Bavarian Hefe Water Profile

[oasisbliss]

Looking to brew a "franzi" like hefe and I think the water I am currently using is causing some issues. I would like to get the water profile used in this region for this beer.....

Any suggestions on how to find a good water profile to use with the appropriate minerals to add to distilled water for this beer type?

Thanks

 

[jbaysurfer]

Looking to brew a "franzi" like hefe and I think the water I am currently using is causing some issues. I would like to get the water profile used in this region for this beer.....

Any suggestions on how to find a good water profile to use with the appropriate minerals to add to distilled water for this beer type?

Thanks

Go here:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f128/brewing-water-chemistry-primer-198460/

Also, this speadsheet is very useful and has a BUNCH of preloaded H20 profiles from all over the world. I did a Vienna Lager and was able to correct my RO to the Vienna profile using it. It seems a bit intimidating at first, but honestly, H20 Chemistry can just seem that way. In the end, it's not. You'll need 3 things (in all likelihood) Epsom Salt, Calcium Chloride, and Gypsum.
https://sites.google.com/site/brunwater/

 

[oasisbliss]

Thanks J!

 

[mabrungard]

The 'boiled' Munich profile in Bru'n Water would be somewhat reflective of water used in the Bavarian region that is home to a lot of Weizen breweries. Be aware that the bicarbonate content would typically be further reduced through acidification with lactic acid.

 

[jbaysurfer]

YW Oasis. ^ This is the genius behind the Bru n Water spreadsheet ^

Cheers Martin, my wife is a Bruin, so we have that in common too. :-D

 

[ajdelange]

Hefeweizens are brewed all over Germany (and elsewhere) with widely varying water supplies. Given that the ones I like best use the Wiehenstephan yeast and originated near Munich it appears to me that a decarbonated Isar like water would be best and that's what I essentially use: RO with a small amount of calcium chloride.

 

[oasisbliss]

Hefeweizens are brewed all over Germany (and elsewhere) with widely varying water supplies. Given that the ones I like best use the Wiehenstephan yeast and originated near Munich it appears to me that a decarbonated Isar like water would be best and that's what I essentially use: RO with a small amount of calcium chloride.

AJ can you expand on that - what is a small amount?
So if I have 10 Gallons of Distilled water how much cal chloride would I use?

thanks !

 

[ajdelange]

2-4 grams per 5 gallons. You'll have to experiment to see what works best for your personal taste.

 

[jbaysurfer]

2-4 grams per gallon. You'll have to experiment to see what works best for your personal taste.

2g/gallon yields you 255ppm of Chloride, Which is pretty high. I use .5g/gallon, but I also get Calcium from Gypsum. I do think it's a good idea to start small, but as AJ says here "experiment to see what works best for your personal taste".

 

[oasisbliss]

Cool thanks Jbay and AJ - also how do I find the profiles on the spread sheet I don't see them ??

 

[jbaysurfer]

^ "Water Adjustment" Tab, row 4, column A. Thats the page on which I spend the most time right there.

 

[oasisbliss]

Got it

 

[mabrungard]

Scroll down the Water Adjustment sheet and you will see a big table of the water profiles. All of them are user adjustable, so if you don't like the numbers I include, you can change them. You should make sure you balance them when changing things, though.

 

[ajdelange]

2g/gallon yields you 255ppm of Chloride, Which is pretty high. I use .5g/gallon, but I also get Calcium from Gypsum. I do think it's a good idea to start small, but as AJ says here "experiment to see what works best for your personal taste".

A.J. left out a 5 and an 's'. That should have been 2 - 4 grams per FIVE gallons. 0.4 - 0.8 grams per gallon is much more reasonable. It is a good idea to start small and I believe Weizens benefit from pretty soft water but as I said in the earlier post they are made with all kinds of water. Warner's monograph had nothing to say about the water used for this style.

 

[orangehero]

He explicitly writes that a broad range of water profiles are utilized and are perfectly acceptable, contributing to the local character of each weissbier. I believe he only comments that a biological acidification is used when necessary.