This is the third and final installment of The Grand Crew beer series. Personally I think this stuff is great because I don’t believe in restricting one’s palate to only one fermented beverage, especially since I belong to what for some can be considered an overly snobbish and close-minded wine geek community. So cheers to more beer drinking and beer appreciation!
In contrast to last week’s light Irish Red recipe, this week’s recipe is for a Hefeweissen.
Marshall’s recipe numero tres:
“Next up, Hefeweissen:
This is a remarkably simple brew, and I recommend it as a first effort. The flavor profile of a wheatie makes it very tolerant of heat issues. Warm fermentation of an ale leads to phenolic and banana flavors. Wheaties actually seem to thrive at the higher ale temps, which makes them good for less-than-stringent temp controls. No clarifiers, no flavoring grains, etc. Again, don’t skimp on the yeast.
7# 60/40 wheat malt DME (dry malt extract). Be careful with DME. It is the stickiest substance known to man. Even though it looks like a dry powder, it will suck moisture out of the air and stick to every damn thing it touches. Turn off all fans, as an experienced word of caution. It’s actually only 5-10 less moisture than the liquid extract.
After that, it’s Tattinger at the corners. 1 oz. bittering, 0.5 oz aroma, and 0.5 oz. finishing.
Yeast is the Whitelabs WLP 300 GERMAN profile hefe yeast. The American profile blows, as do many American wheaties. No citrus, no banana, no acidic tingle. Widmer is a notable exception, but I still loves me some Franziskaner. Anything with a monk rubbing his belly has to be good. Definitely my favorite Spaten label.
BTW, In addition to alcohol, hops are actually a preservative, so a wheatie is best consumed within about 12 months of brewing. Russian Imperial Stout comes in at a winelike ABV, as it was brewed to be shipped overland. In contrast, IPA (India Pale Ale) has a massive hop content so that it could be shipped by ship to his/her majesty’s forces in India. Both serve the target market, and IPA is relatively high ABV for a pale, but it relies more on the hops for preservative value than alcohol.
BTW2, most Germans are shipped to the states in green glass. If at all possible, do not bottle your stuff in green glass. Sunlight and hops don’t react well, and green glass allows whatever the skunk wavelength through. Amber is always your best bet.”
“Here’s the Irish Red recipe. Big rich deep malty taste. Mild bitterness. Kind of like an overhopped Wee Heavy. I haven’t found a good commercial example of this style, but I’m going to Ireland in November and will by-God do it. Definitely my best and my favorite. This is morebeer.com’s original recipe. They have since changed the kit formulation. This one is better.











