Wheat beer

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Image:Weizenbier.jpg Image:Hefeweizen and kristallweizen.jpg Wheat beer is a beer that is brewed with both malted barley and malted wheat, rather than only barley. The addition of wheat lends wheat beers a lighter flavor and paler color than most all-barley ales. Wheat beer is customarily top fermented, that is, fermented with ale yeast.

Wheat beers have become very popular in recent years, and are especially popular in warm weather. In earlier centuries, brewing wheat beer was illegal in many places since wheat was too important as a bread cereal to "waste" it for brewing.

1 Varieties
- 1.1 Internationalisation
2 Different names and types of wheat beer
- 2.1 Presentation
3 See also
4 References
5 External links

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Varieties

The two most important varieties of wheat beer are Belgian witbier and German Weizenbier.

Belgian witbier ("white beer"), of which Hoegaarden Wit is probably the best-known example, gets its name from the suspended wheat proteins which give it a whitish color. Belgian white beers often have spices such as coriander or orange peel added, giving them a slightly fruity flavor.

German wheat beers are a well-known variant throughout the southern part of the country, the name changing from Weizen in the western (Swabian) regions to Weißbier or Weiße in Bavaria. Hefeweizen (German for "yeast wheat") is a variety in which the yeast is not filtered out, though Kristallweizen (clear), Dunkelweizen (dark) and Weizenstarkbier (higher alcohol content) varieties are also available. The filtration which takes the yeast out of Kristallweizen also strips the wheat proteins which make Hefeweizen cloudy. Bavarian weizen beers are fermented with a special strain of top-fermenting yeast, Torulaspora delbrueckii, which is largely responsible for the distinctive flavour.

A minor variety of wheat beer is represented by Berliner Weisse, which is low in alcohol and quite tart.

The Belgian Lambic is also made with wheat and barley, but differs from the witbier in its yeast. Lambic is a brew of spontaneous fermentation.

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Internationalisation

Many microbrewers in the U.S. as well as in Canada now make their own varieties of hefeweizen and it is particularly popular in Portland, Oregon, considered the US "beer capital". Paradoxically, many American hefes are fermented with ordinary ale yeast and do not have the character of German hefeweizen.<ref>For example, the Beer Judge Certification Program lists several well-known US hefeweizens as examples of its American Wheat or Rye Beer category, which is defined not to have the banana or clove notes characteristic of hefeweizen. [1]</ref> Weizen is also brewed in Austria.

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Different names and types of wheat beer

According to the place in which the beer is brewed and small variations on the recipe, several different names are used for wheat beer:

Weißbier or simply Weiße: "weiß" is German for "white", so this seems to translate to "white beer". It is, however, not lighter in color than other beer. The term weiß has its origin in the white colour of the foam which arises during the top-fermented brewing process. Although often assumed, the term weiß has nothing to do with Weizen (wheat). The term is used in the old parts of Bavaria.
Witbier or simply Witte: Dutch name for these beers, often it will be used with a brewery attached, e.g. 'Witte Hoegaarden', Wheat beer from the Hoegaarden brewery.
Bière Blanche or Blanche: French name for these beers.
Weizenbier or simply Weizen: this name is mainly used in Northern and Western Germany to indicate the same thing. "Weizen" is the German term for "wheat".
Hefeweißbier: "Hefe" is the German word for yeast. The prefix is added to indicate that the beer is bottle-conditioned and sedimented.
Kristallweißbier: if the hefeweissbier is filtered, the beer will look more "clear", from which the name "kristall".
Dunkles Weizen: it is a dark version of a wheat beer ("dunkel" is the German word for "dark").

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Presentation

At least in Europe, wheat beer is traditionally served in special wheat beer glasses. In Belgium these are usually solid glasses, taking 25-33cl. In other countries these take half a litre (plus additional room for the foam), are tall and slim and taper slightly towards the base.

Hefeweizens are frequently served with a slice of lemon in the U.S., but this habit is frowned on in Germany (except for some rural parts of bavaria).

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