Using Raw Wheat

[Bill Lawrence]

I am contemplating doing some sort of wheat beer for the Limbo and I thought it would be fun to try adding raw wheat to the grist. Since I ain't done it before, I have the following questions:

1. I understand the stuff is a bitch to mill, does anybody have any good suggestions?

2. What type of flavor considerations are involved (ie does it taste like malted wheat or somewhat different)?

3. I was considering doing a ceral mash on the stuff, does that sound like a good plan (I do it all the time with grits but I have never messed with raw wheat)?

As we have award winning brewers in the club, I am sure that somebody has experience with this stuff so hopefully they will post up.

Thanks
Club Moral Compass

[Brewboy]

Bill, I've only used raw wheat in the flaked and tortified forms. Both are good for head retention and bready flavors. You should understand that significant amounts will make your beer cloudy though. Think Witbeer.

Tortified is easy to mill and the flaked doesn't need milling. If you're dead set on raw wheat groats then I'd just crack them with the mill and boil. If they're sticking to your rollers, perhaps chop them in a food processor or blender and them boil.

Either will give you the desired result.

[Bill Lawrence]

Oh yeah, I was thinking either make a Wit (so I could then get pounded by Melinda and Kim) or maybe an American Wheat beer. Actually, I am doing lagers now with Wyeast 2006 so I was leaning toward the latter and thought I would try for a Pyramid type beer. Anyhow, I want the stuff cloudy so that is no big deal and that yeast strain won't stay in suspension all that long so I see that as a benefit.

After poking around on the internet, I learned that the geletanization temperature for wheat is in the 145F range and because of that, many don't think a ceral mash is needed. On the other hand, I also read that the yield will suck unless you ceral mash the stuff. Additionally, my experience with heffeweizen leads me to believe that you can positively affect the mouthfeel by doing a decoction on wheat (and ceral mashes are much like doing decoctions). Another reason I wanted to give this a try is just because I have never done it so I figured I could learn something I could apply elsewhere, assuming it works. I have had decent success messing with grits in the past, so I thought I would extrapolate that knowlege and see what happens with raw wheat. Finally, since I am competing against "professionals" like yourself, I am looking for a niche I can exploit to try and make my beers different since I don't think I will do that well if I try to compete against you pros "straight up" so to speak.

In terms of milling, I thought I might try running the wheat through my Barley Crusher a couple of times then stick it in a blender and chop the hell out of it. Since I have never actually tried it, I wonder if there is anybody out there who has? I am open to other suggestions, that was just my initial thought. Anyhow, if anybody has any ideas concerning this whole deal, please let me know, I will probably try to make the stuff over the 4th of July weekend.

[BrotherhoodBrew]

I'd say forgo the cereal mash and just do a long rest at 145 or so then step up to the 154 range for a little while and go with it. when Orlando and I make our wit we use torrified wheat and rest at 120 for 20 or so min then step up to 150 and rest for 40 min. We've always had a cloudy beer with a good mouthfeel. The quick reading I've done is that it should convert in the mash just like malted wheat. If it doesn't work like planned then don't blame it on me

[donniestyle]

Billy, since the torrified and flaked wheat are already gelatinized they can be easier to use. Say for instance you want to do a protein rest. It might be better to gelatinize the raw wheat before adding it to the mash to do the protein rest. That way all the proteins are available to the protease enzymes. I think a cereal mash would work well for this, and you really don't have to boil it for a long time like corn grits. If you use the pre-gelatinized versions, you can go directly to the protein rest range and then on up to get the highest fermentable wort possible (assuming you are making a light bodied beer).

[donniestyle]

heck, skip the protein rest altogether. You are talking about a Wit, right? A little protein haze might not hurt.

[Bill Lawrence]

Actually, I have decided to try an American wheat using a lager yeast (Wyeast 2206 which currently is fermenting a "Mexicanized Vienna Lager"). I will try to make something along the lines of a Pyramid which is also done with a lager yeast (although I don't know which strain). My semi-thought out plan was to try using some unmalted wheat along with some malted wheat, I'll probably do the ceral mash on it then proceed as normal. I will probably get up to around 70% wheat in one form or another. Although I would also like to try a Wit, I want to make an Octoberfest next so I think I'll just keep using the lager yeast, then I won't have to grow up a starter (plus I'm cheap, what can I say). I am thinking that doing the ceral mash will have somewhat the same effect as doing a decoction (which is almost a necessity for heffe's), it hopefully will make the mouthfeel a little creamy plus hopefully help out with that wheaty flavor. I am thinking that the unmalted wheat will really make for a cloudy beer which is ok since I don't think that yeast strain will stay in suspension like a heffe yeast would. Do you think I should do a protein rest or just go for it?

Ok, given all that, I think the hopping should be pretty light to showcase the wheat flavor but of course, I don't want the beer to be sweet. Do you think I need to worry about any "character malts" like light crystal or something else to add interest?

[donniestyle]

I'm no expert, but I think if you definitely want a haze and aren't counting on the yeast to provide it (especially when you plan to use a lager yeast), so you could definitely skip the protein rest. Also, even using a cereal mash with unmalted wheat berries doesn't need to be given a protein rest. One thing about lagers is that they take longer to ferment and "lager" giving the beer a lot more time to clear up. Lager yeast does eat one more type of sugar than most ale yeasts, so it should also provide a drier beer. Some Belgian strains and blends will also ferment some higher order sugars (trisaccharides). Since you pan to use a lot of wheat, I hope you also plan to use 2 pounds of rice hulls.

Oh yea, you also asked about character malts. The American Wheat BJCP style doesn't call for any, but the only beer listed that seems to showcase some type of character like caramel/crystal malt is the Full Moon Pale Rye (at least as memory serves me). To me, it tastes more like a pale ale than one that fits into that category. I think It wouldn't be entirely out of place, but sometimes a little can go a long way. Heck, I find Sierra Nevada Pale Ale quite refreshing after mowing the lawn in August!

I once made a Wit, and performed a triple decoction on it - acid rest, beta glucan rest, protein rest, sacc rest, mashout. The grain bill consisted of 50% unmalted whole wheat berries, and 45% Belgian Pils malt, and 5% flaked oats. It was so brilliantly clear that it was amazing. It tasted wonderful, and did very poorly in competition.