First time Brewing: Hefeweizen & Dead Ringer IPA Extract. Any Pointers?

[NaplesVin]

Hey guys, I finally got my brewing kit in last Friday and Monday I will have both my Hefeweizen & Deadringer IPA extract kits in. I do have some questions, like always and was hoping some people experienced in either the two can give me some pointers that will make the process go smoother!

First and foremost, Hank's Hefeweizen:
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/hank-s-hefeweizen.html

I picked up WL300 liquid yeast to go with it. (I will most likely do a starter for it).

Fermenting temperatures I am going to be aiming for is: 62° F and hopefully settle below 70° F.

Fermentor duration I was thinking around 2 weeks, then 2 weeks Secondary and 2 weeks in the bottles. Anyone have any experience with this or have a better method?


Secondly, Dead Ringer IPA:
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/dead-ringer-ipa-extract-kit.html

Recipe: http://www.northernbrewer.com/documentation/beerkits/DeadRingerIPA.pdf

Yeast: Safale US-05 Ale Dry Yeast

Fermenting Temperature I was thinking 60-65° F.

2 weeks in the Fermentor, 2 Weeks in the Secondary and 2 Weeks in the Bottles.

Dry hopping at start of Secondary with 1 oz Centennial Hops.


Really my main concerns are just trying to figure out what is the "perfect" temperature for both these. I am using my modified chest freezer and have room for both of them, and I was hoping to set it at 65 for both. Also, i am very curious on a suitable time table for Primary, Secondary and bottle condition times as i've seen these vary from person to person. Any little hints or suggestions are greatly appreciated! Thanks guys

UPDATE: Alright so I brewed my first batch of Hefeweizen and it's now sitting in the fermentor at 65 F. I learned some valuable lessons to say the least. One of them being getting my wort chiller together so I can bring that temperature down under an hour lol! I pitched the WL300 right into wort at 70 F and prayed everything goes good. I shook the vial and got instant bubbles so it looked healthy to me. The wort looked rather on the dark side, but time will tell. See you in 2 weeks!

 

[Schmoogdaddy]

I brewed a hefeweizen today (rauchweizen actually) using the WLP300. Because it is a wheat beer it will be cloudy, so I am not going to secondary that one. Primary for 2 weeks, then bottle. My basement is 68 degrees.

With US-05 I have been anywhere from 58-72. It finishes up much cleaner at the cooler end. Unless it is a big beer, you should be fine with 1 week primary and one week secondary.

 

[SteveH aka shetc]

Keep researching the site - I think the general consensus is that secondary is not required unless using adjuncts such as fruit, wood chips or hard liquor. Not sure about dry hopping.

 

[marvinsjunk]

Don't secondary the hefe. It's supposed to be cloudy. We kegged ours at 13 days, were drinking 2 days later and it was damn good. There was a bit of sulfur, which is normal for WY3068, but it cleared up quickly. Don't know about WL300, but if you pick up any sulfur at 2 weeks maybe let it ride another week to clean up then bottle.

We didn't use a starter with the 3068 and it was a very clean, crisp beer with a good balance on the banana and clove. Fermentation temp was around 64. It took off like a rocket and attenuated well. I don't see a need for a starter with fresh yeast on a hefe, but this was admittedly our first one.

S-05 I've had good luck around 64-65. Very clean and at lower temps. FWIW I like to dry hop in the primary and don't secondary anything much anymore.

 

[Gnomebrewer]

The hef yeast is the only one I don't make a starter for (as long as it's fresh). Others will probably disagree though. Hef's are also the only beers I don't leave for more than 2 weeks - they taste good young because you WANT the estery flavours. Also, hef's (in my experience) are better in bottles than keg (I haven't tried natural carbonation in the keg though). 62 will give minimal banana, higher (up to about 70) will give stronger banana.

I use US-05 for nearly all my pales (I rarely do IPA's) and find 62 gives a cleaner taste than 68, but only marginally.

 

[NaplesVin]

Awesome! Thanks for the great tips guys! Keep them coming, it's good to hear how people do their own things and make it work.

 

[NaplesVin]

UPDATE: Alright so I brewed my first batch of Hefeweizen and it's now sitting in the fermentor at 65 F. I learned some valuable lessons to say the least. One of them being getting my wort chiller together so I can bring that temperature down under an hour lol! I pitched the WL300 right into wort at 70 F and prayed everything goes good. I shook the vial and got instant bubbles so it looked healthy to me. The wort looked rather on the dark side, but time will tell. See you in 2 weeks!

 

[Gnomebrewer]

Extract is (apparently) normally darker in colour than the equivalent recipe in all grain (I say 'apparently' because I have never done an extract brew). You can lighten the colour by adding half of the extract in the last 5mins or so of the boil (so it doesn't scorch so much).