lookin at doing a lime hefewizen for the summer, any suggestions on hops that would complement it well? also, looking to jack up the abv to get in the 6% range. bad idea? lmk. thanks!
*insert lazy key lime pie joke here* In all seriousness, though, what style of weizen are you going for, American or German? If German (banana/clove flavors), I'd say don't bother. A bit of lime with the yeast esters would be nice, but adding hoppiness to the equation seems a bit much. If American style (relatively clean yeast profile), some of the New Zealand varieties of hops are said to offer lime flavors.
I recently brewed a pomegranate hefeweizen, also a tart fruit. I used an extra ounce of Northern Brewer for finishing, and I find the mint-like evergreen profile is a nice complement to the tartness.
It's 100% your beer but, if brewing a hefe for the warm summer months, I'd keep the abv closer to 4.5 - 5% myself.
you can make a great hefe with little effort. it is one of my favorite beers to both brew and drink. 10-12 pounds of wheat DME use a classic Bavarian hefe strain. (I do not think American hefe is anything at all, but that's me). ferment at the middle to upper end of the range. 4 ounces or so Tett or Hallertau 60 minutes that's not a classic example, but it would get you near where you want to be. for the Lime, slice it and serve with the beer. that's it. sure, go all grain, but the DME route is surprisingly accurate. I do not think obtaining a lime flavor with hop additions is worth it. Cheers.
I'd keep it around 5-5.5% I've done a lot of hefes that were around 3.5-4.5% that I didn't care for. They're just too thin. Hallertau is the ONLY hop you need. 7 pounds of German wheat 3 pounds of German pils 1/2 pound instant oatmeal to ~1.055 OG. Don't stress the yeast. Pitch the proper amount and ferment @66F I can't do better than this.
A lime hefe sounds a bit weird, bordering on gross, but a lime witbier can be pretty tasty. A friend did a wit beer with kefir lime (plus coriander, sweet and bitter orange peel) a while back that was quite good, as the phenols from the wit yeast worked well with the lime and orange zest and fruitiness of the coriander. If its for summer and a either a wit or hefe, keep the abv around 4-5. If going bigger with a hefe or wit, if you aren't doing all grain, your beer might come out a little bit underattenuated which could make it flabby and not quite in line with what a hefe or wit should taste like (malty but dry for hefe, cracker-like and grainy malt and dry for wit).
Just as a side note... If you haven't already, listen to the 2 recent Brew Strong shows on Brewing cities with Martin Brungard. He makes a reference specifically about Heffe. He talks about Bavarian water and claims the secret to brewing a Heffe is lactic acid. Not sure if you adjust your brewing water, but might be worth a listen. I think it was the second show. Anyway, hope this helps. Cheers!
