Wheat Beer - Homebrewing Style Guide
Wheat beers are a family of refreshing, effervescent brews built on a grain bill that includes a high percentage of wheat. This protein-rich grain brings a soft mouthfeel, big foamy heads, and a hazy appearance. But from there, styles diverge into two major traditions: German and American. Let’s break it down.
Weissbier (Hefeweizen): Germany’s beloved Hefeweizen (also known as Weissbier) is the definitive summer beer, cloudy, golden, and overflowing with fruity banana and spicy clove aromas from traditional yeast strains. These beers are highly carbonated, lively on the palate, and wonderfully sessionable. The malt character is soft and bready, and hops are present only to balance, not steal the show.
Dunkels Weissbier: The darker variant to the standard Hefeweizen, Dunkels Weissbier replaces pale wheat and pilsner malt with darker Munich malts for rich notes of bread crust, caramel, and even chocolate, while keeping that classic banana-clove yeast profile.
Weizenbock: Take everything you love about Weissbier and crank the dial to eleven. Weizenbock is the strong, malty wheat beer of Bavaria, packing higher alcohol, deeper malt complexity, and all the spicy-fruity goodness of a classic wheat yeast. It's bold and warming, yet still finishes smooth and creamy thanks to the wheat content.
American Wheat Beer: Our take on wheat beer leans cleaner and crisper than the German styles. American Wheat beers often use neutral ale yeast, allowing citrusy American hops to peek through. The result is a light and lively refreshing ale that is often the base for fruit wheat beers.
Vital Statistics (BJCP Categories 10A, 10B, 10C, 1D):
| Style | OG | FG | ABV | IBUs | SRM | Fermentation Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weissbier / Hefeweizen (BJCP 10A) | 1.044–1.052 | 1.010–1.014 | 4.3%–5.6% | 8–15 | 2–6 (pale straw to deep gold) | 62–72°F |
| Dunkels Weissbier (BJCP 10B) | 1.044–1.056 | 1.010–1.014 | 4.3%–5.6% | 10–18 | 14–23 (amber to mahogany) | 62–72°F |
| Weizenbock (BJCP 10C) | 1.064–1.090 | 1.015–1.022 | 6.5%–9.0% | 15–30 | 6–25 (gold to ruby brown) | 62–72°F |
| American Wheat Beer (BJCP 1D) | 1.040–1.055 | 1.008–1.013 | 4.0%–5.5% | 15–30 | 3–6 (pale yellow to gold) | 62–72°F |
Wheat Beer FAQ
What’s the difference between Weissbier and American Wheat Beer?
Weissbier uses traditional German yeast that gives it that signature banana-clove aroma. American Wheat uses a cleaner yeast and may feature more hop presence. Both use wheat, but the flavor profiles couldn’t be more different.
What kind of yeast is used for wheat beers?
Weissbiers use German Weizen yeast, such as SafAle W-68, to deliver banana fruity esters and spicy phenolics. American Wheat beers typically use clean ale yeasts like US-05 for a neutral profile that lets malt and hops shine.
Do wheat beers always taste fruity like banana?
Only if you’re using those expressive German yeasts. If you use a clean yeast, wheat beers can taste more like a lighter pale ale, bready, bright, and crisp. You can also add fruit flavoring after fermentation for a twist!
Why does wheat beer foam so much during fermentation?
Wheat malt has higher protein content, which boosts foam stability—and fermentation krausen. That means more head retention… and more risk of a foamy eruption if you’re not careful.
Is it true that wheat beer foam can be used as whipped topping?
We tried this once on a piece of pumpkin pie and it worked great. The banana complimented the pumpkin pie spice, and, go figure, the "whipped topping" had great head retention.