Hefeweizen's how long in primary??

[nyer]

I brewed Austin Homebrew's Franziskaner hefe clone Saturday morning. I know on other brews it's best to do primary then secondary then age. Is it really true that hefe's don't need a secondary and they are ready to drink basically right out of the fermenter?

 

[RICLARK]

I brewed Austin Homebrew's Franziskaner hefe clone Saturday morning. I know on other brews it's best to do primary then secondary then age. Is it really true that hefe's don't need a secondary and they are ready to drink basically right out of the fermenter?

the secondary is for clearing and hefes dont need to clear, I usually let mine sit in the primary for 10-14 days and then keg.

 

[quixotic]

Yes. 1-2 weeks in the primary (after 3 unchanged FG readings over 3 days), and you can go straight the to keg/bottle. The secondary is for clearing, which is not necessary with a hefe. You would still need to let it age if you are carbing in a bottle.

 

[ohiobrewtus]

2 weeks in primary. No need for clearning a wheat beer.

 

[oguss0311]

+1 to all above. This is why when people ask me to bring some home brew to a party- with little to no notice- I resort to the hef- because you can brew one day, and drink from the tap less than 14 days later.

 

[nyer]

Thanks for the replies, my brew is happily bubbling away.

 

[Dycokac]

Thanks for the replies, my brew is happily bubbling away.

Hope you have a blowoff tube rigged you might verywell need it.

 

[TurboBrew]

Yeah, I hop your using a tube not an airlock. My last hefe made insane amounts of krausen.

 

[nyer]

I got a blow off tube and I used 6 gal carboy just in case. It's close to bubbling over but hasn't yet.

 

[blacklab]

Leave it in the primary until hydro readings are stable.

 

[Jordan Wilson]

Found this thread here that asks basically the same question I had, only I'm making a Wit instead of a Hefe. Does the same advice above still apply?

I unfortunately didn't use a carboy with a blow off (bucket w/ airlock instead), and mine's got quite a bit of krausen going on, too. Am I going to run into any problems come bottling time?

 

[homebrewer_99]

A Wit is just another wheat beer...the answer is yes.

I do secondaries for my Hefe Weizens because after the yeast falls out I can better control how much yeast to put back into suspension when racking to the bottling bucket/keg.

Something to think about if you feel you are getting too much yeast in your bottles.

 

[DeathBrewer]

i filtered a wheat recently...still was plenty cloudy and very, very tasty. i'm rethinking this whole no secondary/clearing/whirlfloc stuff.

 

[BigKahuna]

Speaking from only 1 batch worth of experience.....My Dunkelweizen....Made with 3068 WYeast, was in primary for 14 days, then bottled for 3 before I got anxious and stuck one in the fridge. It was nice. I freaked out....3 days to carb? What the hell? No problems, and VERY tasty.

 

[tiko]

i bet this has been asked before but im 14 days in a wheat batch and i still have a layer on top. i was planning to just use a primary for three weeks and bottle for three. but is it ok to ignore the layer on top or should a use a secondary?

 

[EndlessWinter77]

i bet this has been asked before but im 14 days in a wheat batch and i still have a layer on top. i was planning to just use a primary for three weeks and bottle for three. but is it ok to ignore the layer on top or should a use a secondary?

Ive got the same question and also wondering if when I keg it is it fine to chill, force carb, and drink immediately or should it age for a bit?

 

[DeathBrewer]

the krausen layer on top is fine. you can wait for it to settle or you can rack from underneath it. just make sure to take a reading and ensure that your beer is finished fermenting before you do.

3 weeks primary + 3 weeks bottles should work just fine for a hefeweizen.

you can immediately force carb your beers and drink them. i usually don't let mine sit in the keg, i shake them up, get them cold and drink them the same day.

i do, however, let my beer sit in the carboys for quite a long time.

i think the aging in the keg is more for conditioning than it is for carbonating. there's no ill effects to force carbonating your beer as long as it's ready to go.

 

[tiko]

awesome. thanks for the help death. ill keep with the plan of drinking it on the fourth of july.

 

[eadavis80]

I made a 3068 starter for NB's all-grain Hefe and sure as heck didn't need a blowoff tube. It was an average fermentation in terms of aggression. Haven't taken a gravity reading yet - brewed it a week ago in the mid 60's.

 

[eadavis80]

It was a disappointing 1.018 after 8 days. I hope it drops a few more points, but I doubt it will. Was shooting for 1.012 at the highest -

 

[RM-MN]

It was a disappointing 1.018 after 8 days. I hope it drops a few more points, but I doubt it will. Was shooting for 1.012 at the highest -

You may have to blame your extract for the lack of attenuation. Some of the extracts will have too many unfermentable sugars to get that low of a FG. You may need to move to all grain to get there. Fortunately is it not nearly as difficult as I once believed. BIAB is so simple and need not take any more time than an extract batch but it gives you much more control and flexibility in the recipes you can use.

 

[eadavis80]

You may have to blame your extract for the lack of attenuation. Some of the extracts will have too many unfermentable sugars to get that low of a FG. You may need to move to all grain to get there. Fortunately is it not nearly as difficult as I once believed. BIAB is so simple and need not take any more time than an extract batch but it gives you much more control and flexibility in the recipes you can use.

I said I did the ALL-GRAIN version of the kit. In fact, I too did it it BIAB style. I normally get pretty decent efficiency and a pretty fermentable wort. I did do it with the protein rest/multiple temp steps during the mash, but I feel confident in my temperatures and times. I gave the primary a pretty aggressive swirl in hopes of getting the yeast a little roused up. They have a lot of "cleaning up to do" as I smell a hybrid of sulfur and fart from the gravity sample.

 

[RedlegEd]

I said I did the ALL-GRAIN version of the kit. In fact, I too did it it BIAB style. I normally get pretty decent efficiency and a pretty fermentable wort. I did do it with the protein rest/multiple temp steps during the mash, but I feel confident in my temperatures and times. I gave the primary a pretty aggressive swirl in hopes of getting the yeast a little roused up. They have a lot of "cleaning up to do" as I smell a hybrid of sulfur and fart from the gravity sample.

At what temp are you fermenting, still in the 60s? You may want to jack it up to 71-72°F (maybe a little higher) to get the yeast going and maybe give you a few more points. Some folks like the little bit of extra esters and phenols that a higher ferm temp throws into a Hefe. Ed

 

[RM-MN]

I said I did the ALL-GRAIN version of the kit. In fact, I too did it it BIAB style. I normally get pretty decent efficiency and a pretty fermentable wort. I did do it with the protein rest/multiple temp steps during the mash, but I feel confident in my temperatures and times. I gave the primary a pretty aggressive swirl in hopes of getting the yeast a little roused up. They have a lot of "cleaning up to do" as I smell a hybrid of sulfur and fart from the gravity sample.

I'm sorry but you did post this in the extract portion of HomeBrewTalk, tagging it onto another thread from way back when. I missed the part where you mentioned the all grain a couple days earlier.

 

[eadavis80]

I'm sorry but you did post this in the extract portion of HomeBrewTalk, tagging it onto another thread from way back when. I missed the part where you mentioned the all grain a couple days earlier.

Fair enough - I didn't realize the OP was from the extract part of the forum. In any event, it's in the upper level of my house so hopefully with some more spring-like temps in the next week or two the fart/sulfur will go away and I'll finally end up with those banana/clove esters I wanted originally.