Schneider Weisse: Aventinus clone
This beer is basically a wheat doppelbock, made to compete with the true doppelbocks. It features notes of raisins, plums, bananas, cloves, and a touch of chocolate. A decoction mash and extended boil are really needed to bring out the dark malt and caramel flavors.
Schneider Weisse: Aventinus
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.076 FG = 1.016
IBU = 10 SRM = 21 ABV = 8.2%
Ingredients
9 lbs. (4.1 kg) wheat malt
4.75 lbs. (2.15 kg) Pilsner malt
1.5 lbs. (0.68 kg) Caramunich® malt
0.33 lb. (0.15 kg) Carafa® Special I malt
3 AAU Hallertau Hersbrucker hops (60 min.) (0.75 oz./21 g at 4% alpha acids)
Wyeast 3068 (Weihenstephan Weizen) or White Labs WLP300 (Hefeweizen Ale) yeast
1 1/4 cups (250 g) dextrose (if priming)
Step by Step
Employ a triple decoction mash. Mash in cold with 2–2.5 qts./lb. (4.2–5.2 L/kg) water. Bring up to 95 °F (35 °C) with direct heat. Pull a third of the mash, boil for 30 minutes. Add back to main mash to bring temperature up to 131 °F (55 °C).
Repeat the decoction. Add back to main mash, which should be at 146 °F (63 °C). Repeat decoction, boil for 45 minutes to an hour. Add back to main mash to raise temperature to 166 °F (74 °C). Let stand a few minutes then move on to lautering and sparge. Wort boil time is 60 minutes, adding hops at the beginning of the boil.
Cool, aerate, and pitch yeast. Ferment at 60 °F (16 °C). Condition in secondary for three to four weeks at 42 °F (6 °C) and then bottle or keg as normal.
Extract with grains option: Replace the Pilsner and wheat malts with 9.5 lbs. (4.3 kg) liquid wheat malt extract. Place crushed grains in a nylon steeping bag and steep grains in 3 gallons (11 L) of water as it heats up to at 170 °F (76 °C). While steeping, begin heating 2 gallons (7.6 L) of water to a boil in your brewpot. After steep, place bag in colander over brewpot. Pour “grain tea” through bag, then rinse bag with 1.5 qts. (~1.5 L) of 170 °F water. Bring brewpot to a boil, then remove from heat and stir in the liquid malt extract. Stir until all the extract has dissolved and return to a boil. Add hops and boil wort for 60 minutes. Cool wort and top off to 5 gallons (19 L). Follow the remaining portion of the all-grain recipe
Tips For Success: Be sure to try to ferment this on the cooler side of the suggested fermentation temperature range. The hefe strain is know to throw some fusel alcohols during more vigorous fermentations, so keeping the fermentation vigor in check through proper temperature control is a good way to keep these unwanted by-products out of your beer.
