First Brew - Brewer's Best Dunkelweizen

[DynamechGT]

Couple of questions below pics-

My blog entry on this brew (link).

Here's what came in the recipe box (Wyeast liquid pack not shown)

Here's the stuff I'm gonna use (big pot not shown)

I've decided to go ahead and mess with things a little and try a liquid yeast (Wyeast 3333 German Wheat) instead of the Danstar Munich pack that came with the kit.

I want to get some input on some things:
(1) I'm thinking about trying the 1-2-3 rule of thumb on fermenting and conditioning - Does anyone with experience with this beer (LME Dunkelweizen)/kit/yeast have any suggestions on timing?
(2) Room Temperature (~70F) is all I've got to work with right now - anyone want to make predictions on yeast reaction and/or predominant flavors?

Thanks - more to come

DMGT

 

[DynamechGT]

2nd Blog entry on this brew

Will be brewing tonight so I'm looking forward to any feedback.

 

[BeerChef17]

Brewed this around 2 months ago and it turned out great. I just used the dry yeast packet though. I also fermented at room temperature something in the area of 70*. Everything turned out great...there is a slight off taste from my fermentation temp getting too high but it really isnt noticeable to anyone else who has tried my beer besides me ( I think because I know its there I am looking for it).

My recommendation to you would be to use a swamp cooler if you can to help lower the temp of your fermentation. If not you can also freeze some water bottles or a 1 gal jug and sit it on top of your fermenter to keep the temp down (keep a backup in the freezer). Also make sure to be careful with the maltodextrin- I have a few scorch marks in my pot from not stirring it enough. Also try to keep the steeping temperature as close to 155* as possible and an extra 10m in the pot wouldn't hurt.

 

[birvine]

I agree with ^.

Brent

 

[edie]

this was the first brewers best kit that we brewed. as i remember our fermentation temps were around 70-75. turned out great. this was also the first batch that we kegged. we usually primary for 1 week and then secondary for 2-3 weeks.

good luck and let us know how it ends up. have fun!

 

[DynamechGT]

I'm about to start my flavoring boil so no real time to UTFSE.

Just some curiosity questions:
Is bottle conditioning at ~68-70F ok?
Is bottle conditioning at lower temps better?

 

[PT Ray]

Sounds like you're looking for a Bavarian style wheat, so Danstar Munich is not the yeast but have read it does very well for an American style. I've never used Wyeast 3333 but sounds like it will give you the profile you're after.

 

[DynamechGT]

Well, the Danstar Munich is what came in the kit. I'm really looking forward to figuring out the different flavor profiles of different yeasts.

The Wyeast 3333 will be going in shortly.

 

[Cajun_McChicken]

As to the 1-2-3 rule, everything I've read says secondary fermentation isn't really necessary for periods of shorter than a few months.

 

[DynamechGT]

On to cooldown!

More info will be in my blog which I'll probably post tomorrow.

 

[DynamechGT]

Concerning secondary -

I steeped the milled grains in the (muslin?) sack that came with the kit, pulled it out, and then emptied the hops directly into to brew kettle so I figure whatever gets poured over into the primary fermenter may need a chance to settle out. That way, the secondary will just act as additional clarification even though the Wyeast 3333 itself may not need it.

 

[DynamechGT]

Original gravity was 1.061 at 65F.

Temperature correction gives 1.062 OG.

Daves Dreaded Actual Specific Gravity Calculator

Average temperature of the fermenter is between 68-72F right now. I'm lightly considering throwing it an a trash bag and setting it outside tonight for an average overnight temp somewhere around 62F to help give a balanced flavor profile from the yeast as suggested in above posts.

More details will be in the blog tonight.

DMGT

 

[DynamechGT]

3rd Blog Entry

 

[DynamechGT]

I've been thinking about my high OG today.

This is my first brew and it didn't occur to me that I could add more water after the OG measurement (besides, fermenter was already sealed up). I had just added enough water to come up to the 5 gallon mark on the bucket and thought that would be accurate enough. Not quite. I'm sure it'll still be good but I wonder if the yeast is more likely to get stuck or actually be able to get to the intended FG of 1.012 (6.4-6.6% ABV).

 

[DynamechGT]

Having second thoughts on the 3333 yeast - I think I might have been better served by the 3056 Bavarian Wheat or even something with a more subdued hefeweizen character. Considering tossing in a second pack (3056 or maybe a smooth English ale yeast) on an early transfer to secondary.

I really only want the slightest background (really, you shouldn't even think about it) of the banana-clove characteristics. Erdinger hefeweizen is what made me fall in love with hefeweizens and the stronger flavors put out by Paulanner and Sierra Nevada hefeweizens are not what I'm looking for. Sierra nevada actually advertises on the bottle "...aromas of banana and clove...". It's the first sip that always tastes too spiced. The flavor is easier to drink as it warms up some and the lighter flavors come out more. The over-spiced flavor at the cold start is what I always associated with coriander but now I'm actually going to have to go back and figure out what coriander tastes like. Subsequent bottles in the same sitting seem to mellow in flavor but they never smooth out to point of coming anywhere close to what Erdinger calls a hefeweizen.

I'll see how this turns out but I'm already tempted to throw in another pack of yeast (need to do some research on this) to help out with the high gravity and to mellow out some of the flavors that I wasn't aiming for. But...as my first batch, I should probably just leave it alone and see what happens.

Obviously this is a Dunkelweizen and not a hefeweizen so we'll see if some of the darker maltyness is able to overcome the musty spice notes that everyone seems to be calling "banana and clove".

This does bring up the temperature dependence of the banana/clove balance and may need some experimentation in the future. I know that an Erdinger hefeweizen clone is on my list after I get a few more under my belt. I haven't been able to find one so I may have to try my own recipe several times. I have had some good luck digging up information from really old posts on how Erdinger makes their hefeweizen.

I need some suggestions and input -
Should I add a second pack of yeast (different kind than Wy3333) to mellow the flavors of the first pack to aim more for a combination of flavors - like a wit/hefeweizen mix with the emphasis on the wit?

 

[DynamechGT]

I'm going to leave it alone.

I've done more reading and although 3056 or 3942 would have possibly been more like what I was aiming for, I'd probably screw things up even more by adding a second pack. This would essentially cause overpitching to the 3333 which would actually bring out more clove flavors. Not what I want to do. I've inadvetently shifted the balance to the bananna ester flavors:

Here is the description for the Wyeast 3333:
"A highly flocculent German wheat beer strain that is the perfect choice for use in Kristallweizen. This yeast strain produces a beautiful and delicate balance of banana esters and clove phenolics similar to the popular Wyeast 3068. However, this strain will sediment rapidly, resulting in bright beer without filtration. The balance can be manipulated towards ester production through increasing fermentation temperature, increasing the wort density, and decreasing the pitch rate. Over pitching can result in a near complete loss of banana character. Sulfur is commonly produced, but will dissipate with conditioning."

Fermenting temperature range: 63-75F
Actual: ~70-72F
Winner = bananna

Intended Kit OG density: 1.053
Actual: 1.061
Winner = bananna

Pitch rate effect: overpitching causes loss of bananna, gain of clove.
Actual: normal?
No Effect

Although I've had a very strong bananna flavored beer [Elevator Brewery and Draught Haus, Columbus, OH, July 2011, Name Unknown], I hope this isn't quite as strong as that one was.