German Hefeweizen Wheat Beer — Home Brew Recipe
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Style: Wheat Beer (Hefeweizen) | ABV: ~4.8% | Volume: 23 litres | Difficulty: Intermediate
About This Recipe
A classic German-style Hefeweizen — hazy, golden, lightly spiced with banana and clove esters, and topped with a towering fluffy head. Wheat beers are unique in that most of their character comes from the yeast rather than the hops, making yeast choice absolutely critical. This recipe uses the Thomas Coopers Preacher's Hefe Wheat kit as its base.
Ingredients
- 1x Thomas Coopers Preacher's Hefe Wheat Kit (1.7kg)
- 500g Thomas Coopers Wheat Malt Extract
- 500g brewing sugar
- 1 packet Gervin GV12 Ale Yeast
- Carbonation drops
Method
- Dissolve kit extract and wheat malt extract in 2L hot water. Add brewing sugar and stir.
- Top up to 23L with cold water. Temperature should be 18–22°C.
- Pitch yeast. Ferment at 20–22°C for 5–7 days. Do not use finings — the haze is part of the style.
- Check gravity with hydrometer and bottle with carbonation drops when stable.
- Condition 7–10 days. Serve in a tall wheat beer glass, pouring the last of the bottle (with yeast) into the glass for the traditional cloudy finish.
Brewer's Notes
Wheat beers are naturally hazy — do not add finings or try to clear the beer. The yeast in suspension is part of the experience and contributes significantly to the flavour. Serve at 8–10°C with a slice of lemon if you like.