Tamalpais Wit

Classification: wit, wheat beer, Belgian ale, Hoegaarden, extract

Source: Tom Chilers (TCHILDER@us.oracle.com), Issue #1150, 5/27/93

A few months ago, I posted a barley malt extract wit beer recipe, and promised to try the same with wheat malt. Well, the first wheat malt batch finished a couple of weeks ago, and my friends and I are quickly wiping out the results. The wheat "bite" is great. This beer has a somewhat higher FG than Hoegaarden Grand Cru, so you may want to cut back the malt and/or honey to try and emulate Hoegaarden accurately.

The keys to making this beer are (1) use belgian ale yeast, (2) crush the coriander yourself, so it is nice and fresh, (3) use orange honey, and (4) use the best Hallertauer hops you can find. Papazian's basic recipe is very flexible; I've made 5 different beers so far by changing the malt combinations, and I've liked them all. I like this one the best so far.

Ingredients:

4-1/2 pounds light dry wheat malt extract
2 pounds orange honey
1 ounce Hallertauer or Northern Brewer (7.5 HBU, boil)
1 ounce Hallertauer or Hersbrucker (3 HBU finish)
1-1/2 ounces crushed coriander
1/2 ounce dried orange peel
Belgian Ale yeast (Wyeast 1214)

Procedure:

Bring 5 gallons of water to a boil, then add first three ingredients. Boil 45 minutes, then add 3/4 oz. coriander. Boil 10 minutes, then add remaining coriander and orange peel. Boil 5 minutes, and add the finishing hops for a final 2 minutes. Chill immediately to 75 F, areate into 5 gallon carboy, and add yeast. Ferment using blow-off method, then prime with 3/4 cup corn sugar and bottle.