Wheat Beer

For a beer to be labeled a wheat beer, it has to be brewed with wheat as one of the main ingredients of the mash. Most wheat beers contain between 30 – 70% wheat malt, which is richer in protein than barley malt. As a result, wheat beer produces a thick, long-lasting head.

There are two major categories of wheat beer: Belgian style and German style. Traditional Belgian wheats are usually made from raw unmalted wheat and flavored with coriander or orange peel, while German wheats are most often a 50/50 mix of wheat and barley malt.

German wheat beer was once prohibited from manufacture under the Reinheitsgebot or “purity order.” This law made it illegal in Germany to brew beer from anything other than barley, hops and water. The purpose of the Reinheitsgebot was to prevent competition between beer makes and bakers for grains, thus allowing bread to remain affordable for the German citizens. This centuries old law was still in effect until 1987 when it was fully lifted, allowing any ingredient used in food to be used in the brewing of beer. Today, some German breweries continue to follow Reinheitsgebot.

Belgian Witbier or “white beer” is an unfiltered wheat named for its pale color. The suspended yeast and wheat proteins in witbier cause the beer to appear hazy or white when it is cold. Witbier is flavored with a bittering agent called “gruit”. Traditional gruit is a blend of herbs and spices, including coriander, bitter orange and hops. It is a combination of gruit and lactic acid that gives white beer a sour taste.

Hefeweizen literally translates to “yeast wheat” and refers to wheat beer in its traditional, unfiltered form. Hefeweizens are noted by their high carbonation and signature flavor, which can range from clove to vanilla or even banana. The flavoring is a result of the fermentation process, not from any artificial additives in the beer. When a chemical called phenol is present in the yeast, the beer will have a medicinal flavor. When esters are present, the beer will have a fruity flavor. Hefeweizens are generally pale and cloudy with yeast still present from the fermenting process.

Dunkelweizens are are a darker wheat beer, usually brown and cloudy from the yeast content. (Dunkeweizen translates to “dark wheat”). Dark wheats typically have a higher alcohol content than lighter varieties. Dunkel wheats are brewed with a similar wheat and barley ratio to Hefeweizens but contain a larger portion of caramelized malts that contribute to their color and complexity. Dunkels wheats have a light sweetness that often tastes like chocolate or coffee. Similar to Hefeweizens, the hint of clove or banana flavor can be also be detected in some Dunkel wheats.

Weizenbocks are brewed with 60-70% wheat malt, making them a stronger version of the Dunkelweizen (6.4% ABV). Weizenbocks have the same dark color but generally have a hint of spiciness or fruit.

Berliner wheat beer is a German white beer with a very low alcohol content (2.5% – 3% ABV). Berliner wheat is sometimes called the “champagne of beers”. Like its Belgian cousin, Berliner is made with spices like coriander and has a sour taste due to its lactic acid content. Traditional Berliner wheats are served as either “red” or “green”, which refers to the sweetened raspberry or woodruff syrups that are added to the beer to reduce its tartness.