Hefeweizen - Simple Water Profile

[beershere]

Hey everybody,

I've been brewing all grain for 3 years now with success using the simplicity of water adjustments Yooper laid out here:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=198460

That said, I've been unable to discern a simplistic water adjustment method for Hefeweizen as of yet.

Here's my grain bill:

6 lbs Red Wheat
4 lbs German Pils

I am thinking of adding 2 oz Acidulated Malt, along with .5 tsp Calcium Chloride to mash and sparge. I use all RO water.

Anyone with a tried and true simplistic RO water adjustment for a 5 gallon batch of Hefe?

 

[McKnuckle]

I don't know what you mean exactly by "simplistic," but if it means a minimalist approach, I would do the following:

(Calculated using the Advanced Water tool on the Brewer's Friend website)

Given 6.25 gallons of RO mash and sparge water combined, I'd add (to ALL the water):

- 3g gypsum
- 3g CaCl
- 1g Epsom

This gets the salts up to moderate levels and has the nice effect of lowering the estimated pH a good amount:

Ca 64
Mg 4.2
Na 0
Cl 61
SO4 87*

Now it says my mash pH will still be a teeny bit high at 5.59. Could be fine, but I'd like it a little lower. So let's add 1.68 mL of 88% lactic acid to reach an estimated pH of 5.45.

How's that? Your numbers may vary a tad due to your water volume. These calcs were tailored to my system.

*87 is not a lot of sulfate really, but if you want it lower, reduce gypsum to somewhere north of 2g. That will raise the pH a little, which is either fine with you or - if not - add a little more lactic acid.

 

[JonM]

I have used very, very soft water for hefeweizens and have had excellent success. My profile is just a pinch of CaCl, just like you have. This is a style that really benefits from "less is more" in the water. (Of course, you still need the acid in the mash.)

I'd steer clear of gypsum or Epsom salts.

 

[McKnuckle]

I agree with JonM. I have made very nice wits with 100% unadulterated Poland Spring water, which has just a trace of minerals. I have even done so with no acidification (probably 5.6 mash pH).

That said, the other salts won't be an issue at the low levels estimated by my first post. I have successfully used that kind of protocol for other soft, light colored beers.