe yeast tolerates higher fermentation temps, which is often a problem for new brewers to keep under control.

2. The style usually has some good fruity esters which are a byproduct of both the type of yeast used and fermentation temps, so if you do ferment a little high the "off" flavors may not be that bad or even desireable.

3. Hefes don't require as much time as some other beer styles to condition and become ready to drink and are often best when enjoyed young. Again, most new brewers have trouble with patience so given this style is usually ready to drink fairly soon after it's done fermenting you probably won't be as disappointed cracking a bottle in just a few weeks.

I am not an expert brewer, but have 6 batches under my belt. I started with a porter, but only because my brewing partner and I both like porters. I think if you like hefeweizens go for it. For my second batch I did the blood orange hefe, and it turned out great, and you can ferment them at higher temps like around 68 or so. Search for blood orange hefe and you can find the recipe. I don't have it with me now or I would post it. Blood oranges are out of season but you could use a different orange. I say go for it! Good luck! Brewing quickly becomes an obsession!

i will tell you that my first 2 batches have been "session" brews. I bought cheaper kits to get my technique down. Truthfully, the lack of substance and flavor has kind of disappointed me. I haven't found the technique all that difficult so I didn't need to be so perfectionistic. Choosing something with a lot of flavor is supposed to hide some off-flavors that can occur in beginning brewing.

A hefeweizen or a belgian saison might be good first attempts in the summer.

I love Hefe's. I shy away from bitter beers. I can't stand them.

I love the lemon and orange citrus, and the banana and nutty notes I've tasted in hefeweizens.

I'm definitely going to look into it.

Thanks folks!

I haven't brewed a hefe yet, but it is actually next on my list. One thing I've read about on these forums is how much the fermentation temp can alter the taste of a hefe. I think if you ferment in the mid 60s you'll get some good banana-y notes without it being overwhelming. I'd imagine if you fermented too high the fruity esters might get out of control. As a cheap, beginner's way of controlling fermentation temperature, you can buy a big plastic bucket from Target for about 6 bucks. You can put your fermenter in this, fill it with water, and keep a floating thermometer in there. This is what I've been doing and I've been keeping my temps for my ales right in the mid 60s. I just switch out some frozen water bottles a couple times a day if I notice the temperature creeping up. Good luck and let us know how that hefe turns out!!

Bmilla, congrats on the Blackhawks win!

IMO, hefeweizen (if you like it) is the best style to start out with!

They are extremely easy to brew with extract. All you need is wheat malt extract. I'd pass over any hefewezen kits that include steeping grains. The reason is that wehat malt extract is usually a mixture of wheat and barley extract. Percentages depend on the manufacturer. If you were brewing all grain, the most traditional recipe is 50% wheat malt, 50% Pilsner (barley) malt. The hops are extremely simple too. Just one ounce of Hallertauer at the beginning of a 60 minute boil will give you in the nieghborhood of 12-16 IBUs.

As far as yeast goes, there are a multitude of Hefeweizen strains out there. If you have been lurking around here, you have probably seen people talk about starters for liquid yeast. Since hefeweizens are lower gravity, you can get away with just pitching the vial or smack pack.

A good kit to start with would be this one from Austin Homebrew Supply. Its a simple extract only kit that should produce a very nice hefeweizen. In the options, I'd choose liquid extract, Wyeast 3056 (although there is nothing wrong with the White Labs either) for yeast, skip the yeast fuel, yes to a cold pack (its summer!), keep the priming sugar, and no the the 1% alcohol boost.

Thanks Ronzo! The whole city kind of went nuts for a few days after the win. It has been a loooong time for the Hawks.

Edcculus, sorry, haven't been lurking before I signed up. A lot of what you just said is over my head. Like I said earlier in my first post, I literally know NOTHING about brewing.

Looks like that supply company is only about 15 miles from me, so I think I'll have to go visit with them.

ronzorelli said:

Edcculus, sorry, haven't been lurking before I signed up. A lot of what you just said is over my head. Like I said earlier in my first post, I literally know NOTHING about brewing.

Looks like that supply company is only about 15 miles from me, so I think I'll have to go visit with them.

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ah, sorry about that. If you go over to Austin Homebrew, I'm sure they can set you up. The owner (Forrest) is a very active member here. His handle here is Austinhomebrew.

Also, to begin with, a great place to start learning all of the jargon that goes with this hobby is How To Brew.com. The website is a slightly dated version of John Palmer's book, which is now on the 3rd edition. The website version will give you a really firm base though (even if you don't quite understand everything). Otherwise, poke around this website, and ask lots of questions!

Another great book recommended to me by a professional brewer is Dave Miller's Home Brew Guide. Its a little less technical then John Palmer's book, and might be easier to grasp as a new brewer. If you want a recipe book, Brewing Classic Styles is probably the best one out there.


Finally, check out my article on Hefeweizens on Dineandcook.com!!!

I was told this forum would be a good resource to get a lot of good info. They were right.

Thanks, y'all!

Edcculus said:

A good kit to start with would be this one from Austin Homebrew Supply. Its a simple extract only kit that should produce a very nice hefeweizen. In the options, I'd choose liquid extract, Wyeast 3056 (although there is nothing wrong with the White Labs either) for yeast, skip the yeast fuel, yes to a cold pack (its summer!), keep the priming sugar, and no the the 1% alcohol boost.

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i just ordered my first batch from AHS - a bavarian hefeweizen -- a couple of questions about your comments if you don't mind

why skip the yeast fuel? (i ordered one, should i not use it?)

i did say yes to the cold pack but it was far from cold when i received it (texas to florida in 3 days) i put the yeast in the fridge right away and will brew next friday........will there be any issues with this? it's the white labs yeast

why no to the 1% alcohol boost? i didn't get it but was curious about it - thanks!

brn14me said:

why skip the yeast fuel? (i ordered one, should i not use it?)

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Why skip it? For $3, you can get ~19 batches' worth of Wyeast Nutrient.

Regarding your cold pack and warm yeast, I wouldn't worry as long as you're going to make a starter. I order from AHS quite frequently and it's usually a 2-3 day trip. Sometimes I'm dumb (like last week) and place my order on the wrong day and end up having the package sit over the weekend in the summer heat. The cold pack is obviously no longer cold and that means the yeast will get pretty warm, but I haven't had any issues.

And the alcohol boost does nothing more than add highly fermentable sugar so that you get slightly more alcohol in your final product. Problem is, since it's purely fermentable sugar it doesn't add anything to the overall flavor of your beer and in fact, it could have negative effects on the body, mouthfeel, and the overall final product.

Hefeweizen is the easiest beer for a home brewer to start with in my opinion. I've done a ton of different wheat styles since I started, and in my opinion they also smell the best while brewing!

Here is my very easy Hefe recipe I came up with:
(2.5 gallon boil size, 5 gallon batch size)
6lb Wheat LME
1lb Wheat DME
2oz of Liberty at 60 minutes
Fermentis Safbrew WB-06

Simple, easy, delicious.

I've got a hefe in the primary that I brewed on Saturday night. By Sunday morning I had 2 bubbles per sec coming out of the blowoff. By Sunday night the bubbling had stopped (or were so far apart that I didn't bother to watch and wait). The adhesive thermometer on my primary was in the 78 degree range. I used White Labs Hefewiezen Ale 300 yeast. I'm concerned about the lack of activity (although I've got pressure in the primary.) Am I being paranoid?

jmf143 said:

I've got a hefe in the primary that I brewed on Saturday night. By Sunday morning I had 2 bubbles per sec coming out of the blowoff. By Sunday night the bubbling had stopped (or were so far apart that I didn't bother to watch and wait). The adhesive thermometer on my primary was in the 78 degree range. I used White Labs Hefewiezen Ale 300 yeast. I'm concerned about the lack of activity (although I've got pressure in the primary.) Am I being paranoid?

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Sounds like the fermentation was just fast and furious, which would not surprise me for a Hefeweizen yeast at that temperature. You're probably okay.

jmf143 said:

Am I being paranoid?

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Probably. Airlock activity has almost nothing to do with how well the fermentation is actually going. Your hydrometer is the only way to tell for sure what's going on. After about a week you should take a sample and see where the gravity sits. Chances are it will be right on target and you can then give it another day or two before taking another sample to make sure fermentation has actually stopped. From there you're safe to go on bottling.

brn14me said:

i just ordered my first batch from AHS - a bavarian hefeweizen -- a couple of questions about your comments if you don't mind

why skip the yeast fuel? (i ordered one, should i not use it?)

Click to expand...

Its not going to hurt anything. In fact I'm sure it helps (just search for the threads about it here). I typically don't have any need for it though.

i did say yes to the cold pack but it was far from cold when i received it (texas to florida in 3 days) i put the yeast in the fridge right away and will brew next friday........will there be any issues with this? it's the white labs yeast

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you should be fine

why no to the 1% alcohol boost? i didn't get it but was curious about it - thanks!

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just no need for it. If you want more alcohol, just use more malt.

@Edcculus -- thanks very much for the info!! I didn't see it until just today but the information is great and appreciated very much.