Michael Meissner’s Bavarian Weizen

(6 gallons/23 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.050 FG = 1.012 IBU = 16 SRM = 6 ABV = 5.1%
“My philosophy on brewing these days is to keep it simple and allow the ingredients to shine through.” – Michael Meissner (New South Wales)

Ingredients

5 lb. 8 oz. (2.5 kg) Joe White wheat malt
4 lb. 6.5 oz. (2.0 kg) Joe White Pilsner malt
1 lb. 1.6 oz (0.50 kg) Weyermann Vienna malt
4.3 AAU Mt Hood hops (60 mins) (1.2 oz./33 g of 3.7% alpha acids)
White Labs WLP300 (Hefeweizen ale) yeast (2 qt./2 L starter)
9.0 oz. (260 g) corn sugar (for priming)

Step by Step

Mash in with 16 qts. (15 L) water and adjust mash pH to 5.2. Mash at 153 °F (67 °C) for 60 minutes with 3 qts. (3 L) of wort recirculated after ½ hour to even out mash temperature. Sparge to give preboil volume of 8.7 gallons (33 L). Boil for 90 minutes, adding hops at indicated time. Cool to 63 °F (17 °C) and pitch yeast. Vigorous fermentation caused temperature to rise to 66 °F (19 °C) over the course of a week. Remove some of the yeast load and condition in fermenter for one more week before bottling. Prime with dextrose to achieve 3.5–4 volumes CO2.

Extract with grains option: Reduce amount of wheat malt to 8 oz. (0.23 kg) and Pilsner malt to 6 oz. (0.17 kg). Add 1.5 lbs. (0.68 kg) dried wheat malt extract and 4 lb. (1.8 kg) liquid wheat malt extract. Steep grains in 3 qts. (2.8 L) of water at 153 °F (67 °C) for 45 minutes. Combine “grain tea,” dried malt extract and water to make 3.5 gallons (13 L) of wort. Boil 60 minutes, adding hops at beginning of boil and liquid malt extract for final 15 minutes of boil. Cool, transfer to fermenter and top up to 6 gallons (23 L). Pitch yeast. Ferment, condition and package as described in all-grain recipe.