What is a Hefeweizen?
A Hefeweizen is a traditional Bavarian style of wheat beer. It directly translates to “yeast wheat beer” which are two of the most distinguishable features of this style of beer.
While the beer industry seems to be more hops focused currently (maybe our team just has an IPA bias), a Hefeweizen gets its prominent flavors from its yeast and the malt. Being fruit forward in taste with minimal bitterness.
It’s known as a hazy but highly drinkable style of beer that is loved by beer enthusiast and casual beer drinkers. Because of the lower bitterness, it’s a great introductory beer once someone is ready to move beyond the mass-produced options you’ll see at the gas station.
What does a Hefeweizen taste like?
One of the defining traits of a Hefeweizen is the taste of bananas. This is because the Bavarian yeast that is used in fermentation produces an ester that is what gives bananas their distinctive flavor.
The wheat and yeast profiles in the Hefeweizen makes the style fruit and spice forward. Besides banana, you can expect clove and some even say “bubblegum” flavor in the beer.
The Hefeweizen will be low bitterness, with more of a focus on the malty, fruit notes of the beer. This makes it a highly enjoyable beer for those who don’t want a bitter style.
How is it brewed?
Hefeweizen is technically a wheat beer, so it must be at least 50% wheat, but typically is made at 60 to 70 percent wheat. The rest will typically be a malted barley.
Picking the right yeast is important to get the traditional Hefeweizen flavor. You’ll want to find something that is defined as a Weizen Ale Yeast. The yeast creates esters that are the same as what are found in bananas. That signature taste will only appear with the right yeast strain.
Hefeweizen will also be an unfiltered brew, meaning that some haze will remain at the end of your fermentation.
Hop varietal should be mild. Hefeweizen are focused on the yeast and wheat so the hops shouldn’t be the primary focus, meaning high bitter hops should be avoided. Traditionally most brewers will use one of the noble hops.
Water Profile for Hefeweizen
Here is an example of a general Hefeweizen water profile. Brewers will adjust based on recipe, style, and personal preference.
One of the main considerations with a Hefeweizen will be low Sulfate levels to not highlight the bitterness of the beer.
Use this as a starting point:
Calcium: 20 ppm
Magnesium: 5 ppm
Iron: 0 ppm
Sulfate: 20 ppm
Bicarbonate: 80 ppm
Total Alkalinity: 70 ppm
Ph: 7
Total Chlorine: 0 ppm
Total Hardness: 70 ppm
Chloride: 40 ppm
Sodium: 20 ppm
Zinc: 0.1 ppm
Potassium: 0.5 ppm
Copper: 0.1 ppm
Sulfate to Chloride Ratio: 0.5
Residual Alkalinity: 50
