Witbier

Low-alcohol, fizzy, yummy witbier we drink straight from the primary.

Brewer:	Bob Davis		Email:	bob@reconstructinghistory.com
Beer:	Witbier		Style:	Belgian White (Wit)
Type:	Extract w/grain		Size:	5 gallons
Color:	2 HCU (~2 SRM)		Bitterness:	18 IBU
OG:	1.027		FG:	1.010
Alcohol:	2.3% v/v (1.8% w/w)
Grain:	2 lb. Flaked oats
Steep:	Flaked oats - good old fashioned Quaker type - are boiled along with everything else.
Boil:	30 minutes	SG 1.039	3.5 gallons
	3 lb. Wheat extract
	Spices are essential in Witbier, and this one is no different. Curacao orange peel: A fistful. Coriander seed: A fistful. Star anise: One whole. Cardamom: six or seven. Crack everything but the star anise in a coffee grinder and add at 25-minute mark.
Hops:	1 oz. Styrian Goldings (5.5% AA, 30 min.)
Yeast:	Any ale yeast I've got on hand is what I use, primarily English strains from Wyeast. I dislike managing different strains of yeast.
Log:	This stuff is brewed such that it can be consumed within days of hitting the brewkettle. Ferment at ~65°.
Carbonation:	Usually, any carbonation is because it's still on the tail-end of primary fermentation.
Tasting:	My wife and I are deeply involved in living history (or reenactment). I brew this for 15th-century reenactment events, where we drink it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I brew this on a Sunday, stick it in a Corny keg on Thursday night, and we're drinking it Friday night. According to my research, that's appropriate for the style. Plus, people like it. So I suppose it works!

Recipe posted 11/12/07.