Franziskaner Weissbier "clone"

[dannyboy58]

I have a buddy who has a lanscape company and is doing my weeding/mulching at cost this year. He loves Franziskaner Weissbier. I've never been a huge fan of wheat beers so I've never brewed one, but I want to brew 10 gallons for him TOMORROW. SO...step up here wheat beer lovers and help me out!

This is what I have...correct me as necessary and any advice on water chemistry is greatly appreciated.

50% german wheat
25% german pils
25% german light munich
1 oz hallertauer 60 mins
WL Hefe 380 @62F

[dannyboy58]

After researching and playing around a little here's what I plan to brew tomorrow. Yeast will depend on what I can get 2 packs of at the LHBS in the AM. Is there really any reason to consider a stepped mash or decoction for this beer? Opinions differ...

12 lbs Wheat Malt, Ger (2.0 SRM) Grain 1 65.8 % 0.94 gal
4 lbs Pilsner Malt (Avangard) (1.7 SRM) Grain 2 21.9 % 0.31 gal
1 lbs Avangard Dark Munich Malt (16.0 SRM) Grain 3 5.5 % 0.08 gal
12.0 oz Acid Malt (3.0 SRM) Grain 4 4.1 % 0.06 gal
8.0 oz Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM) Grain 5 2.7 % 0.04 gal
2.50 oz Hallertauer Hersbrucker [2.50 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 6 10.0 IBUs -
1.0 pkg Weihenstephan Weizen (Wyeast Labs #3068) [124.21 Yeast 7 - -

May toss in some saaz or more hersbrucker for the last 10 mins of the boil.

[brew_cat]

I have a German friend who loves his erdinger wiesbier so I made it for him a couple years ago. He loved it and brought some to the German cllub. It was well received. My grain bill was similar

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/340080/weissbier
Needs to be bottle conditiond with lager yeast

[dannyboy58]

Link doesn't work for me @brew_cat

Forgot to mention I'll definitely be kegging it for him to use with his kegerator. Any special considerations?

[sneezles61]

Brew Cat, I've had some of the Erdinger Wiessbier too.. a dark one... Splendid, quaffable brew... Nephew brought it back from Germany... He was a flight attendant on over seas.. I would do a Wiess if I could replicate that one... Sneezles61
EDIT: yup, doesnt work

[brew_cat]

Try it now. Should have a high carbonation. Well my friend taught me how to pour and drink a weisbier. First you need a proper wiezen glass he gifted me a few from the German club. You gently pour about 3/4 of the bottle down the side of the glass that is tilted almost horizontal. Then you take the remainder of the beer and swirl it in the bottle to get all the yeast in suspension then this is poured on top of the foam and sinks through the beer. This is how he showed me anyway. Hey the guy wears elk skin liederhose what can I say. Maybe you can condition in the keg by kegging before reaching terminal gravity or adding sugar

[brew_cat]

I'm thinking maybe pour a couple glasses then swirl the keg and top them up. Try it anyway maybe just drink it. I think the yeast gives it some flavor. That said I made an orange weisbier from this recipe and "dry hopped" it with zest of oranges

[voodoo_donut]

3068 is great if you can get it. Underpitch slightly with 1 smack pack direct per 5 gallons.
I would go 50/50 Pilsner and wheat malt. Or you could add 3-4% melanoidin malt for a bit more body and character. I've brewed about a dozen batches of this to date......single infusion mostly, never noticed a difference with stepped mash.

[radagast]

Here is my recipe I brewed last year based off of the old "Great Bavarian Weissbier Project" thread which was shooting for a Paulaner clone (my favorite Weissbier).

6 lbs pale wheat
4.9 lbs pilsner
5.5 oz melanoidin malt

.7 oz hallertauer 60 mins
.2 oz hallertauer 15 mins

mash at 122 for 20 mins, then step up to 150 for 60 mins

WLP300 yeast

5 gallon batch, 75% efficiency

I used the melanoidin malt to replace the typical decoction step based on advice from that thread. I kegged it and it worked out really well. May have to look at this again soon.

Also, yes for a true Weissbier it should be bottle conditioned, swirl the yeast into suspension with the dregs and poured on top of the beer, but the kegged version was perfectly quaffable as I didn't feel like bottling off two cases.

Rad

[hd4mark]

I brew at least one wheat beer in the summer. Almost always with 3068. Up until recently my LHBS did not carry White labs or not much. Is WLP300 the same or close?

[radagast]

I've not used 3068, but as a rule I favor banana over clove in my Weissbiers, so I kept this one around 62-64 for fermentation and it came out great. I believe from reading they are essentially the same strain.

Rad

[brew_cat]

I made a big batch kegged some and bottled some. There was a difference for sure. Both good but the kegged version seemed a bit thinner in the mouth

[brew_cat]

Not sure. Can't remember why I used that yeast. May have been available. I'll dig for my notations later

[dannyboy58]

My understanding is WL300 and WY3068 are the same strain. I have two smack packs of 3068 so I'll pitch one each to 5 gals. My buddy buys it kegged all the time ans said he doesn't notice much difference. He does do the pour, swirl pour method with bottles.

He said he likes the franziskaner because it has a mild flavor of both clove and banana but nothing too strong. Figure I'll try to keep them temp under 70.

My LHBS owner said when he's used this yeast its got high potention for blow off and a mess and you should plan for 30% headspace. I'll keep it to 5 gals in each bucket and put on a blow off hose...

Any other advice for my first weissen? Just got the ingredients this morning and about to roll out the brew rig.

[voodoo_donut]

I tend to start it out on the cool side(I like clove) say 62-64*, and ramp it up after 48-72hours. The 3068 is a beast and warmer temps will definitely require a blow off tube/significant head space. cooler temps yield not surprisingly a more predictable fermentation instead of "liftoff at Cape Canaveral" like a 75* plus fermentation would.
My take on temp/flavor effect is lower temps favor clove, higher temps accentuate banana.

[loopie_beer]

Mit oder ohne hefe?

The yeast is a beast so 30% headspace is crucial.

I agree that a single step mash is fine. Many to most German breweries are doing just that.

Plan on high carbonation. If force carbed swirl the keg before serving to keep yeast in suspension.

[wilcolandzaat]

The art of pouring a weissbier. Last year. At a wedding in germany. I did went to a bar who had weiss bier. On tap. I was impressed. On how they pour a beer almost a artform

[dannyboy58]

So I brewed this weissbier last week. Good, uneventful brew day. even though my basement brew area is kind of a mess due to a couple other projects going on... Two buckets in the swamp coolers at about 63F. Two smackpacks of 3068. One puffed up tight the other only inflated a little.

Fermenter 1 has krauesen starting the next morning. By day three it had a high thick krauesen. My buckets don't seal all that well so there was no danger of blow off. Day three the second fermenter was flat, no signs of fermentation at all. I went by the LHBS where I bought the yeast and told them about the smack packs. They gave me a new one. I smacked it and set it in the warm sunny car and it inflated nicely by the time I got home. I opened the bucket to pitch it and there was a thin layer of tan foam on the surface. Still thinking my goal was for underpitching...I decided NOT to pitch the new pack.

Monday I received the sump pump I ordered, installed it and starting getting the brew area reorganized. I found a partially inflated smack pack on a work table...thought...hmmm...i could swear I put this second one in the fridge...walked to the fridge and I had...it was right there and I had one in my hand...I NEVER pitched the second bucket...Wonder what bug decided to start partying in that weissbier wort?

think I did an ESB in there most recently. Didn't clean it with PBW after but I sponged it out with very hot water and then star san before use...my usual method. This should be interesting.

[brew_cat]

I'd throw the yeast in at this point.

[voodoo_donut]

Might be interesting to take a gravity reading......following with interest.