# BIAB Witbier / Blanche / Belgian wheat beer



## Hez (16/8/17)

After having brew a hefe-weizen / weissbier I wanted to try to make a belgian style wheat beer, I love both. 

This will be our (I brew with my girlfriend) 5th beer ever. 

Like the last two ones, I've been studying a lot about this style of beer, I've read several articles and forums... I put everything together and here it is my "recipe proposal". (I will make all the exact calculations once I have decided on everything)

As usual, I could use your help... Please, your advice is very welcome and much appreciated. 
What would you change? Which things do you agree with and which ones you don't ? Why?


*Water:*

Sydney water (Mosman). 
Final batch size: 10L

No extra chemicals added. I haven't done it so far and I think there's no need. I asked my brewing-stuff-supplier, who lives very close to my place, and he told me he has been brewing for a long time with this water directly from the tap and he doesn't know about any brewery around where they use other thing than tap water (no campden tablets, metabisulfites or anything).


*Grain:*

Est. OG 1.050
Color 2-5 SRM

50% flaked wheat
45% Pilsner malt (Weyerman floor malted)
5% flaked oats

I'm Brewing In A Bag, I think there's no point on using rice hulls.
Do you recommend this proportion or...
- 50% flaked wheat, 42.5% pilsner and 7.5% flaked oats?
- 50% flaked wheat, 40% pilsner and 10% flaked oats? 


*Mash:*

30' at 48.8º (protein rest)
50' at 66.6º (saccharification)
10' at 75.5º (mash out)
Sparge at 75.5º


*Hops:*

15 IBU
60' 32.6g Tettnanger 1.7% alpha acid

I have a low alpha (1.7%) Tettnanger from the Weissbier and I think it will be perfect for this one too. Do you think 15 IBU is ok? The range for this style is suposed to be from 10 to 20, so... middle point.

Tettnanger info (https://bsgcraftbrewing.com/german-tettnang): _"
-Origin: Germany. The major landrace variety in the region of the same name in far southern Germany, Tettnanger has common ancestry with Saaz but a unique profile due to its provenance. It is a classic European noble hop. 
-Usage: Aroma. Tettnanger’s complex and delicate flavors make it ideal for traditional German lagers, particularly Bavarian styles, Weissbiers, and German or Belgian ales. 
-Aroma & Flavor Characteristics: Shifting and evolving mix of floral, fruity, herbal and spicy - fresh herbs, grass, dried flowers, citrus peel, black tea. Can have a bit more intensity than Hallertau but with as much balance. "_


*Spices:*

5' 10g fresh sweet orange peel (no white part at all)
5' 5g fresh grapefruit peel (no white part at all)
5' 15g chinese coriander (crushed)

I didn't find the dried bitter orange peel, I didn't like the look of the chinese dried tangerine peel (Miracle asian supermarket) and I've read that a combination of fresh sweet orange (2/3) and grapefruit (1/3) peel is a good substitute. Some people say it's even better than the dried curaçao bitter orange peel, I don't know.
I already have the chinese coriander (the round one). They say the indian one (oval shape) it's way better than the chinese one that has 1/2 of the fragance, so the original calculation was 10g (1g/L) but I'm cautious, that's why I propose 15g instead of the double (20g). Same for the orange/grapefruit peel, the good proportion is suposed to be 1g/L of dried curaçao peel but apparently it gives you double the aroma. I've read a typical beginner's error is adding too much spices and if you do so you end up with a ham/celery off flavour/aroma. I prefer to drink a good beer while eating jamón ibérico or moules-frites than having those in my beer.

I didn't include the chamomile (1.5 teabags for 10L) because it's one of the very few things I dislike. It reminds me when I was sick and my mother gave me a chamomile infusion. I puked most of the times. I don't care about the balance or other magic it makes to the beer...

*
Yeast:*

Belgian Wit Ale Yeast WLP400
or 
WB06 dry yeast ?

Aerate thoroughly and pitch at 20º


*Carbonation:*

3vol.

A little more than usual but nothing too crazy, I'm using regular "long-neck" brown bottles (4pines, kosciuszko, lord nelson, feral).
Dextrose or table sugar? I have both. They told me dextrose was better for enhancing the banana flavour I wanted for my german wheat beer but I don't know what's better for this one if there's any difference... maybe it's faster?
I'm only making 30 (33cl) bottles, so I'm using my modified-syringe-as-measurement-scoop method for calculating the exact priming sugar quantity for each bottle. Let's see how the weissbier turns out, but I think this way is very precise, fast (my girlfriend sanitizes and primes the bottles while I fill and cap them) and I don't need to use another container, clean and sanitize it or expose the beer to open air. If I were making a bigger batch maybe I'd buy a second container and do bulk priming but for 10l...


Cheers!


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## Hez (17/8/17)

Well, here it is the "final" recipe (*I still haven't decided on the Yeast or the spices*). 
I don't think I will be able to brew this weekend, so I'll hopefully do it next one.


*Grain:*
2820g Total Grain
1410g Flaked Wheat (50%)
1270g Weyermann Pilsner malt. 3.5EBC/1.9L (45%)
140g Flaked Oats (5%)

*Water plan:*
15.00l mash
02.50l sparge (over the bag)
15.75l preboil wort
02.50l boiling water 30' into the boil (my kettle is small)
11.00l postboil wort (1l trub)

*Mash:*
30' at 48.8º (protein rest)
50' at 66.6º (saccharification)
10' at 75.5º (mash out)
Sparge at 75.5º

*Boil 90':*
60' 32.6g Tettnanger 1.7% alpha acid
10' 1/2 tablet Deltafloc
05' 10g fresh sweet orange peel (no white part at all) *?????*
05' 5g fresh grapefruit peel (no white part at all) *?????*
05' 15g chinese coriander (crushed) *?????*

*Estimated Gravity / ABV:* OG: 1.050 SG - FG: 1.014 SG - ABV: 4.68%

*Yeast: *

- Belgian Wit II Ale WLP410: "Less phenolic than WLP400, and more spicy. Will leave a bit more sweetness, and flocculation is higher than WLP400. Use to produce Belgian Wit, Spiced Ales, Wheat Ales, and Specialty Beers. Available May/June $15.00"
Belgian Wit II Ale Yeast WLP410 70-75% Low-Med 67-74 °F Medium
or
- Belgian Ale Yeast WLP550: "Saisons, Belgian Ales, Belgian Reds, Belgian Browns, and White beers are just a few of the classic Belgian beer styles that can be created with this yeast strain. Phenolic and spicy flavors dominate the profile, with less fruitiness then WLP500. $15.00"
Belgian Ale Yeast WLP550 78-85% Medium 68-78 °F Med-High
or
- Belgian Wit Ale Yeast WLP400: "Slightly phenolic and tart, this is the original yeast used to produce Wit in Belgium. $15.00"
Belgian Wit Ale Yeast WLP400 74-78% Low-Med 67-74 °F Medium
or
- Safale WB-06: "A Dry wheat yeast that produces subtle ester & phenol flavour notes typical of wheat beers. Replaces Safale K-97. $6.00"
Safbrew – Wheat Beer Yeast WB-06 Medium Low 59-75 °F Medium
*?????*

*Primary Fermentation: *7-8 days @ 18-22°C

*Priming sugar:* 3.0vol CO2; 3.1g dextrose or 2.8g table sugar per 33cl bottle.

*Carbonation: *Rest in the bottle for 2 weeks @ 18-20°C


------------------ Water calculations:
http://www.biabcalculator.com/
Grain Bill 2800g
Grain Temp 20ºC
Batch Size 10l
Mash Temp 48,8ºC
Boil Time 90'
Kettle Size 20l
Trub 1l
BoilOff Rate 4,5l/h
Grain Absorption 0,8l/kg of grain

Total Water Needed 19.99l
Strike Water Temp 49ºC
Total Mash Volume 21.86l
PreBoil Wort 17.75l
PostBoil Wort 11.00l


------------------ Efficiency/Grain calculations:
https://www.brewersfriend.com/allgrain-ogfg/
Wort Collected (pre-boil): 17.7l
Batch Size (after boil): 11l
Efficiency: 65%
Yeast Alcohol Tolerance *: Medium attenuation 72%
Grain
1.41kg Flaked Wheat 
1.26kg Bohemian Pilsnet
0.14kg Flaked Oats 
Estimated Pre Boil OG: 1.031
Estimated Original Gravity: 1.050
Estimated Final Gravity: 1.014
Estimated Alcohol By Volume:4.68%

Yeast Alcohol Tolerance *: High attenuation 74%
Grain
1.41kg Flaked Wheat 
1.26kg Bohemian Pilsnet
0.14kg Flaked Oats 
Estimated Pre Boil OG: 1.031
Estimated Original Gravity: 1.050
Estimated Final Gravity: 1.011
Estimated Alcohol By Volume:5.01%


------------------ IBU calculations:
https://www.brewersfriend.com/ibu-calculator/
Boil Size: 17.7l
Batch Size: 11l (1l of turb)
Target Original Gravity (OG): 1.050

Tettnanger hops pellets average alpha acid 1.7%, 60', 32.27g
Estimated Boil Gravity: 1.031
Total IBU: 15.00


------------------ Priming sugar calculations:
https://www.brewersfriend.com/beer-priming-calculator/
Amount Being Packaged: 0.33l
Volumes of CO2: 3Vol.
Temperature of Beer: 20ºC

CO2 in Beer: 0.86 volumes
Table sugar: 2.8g
Dextrose: 3.1g

------------------ Color calculations:
https://www.brewersfriend.com/srm-calculator/
Batch Size (after boil): 11l
Grain
1.41kg Flaked Wheat 
1.26kg Bohemian Pilsnet
0.14kg Flaked Oats 
SRM: 3.92
EBC: 7.73


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## Tropico (22/8/17)

Still can't decide if I love or hate wheat beers. My only suggestion is cut all spices and let the yeast you choose do its thing. Work on it from there.


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## Hez (22/8/17)

Tropico said:


> Still can't decide if I love or hate wheat beers. My only suggestion is cut all spices and let the yeast you choose do its thing. Work on it from there.


Apparently everyone here hates them...
Thank you for your help


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## Tropico (22/8/17)

Hez said:


> Apparently everyone here hates them...
> Thank you for your help


Your nose and your palate. Brew it, if you like it, do it again. If you find it may not be up to your expectation, then try a Belgian Saison.


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## MHB (22/8/17)

For me overdoing the spice is pretty common, well regarded commercial clones of Hoegaarden use less than 15g of Coriander and Curacao / HL(100L) , a lot of home brewers use more in 20L.
Probably a better choice for summer drinking, but I'm one of those who do love it.
Mark


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## Hez (23/8/17)

Tropico said:


> Your nose and your palate. Brew it, if you like it, do it again. If you find it may not be up to your expectation, then try a Belgian Saison.


Thanks! I'll do a belgian saison Next. I'll tell you how this goes anyway... But you'll have to wait three weeks jejeje


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## Hez (23/8/17)

MHB said:


> For me overdoing the spice is pretty common, well regarded commercial clones of Hoegaarden use less than 15g of Coriander and Curacao / HL(100L) , a lot of home brewers use more in 20L.
> Probably a better choice for summer drinking, but I'm one of those who do love it.
> Mark


I used to work as an ski instructor in the French Pyrenees some years ago (before becoming a dull software engineer) and we used to drink a lot of a Blanche on tap from northern france they had back then. I loved it. Lots of good memories..

So, what do you think? Should I cut down to 10g of coriander and 10g of the mixed fresh orange sweet/grapefruit peel ? Should I do 5 or 10% on the oats?
Last time, with the weissbier I didn't use the Munich malt and I got a bland beer. I don't want this to go the same way...


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## manticle (23/8/17)

Sorry if I missed it - what yeast?

For coriander - very fresh indian or home grown, crushed and dry toasted, added to the boil in very small amounts. It has a delicate citrus character.

Tett is a fine choice, styrian goldings are also great


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## Hez (23/8/17)

manticle said:


> Sorry if I missed it - what yeast?
> 
> For coriander - very fresh indian or home grown, crushed and dry toasted, added to the boil in very small amounts. It has a delicate citrus character.
> 
> Tett is a fine choice, styrian goldings are also great


I decided to use the " Belgian Wit Ale Yeast WLP400" eventually but I still have doubts about the % of the flaked oats and the amount of spices to use...

Before coming here to Sydney I used to have all the aromatic plants outside my kitchen's window so when I was cooking I could grab some fresh parsley, thyme, rosemary, coriander... But here I don't have a window in my kitchen or the plants, what I have is cheap chinese coriander seeds.
I will do as you tell in the future though. Thanks for the advice!


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## manticle (23/8/17)

Underdo, rather than overdo the spice.
Yeast choice sounds good.

Not sure about the oats - seems like a typical US type overcomplication.
Pils, unmalted wheat, good mash, good yeast, light fresh spice additions, job done.


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## Hez (23/8/17)

manticle said:


> Underdo, rather than overdo the spice.
> Yeast choice sounds good.
> 
> Not sure about the oats - seems like a typical US type overcomplication.
> Pils, unmalted wheat, good mash, good yeast, light fresh spice additions, job done.


Does 1g/L sounds like over or under doing? I don't know! 

I think I'll go with:
- 10g of coriander seeds
- 6.6g of fresh sweet orange peel
- 3.3g of fresh grapefruit peel

Yes, I've read some US forums and different articles online and all of them agree on the oats but they don't agree on the quantity some say 5 others 10%. If you don't do it and you get a fine one, maybe that's a hint, so I'll go with 5%.
It's believed to be in Pierre Cellis' original recipe... The thing is that guy never told the whole recipe to anyone but he gave some hints to some people and the oat thing was amongst them.

There are some very interesting readings about this kind of beer, detective work jeje

By the way, Feral's wit beer is really really similar to the Blanche I use to have in France, try it if you haven't yet, but pour it in a big glass first, you can't taste it properly directly from the bottle. I'm sure they put way more than 3 CO2 vol in those bottles..


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## homebrewnewb (24/8/17)

Hey @Hez , how did you go on settling on the recipe?

I am looking at the BYO one. Sure you have too.


But after reading this thread i will change it based on your suggestions and use Tettnanger

I would like to try the W 400 but will probably have to settle on SafAle
I like the idea of Grapefruit and Orange zest. Might take me back to Bosco's
And i am thinking if cucumber might work... hmm.
Any thoughts on chamomile or is this going a little off kilter? 
EDIT just read why you say NAY to that.

flaked wheat
Pilsner malt
flaked oats
Munich malt
227 g rice hulls or other natural filter
Tettnager hops (60 mins)
fresh citrus zest (5 mins)
crushed coriander seed (5 mins)
dried chamomile flowers (5 mins)


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## Hez (24/8/17)

homebrewnewb said:


> Hey @Hez , how did you go on settling on the recipe?
> 
> I am looking at the BYO one. Sure you have too.
> 
> ...




Hi @homebrewnewb !
I think I'm all set up, yes... at last! jejeje

I will eventually do:
- 50% flaked wheat
- 45% pilsner
- 5% flaked oats
- WLP400 (wet regular belgian yeast tipe 1)
- Tettnanger hops for bitteting up to 15 IBU
- 1g/L cracked coriander seeds (5')
- 1g/L 2/3 fresh sweet orange peel, 1/3 fresh grapefruit peel (5')

I'm going to pick up the stuff this evening and I will brew it during the weekend. I'll tell you how it goes...

You know I'm a total rookie and this will be my 1st witbier, so I can only speak from my readings. Most of it was based into that article you linked which I read a couple of weeks ago, but it's a really good one! Thanks!

About the orange/grapefruit peel, I asked my supplier and he told me the dry bitter orange peel is probably impossible to import to australia being " basically untreated mouldy orange peel" and this alternative seems legit (I found the idea in a US forum where one guy quoted it from an "expert brewer").

I'm using the Tettnanger just because my last beer was a german hefe-weizen / weissbier and I have some left. I've read they come from the same family as SAAZ and Hallertauer which are the typical hops used for this kind of beer. I know "thinking all bittering hops are the same is ludicrous" (someone pointed it out when I used chinhook into my dry irish beer, which turned out to be the best beer I've made so far, by the way), but being a low-alpha hop and from the same family... yep, I supose is all right. In fact I've read in other forums it's a common substitution and some people actually prefer using this variety instead of the Saaz.

Regarding the chamomille and other spices, almost every recipe calls for 3 "tea-bags" of chamomille per 5gallon (=~20l) of beer, but I don't like chamomille, so I'm not using it. Let's see how it goes without it. If you want to stick to the original recipe, I think that's a must, though. 
I've read in every article/forum everyone has a secret-special addition, being common: anise, cardamom, black/gren/red/pink pepper-seeds, juniper berries and even chili peppers but always very very subtle, less proportion than coriander seeds and citrus peel. I will go simple for my first time, maybe I'll go crazy next time...
I think it would be a good idea to make an infusion/tea with them in different proportions to see if you like the taste, but I guess it hasn't much sense if you haven't brewed one before.

I'm really interested in your beer, please tell me how it goes!

cheers!


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## homebrewnewb (24/8/17)

@powerdog69 did mention he brewed an award winning Wit, i did ask if he was feelin' generous with the recipe but i'm still waiting ;p
Good luck Hez, report back, i will be doing mine in a week or two.


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## Hez (24/8/17)

homebrewnewb said:


> @powerdog69 did mention he brewed an award winning Wit, i did ask if he was feelin' generous with the recipe but i'm still waiting ;p
> Good luck Hez, report back, i will be doing mine in a week or two.


jejeje
so much secrecy with witbier! 

ah! I forgot to say one little detail more...
I've also read people don't use irish moss / deltafloc / whirfloc in this beer! So I'm ditching it from my recipe...


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## manticle (24/8/17)

I'd be inclined to go 0.5g/L


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## Hez (24/8/17)

manticle said:


> I'd be inclined to go 0.5g/L


So under=0,5 and over =1 ? Jejeje that's what I wanted to hear, thank you!


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## Hez (28/8/17)

We did it on friday. It's in the fermenter bubbling a lot.
I finally corrected my kettle measurements. I think the other beers we've made so far turned out good because of pure luck, they were so wrong...

I improved my BIAB technique as well and so my efficiency from a terrible 65% to a pretty miserable 68%. With this one I calculated the grain for obtaining an OG of 1050 with 65% and with the correct exact water and all I got ~1052.5.
Last time the FG was suposed to be 1012 and ended up being 1010, this time it is suposed to be 1014 but after 1 day the airlock was dancing like a masai, so if it reaches 1010 I'm going to have a highly alcoholic witbier... and this one is not going to be bland, this one is going to need knife and fork. jejeje I don't know if that's good or bad, I supose is bad if you don't end up with what you planned, but... well, we'll see.
Should I have added some extra water to the fermenter?

So what did I change to get this extra 3% on efficiency? Well, the stepped mash I think is helping. I also changed the way I stir the malt into the mash, instead of moving the paddle around back and forwards for a couple of minutes I tried to do it by spinning the paddle itself and I did it when I poured the grain and while raising the temp from one step to the next one. A part from that, I found out that my kettle fits inside one of those insulated bags, so I used one to keep a constant temp in every step instead of constantly play with the burner. It also made things easier.

I also changed the way I make the sparge. I used another kettle with one of those things for steaming vegetables, moved the bag over there and did the sparge in this second pot while the big one was reaching boiling temp. On top of that, this time I used the correct temp for the sparge, I did it way slower and I got less transparent water while saving time...

But not everything was good... I decided to listen @manticle and use 0.5g/L of spices so... as my coriander is the chinese one, instead of using 5.5g I rasied it to 8g, so far so good but when I was peeling the orange and the grapefruit I saw the 5g and I thought... what the f***?! it seemed so little that I peeled a little more and suddenly I realized I had doubled the amount. It just seemed right to me, so I went with that... 6.6g of orange and 3.4g of grapefruit peel. My last beer came out a little bland and I didn't want this to be the same... I think that was a mistake. After chilling, when I transferred the wort to the fermenter all I could smell was orange. And that's what I got after tasting the wort from the hydrometer. So I did exactly what I read 215312341435 times not to do! It doesn't matter how much you read and plan, experience it's everything! jejeje

Anyway. More next week when I bottle.


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## manticle (29/8/17)

Good luck with it. Might be perfect for your tastes - otherwise tweak it next time.


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## Droopy Brew (29/8/17)

Orange always comes across as dominant in the early stages of ferment but fades rapidly. Once bottled, I'm willing to bet you will barely be able to detect it.


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## Hez (29/8/17)

manticle said:


> Good luck with it. Might be perfect for your tastes - otherwise tweak it next time.



I'm afraid it was a mistake to use so much orange peel. You told me exactly what to do and in the very last moment I changed my mind and decided (ironic mode: on) with all my great experience and knowledge (ironic mode: off) not listening to you. Sorry. I will from now on.
Anyway, let's see how it goes... I used "seville oranges" which are quite bitter. In fact, if you go to Sevilla, which is a very very beautiful place by the way, you'll see millions of trees with beautiful round and perfect oranges all around and you'll be tempted to grab one and bite it... don't. They are bitter as hell. Exactly the same happens with women from Sevilla. They are also beautiful and perfect (not round) but don't try to grab one and bite her, you'll be very disappointed and probably eunuch.
https://www.google.com.au/search?sa.....1.1.64.psy-ab..3.4.963...0i67k1.7C0WY_FD14g

Thank you very much for your help and encouragement.



Droopy Brew said:


> Orange always comes across as dominant in the early stages of ferment but fades rapidly. Once bottled, I'm willing to bet you will barely be able to detect it.


Really? jejeje thanks mate, you're a boost of confidence! 

2 days ago the airlock was bubbling every 3" aprox, yesterday 5" and this morning was taking about 8" but I've read this yeast is slow and my OG was 1052, so it might take longer than usual...


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## goatchop41 (2/9/17)

MHB said:


> For me overdoing the spice is pretty common, well regarded commercial clones of Hoegaarden use less than 15g of Coriander and Curacao / HL(100L) , a lot of home brewers use more in 20L.
> Mark





Hez said:


> Does 1g/L sounds like over or under doing? I don't know!
> 
> I think I'll go with:
> - 10g of coriander seeds
> ...



What MHB tried to say to you here is that for your 10-11L batch, you should be considering using less than 1.5g of the coriander and orange peel......


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## MHB (2/9/17)

Bear in mind that breweries use almost exclusively Dried Curacao Peel, which is way bitterer than Seville will ever be. It's fairly available these days and not only accounts for a fair fraction of the perceived bitterness but also supplies the orange flavour/aroma.
Fresh peel is probably about 1/2 water so allowance must be made if using fresh over dried.
Likewise get good Indian Coriander seed, both are crushed and generally put in a muslin bag and hung in the kettle for the whole boil.
It makes a difference, especially if you are trying to "clone" something like a Hoegaarden.
Mark


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## Hez (2/9/17)

MHB said:


> Bear in mind that breweries use almost exclusively Dried Curacao Peel, which is way bitterer than Seville will ever be. It's fairly available these days and not only accounts for a fair fraction of the perceived bitterness but also supplies the orange flavour/aroma.
> Fresh peel is probably about 1/2 water so allowance must be made if using fresh over dried.
> Likewise get good Indian Coriander seed, both are crushed and generally put in a muslin bag and hung in the kettle for the whole boil.
> It makes a difference, especially if you are trying to "clone" something like a Hoegaarden.
> Mark


Yes, that's what I thought.. but I already had the chinese coriander around... And I boiled it just for 5min. Tomorrow I will bottle it.last hydrometer test 8t didn't have much orange flavour to be honest...
Well i wasn't trying to clone anything but making a generic Belgian wheat beer style one.
We'll see how it turns out it two weeks!
Thanks so much for your help, next time I'll try the hoergaarden clone!


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## goatchop41 (2/9/17)

MHB said:


> ...both are crushed and generally put in a muslin bag and hung in the kettle for the whole boil.



Aha! Here is the likely difference between most homebrewers and the pros when it comes to how much of the spices they are adding - pretty much every homebrew clone for a witbier that I have seen has said to only add the coriander and dried orange peel for 5-10 mins of the boil, as opposed to the full 60-90 min boil


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## MHB (2/9/17)

For some reason most home brewers appear to think that if a little is good more must be better, rarely in the beers we admire is the spice more than a grace note or a highlight - home brewers try to make it dominant. To my mind usually to the detriment of the beer.
Nothing wrong with subtlety.
Mark


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## goatchop41 (3/9/17)

Reminds me of this: https://beerandbrewing.com/belgian-beer-youre-probably-doing-it-wrong/


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## Hez (4/9/17)

I bottled it yesterday. I could have done it before but I was too busy... 

In a previous post I put the OG was 1052.5 but it was not, there are 5 spaces between lines in between 50 and 60 in the hydrometer scale, so each line is 2 points. I counted 2.5 lines from 50, so it was 55, not 52.5, I don't know what was I thinking about jeje

The FG is 1014 So...
https://www.brewersfriend.com/abv-calculator/
Alcohol By Volume: 5.38%
Apparent Attenuation: 74%
Calories: 181.9 per 12oz bottle -> 170.8kcal/33cl bottle
Original Gravity: 13.57 °P, 1.055
Final Gravity: 3.57 °P, 1.014

I've improved my efficiency, apparently, so now I have a slightly high alcoholic witbier... I have to take this into account for my next beer! I calculated the amount of grain with a 65% efficiency for obtaining 1050 and I got 1055. Also I realized I doubled the amount of oats! instead of 140g (5% of the grain bill) I used 280g = 9.9%, this has also increased the OG, of course. So with everything (taking into account the extra oats), my efficiency wasn't 65%, it was 69% !!!! (calculated using https://www.brewersfriend.com/allgrain-ogfg/ in reverse) 

I tested the beer from the hydrometer and I didn't get much coriander/orange flavour... I would say it's very very subtle to say the most... in the end, it seems my proportions weren't so bad!  Thanks to the poor quality of the chinese coriander and using fresh orange peel instead of the dried one.

I was feeling brave so I increased the carbonation to 3.2vol and this time I primed with table sugar instead of dextrose. 
In two weeks we will see if the bottles explode or I can make a decent belgian style wheat beer.

Next I wanted to make another german style wheat beer (weissbier/hefeweizen) but someone told me to look into the saison and now I don't know what to do... I'll probably stick to my plan and make the wheat one and then the saison.

The two people-who-brew I know here have tasted my beers and they said they are ok for having so little experience but I can tell they weren't very impressed  
Anyway both of them are IPA fans and none of them had brewed a wheat beer (not a belgian neither a german style) and neither of them liked dark beers (I've made one pale ale, one weird pale ale, one stout, one weissbier and this one). I don't know why but for many people it's IPA or nothing.
I like IPA's, but I also like all other kind of beers. This saturday I went to this place http://www.tommysbeercafe.com.au/ and they have really good Czech beers. First time I've had a good pilsner/lager in Australia.

In my opinion, there are many IPA's that make me think someone had too many different hop leftovers. I think that's going to be my last beer before leaving Australia, I'll make an IPA with all the hops I have accumulated in my fridge  so these two will love it.. 
- This is my new beer, I call it "pisto IPA"*
- OH! beautiful IPA! it's so hoppy... how many IBUs does it have?
- 2821 IBU
- Amazing! I love the hops! Your best beer ever!

(*"Pisto" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pisto is what you do when you have several old vegetables in the fridge: capsicum, onions, tomatoes, zuccini, aubergines, carrots, tomato sauce... whatever, it's basically a "leftovers vegetable stew")


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## homebrewnewb (4/9/17)

weird, god bless you, you excitable, beer-loving Spaniard.


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## Lord Raja Goomba I (4/9/17)

Hez said:


> I'm afraid it was a mistake to use so much orange peel. You told me exactly what to do and in the very last moment I changed my mind and decided (ironic mode: on) with all my great experience and knowledge (ironic mode: off) not listening to you. Sorry. I will from now on.
> Anyway, let's see how it goes... I used "seville oranges" which are quite bitter. In fact, if you go to Sevilla, which is a very very beautiful place by the way, you'll see millions of trees with beautiful round and perfect oranges all around and you'll be tempted to grab one and bite it... don't. They are bitter as hell. Exactly the same happens with women from Sevilla. They are also beautiful and perfect (not round) but don't try to grab one and bite her, you'll be very disappointed and probably eunuch.
> https://www.google.com.au/search?sa.....1.1.64.psy-ab..3.4.963...0i67k1.7C0WY_FD14g
> 
> ...


 I didn't get any Spanish women when I hit the link. Might be an issue with my interpretation but I only saw some Sevilla buildings. Still beautiful, but not what I was expecting.


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## Hez (4/9/17)

Lord Raja Goomba I said:


> I didn't get any Spanish women when I hit the link. Might be an issue with my interpretation but I only saw some Sevilla buildings. Still beautiful, but not what I was expecting.


 LOL

that was the point: 
- oranges from the trees in sevilla look amazing but are bitter
- women from sevilla are beautiful but very difficult
- you thought you will see hot girls, you saw pictures of sevilla  

The link was because I said: "if you go to Sevilla, which is a very very beautiful place by the way"


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## nosco (4/9/17)

I just took a sample from my Wit and its smelling great. I brewed it to use some oranges from our tree. As fresh as you can get. I brewed the recipe from Brewing classic styles which I think is the same as the BYO recipe. I had to put the Coriander seeds in the fermenter. I made about 500ml of seed tea. It smelled pretty citrus'y. I hope it tastes better than the commercial versions I've had. They have all been pretty ordinary. Fresh beer will make a huge difference I think.

Edit: the sample is tasting fantastic!


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## manticle (4/9/17)

Lord Raja Goomba I said:


> I didn't get any Spanish women when I hit the link. Might be an issue with my interpretation but I only saw some Sevilla buildings. Still beautiful, but not what I was expecting.


My google skills are pretty good, evidently.

Got the upside of what Hez was intimating, would need to go there as a younger man to experience the downside.


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## manticle (4/9/17)

homebrewnewb said:


> weird, god bless you, you excitable, beer-loving Spaniard.




I recognise the exact planet he's currently on.


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## Dan Pratt (4/9/17)

was planning this for the weekend. its been a few years since i had a witbier on tap.

What are you brewing in 2017 ?


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## shacked (4/9/17)

I've been using tinctures to add flavor to beers post ferment, rather than adding ingredients during the boil. For example, I recently added orange and pistachio flavors to a brett beer by soaking pistachios in Cointreau and then adding the liquid just prior to packaging. (The beer also had almonds & walnuts in the mash and apricot, raisins and sultanas in secondary). 

Perhaps soaking the spices and orange peel in a neutral spirit might be another way of getting those flavors into a witbier with more control. You could add to taste just before you bottle/keg.


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## Hez (4/9/17)

manticle said:


> I recognise the exact planet he's currently on.


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## homebrewnewb (5/9/17)

^ this guy....



manticle said:


> I recognise the exact planet he's currently on.



hey, i've been doing AG for the last four years and can STILL totally relate to this level of enthusiasm, brewing is a cross-cultural, international art form. and before anyone launches a nuke, i think we should all agree on a standard IPA (there goes 20-30 years of discussion)then enjoy a few before anyone thinks about touching a button.


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## Hez (5/9/17)

homebrewnewb said:


> ^ this guy....
> 
> 
> 
> hey, i've been doing AG for the last four years and can STILL totally relate to this level of enthusiasm, brewing is a cross-cultural, international art form. and before anyone launches a nuke, i think we should all agree on a standard IPA (there goes 20-30 years of discussion)then enjoy a few before anyone thinks about touching a button.



I love beer, making stuff and I miss my other hobbie (woodworking)... yes I'm very enthusiastic! jeje

Interesting facts about the IPA:
http://zythophile.co.uk/false-ale-q...vented-ipa-to-survive-the-long-trip-to-india/
IPA = October-brewed “stock” bitter ale
average temp from october in london ~= july in Sydney
I'm leaving in christmas (98% probabilities), so I already missed my opportunity of making an IPA here...  But I will be able to do it at home (Hoyo de Manzanares) in April! 
They filmed Sergio Leone's spagetti westerns there. I know a couple of locals with a weird resemblance to Clint Eastwood.

Bah, I don't care, I'll try to make one here anyway... "BIAB generic IPA" post coming...

Two weeks until the witbier is ready to drink!


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## Hez (18/9/17)

That's it!













IMG_20170917_1405187801



__ Hez
__ 18/9/17
__ 1






Big head, good retention, good carbonation, good light color, nice cloudiness, really nice body (the oats made a nice velvety texture), nice wheat/barley balance, you can taste the grain but it's not malty it has a great wheat taste, the bitterness is perfect... but... you're going to kill me... not enough coriander/orange aroma! jejejeje
Well, it's still "young" as you say. The weissbier I made tastes much better now after a month than after 2 weeks when I said it was bland. Bad thing I only have 2 left 

I'm very happy with the results, thank you very much for you help!

*There was a guy in the beach with a too-small-wierd-swimsuit that was preocuppied when he saw me taking this picture, I guess he though I was sneaking around to take pictures of him, but when he realized I was taking a picture of a beer in a glass right there then his expression went to be... even more concerned! jejejeje


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## homebrewnewb (18/9/17)

You tell Tony Abbott to **** right off! that's your beer, and a damn fine one by the looks. congratulations on pulling it off.


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## nosco (18/9/17)

Mine seems to have stalled at 1.020. Expected gravity was 1.010  It will be 3 weeks on Wednesday. I was hoping cause its a slow yeast it was going to drop some more but its been at 1.020 for a few days now. Im kegging it tonight.


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## Hez (18/9/17)

nosco said:


> Mine seems to have stalled at 1.020. Expected gravity was 1.010  It will be 3 weeks on Wednesday. I was hoping cause its a slow yeast it was going to drop some more but its been at 1.020 for a few days now. Im kegging it tonight.


That's odd... What could be the cause of that? Temperature? Not enough yeast?

Well , I'm sure it will taste good anyway. And looking on the bright side, being low in alcohol you can drink more without feeling bad for it


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