[zwiller]

It's never too late to post into my threads…  You’re impression of 3638 are similar to mine with WB06.  Good but missing a little clove…  I truly am thinking about using it with a wit. 

I hear ya Charles, I was that way a long time and just succumbed to using hefe…  I remember on the green board there was “wheat beer”, then we’d be like, weizen or weiss    Totally agree Erdinger is mild, so is Franzinkaner if you ask me.  I saw someone post that hefeweizen’s clove character helps with the after effects of overdoing it the night before.  That sounds interesting and sorta in the direction I am going…  Gotta have a real nice clove character.       

Semi OT but yet relevant.  I don’t think there is any German “IT” in hefe’s, is there?  Also, pretty sure next one is only gonna get 30m boil.  2 hours AG from setup to put away… 

[charles1968]

I saw someone post that hefeweizen’s clove character helps with the after effects of overdoing it the night before. 

Might just be "hair of the dog"...

I don’t think there is any German “IT” in hefe’s, is there?

Definitely not in Erdinger.

[MJK]

One week in the bottle.
Yep, clove is a little light.
It's still tasty.
The eternal experiment continues.
love it

[chumley]

Chalk me up as another fan of WY3333 for weissbier.

[JJeffers09]

I'm a 351, 380, 3068, 3638.  All that matters to me which is the freshest.  They have not failed me yet.  But I am about to go on my 8th Weißbier/Weizenbier.  I am keeping fingers crossed for that right banana/clove balance. 


Other questions to ask yourself OP: FAR is it a waste of time? Decoction is it a waste of time? Avangard or Weyermann? Water pro? Open ferm or closed? Square or Trad?  There is a lot of variables to try to find that best process.  Keep reading around this forum for hefes there is a lot to debate on process and best practices

[zwiller]

I have not ruled FAR out yet but decoction is out.  Tried it a number of time with hefe and not necessary IMO.  RE: FAR; Recently delved in the FAR papers and something stood out at me.  The precursors of FAR are NOT in wheat malt, but pils.  So using more wheat works against you.  In addition, there are no FAR precursors in flaked wheat or roasted grains (munich).  With this in mind, tentatively I am thinking 50 wheat/46 pils/3 acid malt/1 choc for color.  Pretty large departure from previous malt bill, I think I even pushed 70% wheat in the day...

[John Mac]

I have a nice recipe and water dialed in so it's down to just yeast.  Any thoughts?

I'm huge fan of a Hefeweizen as the weather starts getting warmer, and having lived in Germany for almost 6 years I'm a bit of a snob about them too.  When developing a recipe that works for me, I picked up several different strains of yeast. I've used the WLP 300, 351 and 380 and usually go with the 300.  You can vary the result quite a bit by changing the fermentation temperature by 2-3 degrees.  I like a little of the banana character and you can get a little more spicy phenolic from this yeast if you let it work in the higher side of its range. 

If you have the option to split a 10 gallon batch into three fermentors and try a few different strains at the same temp you can nail down which one is going to work best in your recipe and appeal to your palate.  And if you come up with something that you like, everyone else can pound sand.

[euge]

I prefer the 3068 over the 300, but I'm intrigued by one of those dry yeasts from either Fermentis or Lallemand that reportedly has appropriate clove and banana notes. I haven't tried it, but are there others that have experienced that dry yeast?

The Munich yeast is a beast but I still don't like the phenolic character it produces at advised optimum temp of 68F. Otherwise it's fairly clean- if that can be used in connection with a hefe-yeast. I didn't get much banana or clove notes.

I got more vanilla and banana characteristics with WB-06 and felt it was truer to the style.

Paulaner was my gateway-beer. So far I've been unable to replicate it and I won't pay $12.99 for a six pack either.

[beersk]

In my opinion, there is the elusive fresh grain character in German hefeweizen. But it's such a yeast driven beer that it's not as important to the overall quality of the beer.

[MJK]

Beersk,
I had that exact thought after drinkin the one I just made with WY3638.
I love the beer. It's banana & bread forward with some pear/apple and faint anise with a slight tart finish.
I don't know what wheat adds to the party. Maybe that fresh grain character.
Or maybe the wheat lightens the barley to give it the perception of freshness.

I was considering an all barley brew with a Hefe yeast (Ha, get it, yeast yeast).

Have fun

[beersk]

Beersk,
I had that exact thought after drinkin the one I just made with WY3638.
I love the beer. It's banana & bread forward with some pear/apple and faint anise with a slight tart finish.
I don't know what wheat adds to the party. Maybe that fresh grain character.
Or maybe the wheat lightens the barley to give it the perception of freshness.

I was considering an all barley brew with a Hefe yeast (Ha, get it, yeast yeast).

Have fun

Yeah, that'd be a dampfbier style using the hefe yeast without the wheat. Makes for a nice summer beer. I just top cropped some 3068 this morning, I may have to brew one of those soon.

[santoch]

I totally agree that the malt should not be overwhelmed by the esters and phenolics.  The most enjoyable are very well balanced in all 3 of these facets.  Hops play only a secondary role, just to keep it from coming off as sweet.  Carbonation is very important, too.  They should show high carbonation, which brings out the aromatics better and gives increased mouthfeel.  Carbonic acid (from the dissolved CO2) helps to brighten up the overall flavor, giving a very clean, crisp flavor.

They drop off pretty badly with age, though.  They are awesome if you drink them fresh.

[brewinhard]

I totally agree that the malt should not be overwhelmed by the esters and phenolics.  The most enjoyable are very well balanced in all 3 of these facets.  Hops play only a secondary role, just to keep it from coming off as sweet.  Carbonation is very important, too.  They should show high carbonation, which brings out the aromatics better and gives increased mouthfeel.  Carbonic acid (from the dissolved CO2) helps to brighten up the overall flavor, giving a very clean, crisp flavor.

They drop off pretty badly with age, though.  They are awesome if you drink them fresh.

Yep. Mine are in the keg, carbed, and ready to drink usually by day 10-12 depending on the timing.

[Wort-H.O.G.]

like  most strains of hefe...wlp300 needs the right temp management for perfect hefe. low 60's then hold 64-65ish and then let it ride at room temp 68ish to finish last couple points and to clean up.

but the yeast is just part of the equation...lots in the process to experiment with.