Bee Cave Bavarian Hefeweizen Recipe (All-Grain): 5 to 30 Gallons
An all-grain Bee Cave Bavarian Hefeweizen recipe you can brew at 5 to 30 gallons: 5.6% ABV and 10 IBU, with the grain bill, hop schedule, yeast and step-by-step process.
In this post
Bee Cave Bavarian Hefeweizen at a glance: 5.6% ABV, 10 IBU, OG 1.052. A classic Bavarian hefeweizen: about 64% German wheat, a little Pilsner malt, barely any hops and the famous Weihenstephan yeast for banana and clove. Simple and traditional.
Recipe credit: Bee Cave Bavarian Hefeweizen by EdWort on HomeBrewTalk, #13 on HomeBrewTalk’s all-time Top 100. We’ve put it in our recipe card, scaled to 5 gallons at 72% efficiency, and kept the brewer’s gravity and hop schedule. See the original for the brewer’s own notes and the discussion.
Bräu Supply recipe · All-grain
Bee Cave Bavarian Hefeweizen
Grain · for 5 gal into the fermenter
| 6.7 lb (3.04 kg) | German wheat malt | 64% |
| 3.85 lb (1.75 kg) | German Pilsner malt | 36% |
| 0.5 lb (0.23 kg) | Rice hulls (if needed) |
Hops
| 0.75 oz (21 g) | Hallertau Mittelfrüh · 4% AA | 45 min |
| 0.25 oz (7 g) | Hallertau Mittelfrüh · 4% AA | 15 min |
Yeast and water
| 1 pkg | Weihenstephan wheat yeast (Wyeast 3068) with a starter | |
| Water | Soft water. | |
Process
- Mash: 153°F (67°C) for 90 minutes
- Boil: 60 minutes
- Ferment: 68°F (20°C) for about 10 days
- Condition: Crash cool and keg; drink it young
- Carbonate: 3.0 to 3.5 volumes of CO₂
Brew it on
Based on 72% brewhouse efficiency and about 5.5 gal after the boil for a 5 gal batch. Adjust the base malt if your system runs higher or lower. Hops scale in a straight line; larger kettles extract a little more bitterness.
About this recipe
It’s a straightforward traditional hefe: a single long mash, two small Hallertau additions, and Wyeast 3068 doing all the flavour work. The brewer’s numbers were OG 1.052 and FG 1.009, about 5.6%.
How to brew it
- Mash the wheat and Pilsner malt, with rice hulls if needed, at 153°F (67°C) for 90 minutes.
- Boil 60 minutes with the two Hallertau additions.
- Chill to 66°F (19°C) and pitch a starter of 3068.
- Ferment at 68°F (20°C) for about 10 days.
- Crash cool and keg at 3.0 to 3.5 volumes of CO₂. Serve young and cloudy.
Tips
- Fermenting warmer brings more banana; cooler brings more clove.
- Rice hulls prevent a stuck mash with this much wheat.
Frequently asked questions
How is this different from your hefeweizen?
It’s very close. The brewer skips the protein rest and uses a longer single mash. Compare with our hefeweizen recipe.
Should I filter it?
No. The yeast haze is part of the style.