Hot Bock Weizenbock

Josh Weikert

ALL-GRAIN

Batch size: 5 gallons (19 liters) Brewhouse efficiency: 72% OG: 1.084 FG: 1.020 IBUS: 30 ABV: 8.7%

MALT/GRAIN BILL

8 lb (3.6 kg) Wheat malt 4 lb (1.8 kg) Vienna malt 2 lb (907 g) Munich malt 8 oz (227 g) British crystal malt (45L) 8 oz (227 g) Chocolate rye 8 oz (227 g) Special B 4 oz (113 g) Melanoidin malt

HOPS SCHEDULE YEAST

1 oz (28 g) Cluster [8% AA] at 60 minutes Wyeast 3068 (Weihenstephan)

DIRECTIONS

Mill the grains and mix with 4.9 gallons (18.6 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 the kettle. Sparge the grains with 2.3 gallons (8.8 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 70°F (21°C). Aerate the wort with pure oxygen or filtered air and pitch the yeast.

Ferment at 71°F (22°C) for 7 days, then allow temperature to rise to 73°F (23°C). Upon completion of fermentation, crash the beer to 35°F (2°C), then bottle or keg and carbonate to approximately 2.5 volumes of CO2.

TIPS FOR SUCCESS

Temperature control is essential here. If you drift high early on in fermentation, you’ll end up with hot alcohols and burned-out yeast that struggles to attenuate, both of which will wreck your beer. Keep a tight leash on the temperature as the yeast starts firing up—you can let it roam higher after you get through the bulk of fermentation.