“Grosser Weizen” Wheatwine

Josh Weikert

ALL-GRAIN

Batch size: 5 gallons (19 liters) Brewhouse efficiency: 72% OG: 1.099 FG: 1.024 IBUS: 72 ABV: 10.6%

MALT/GRAIN BILL

11 lb (5 kg) malted wheat 5 lb (2.3 kg) Vienna malt 1 lb (454 g) Caramunich malt 1 lb (454 g) Maris Otter 0.5 lb (227 g) Melanoidin malt 1 lb (454 g) rice hulls

HOPS SCHEDULE

1.5 oz (43 g) Nugget [12% AA] at 60 minutes 1 oz (28 g) Hallertau Mittelfruh [4% AA]

at 10 minutes 1 oz (28 g) Cascade [8% AA] at flame-out

YEAST

Wyeast 1318 (London Ale III) Yeast

DIRECTIONS

Mill the grains and mix with 5.8 gallons (21.9 l) of 163°F (73°C) strike water to reach a mash temperature of 152°F (67°C). Hold this temperature for 60 minutes. Vorlauf until your runnings are clear, then run off into kettle. Sparge the grains with 1.47 gallons (5.6 l) and top up as necessary to obtain 6 gallons (23 l) of wort. Boil for 60 minutes, following the hops schedule.

After the boil, chill the wort to slightly below fermentation temperature, about 60°F (16°C). Aerate the wort and pitch yeast.

Ferment at 60°F (16°C) for 7 days, then let the temperature rise to 68°F (20°C) and hold for an additional seven days. Allow the temperature to free rise from there until two days after activity in the airlock ceases, then crash the beer to 35°F (2°C) and bottle or keg the beer and carbonate to about 2 volumes.

TIPS FOR SUCCESS

Keep fermentation cool and rising here—we want to mask the alcohols (which can get very hot at more than 10%) while also ensuring a complete fermentation, so some temperature-control care is required. If you don’t have access to a temp-controlled freezer or refrigerator, shoot for the coolest stable temperature you can find—a basement is ideal! After two weeks, move the beer to a warmer room for it to finish out, then proceed to packaging.