Weissbier cell count?

[brownni5]

I'm brewing my first weissbier this spring. I have a pack of Wyeast 3068 that was produced in February. I've seen some recommend smacking the pack and pitching direct with no mention of cell pitch count. What's the ideal count? I don't want something overly clovey, but neither do I want a banana bomb. Suggestions? From what I've read, mid -60's ferm temps should be sufficient.

 

[VikeMan]

The absolutely ideal cell count for a Hefe is 500M cells per ml per degree Plato.

Ok, I made that up. But the reason you see people recommending a single pack, without a starter, is that "under" pitching tends to increase Isoamyl Acetate (banana) in a Hefe. But regarding clove/banana balance, there are lots of factors, and mileage tends to vary. My recommendation would be proceed as you have planned, and see what the result tastes like, then adjust on subsequent batches.

I imagine some folks might reply with the "perfect" Hefe recipe/process, but IMO, this is a style whose results are relatively hard to replicate from brewer to brewer, and has to be individually tweaked.

 

[3 Dawg Night]

I recently brewed a hefe. I didn't underpitch. I pitched the same amount of yeast as usual, using Homebrew Dad's Online Yeast Starter Calculator. It's a beautifully balanced hefeweizen: not skewed too much toward banana or clove.