A Brewer looks at Wheat
By Mark Tumarkin

A Brewer looks at Wheat·.. or is it a Baker looks at Wheat ··uh, no, sorry; it's a Teacher looks at Wheat From Jeff Renner's post to the HBD

<editor's note>
The following was taken from the Homebrew Digest.
</editor's note>

Date: Thu, 18 Jul 2002 09:39:45 -0400
From: Jeff Renner 
Subject: Re: Brewing with Soft Wheat

"John Misrahi"  writes:

>The other day i found something in the bulk food store that set off my
>'brewing radar'. It was labelled 'soft wheat' and just appears to be some
>kind of unmalted wheat kernels (nibblets?). I tasted a few, they seem fine,
>and yes, softer than malted wheat. (I've brewed before with malted and
>flaked wheat, but never this stuff).

Those are just raw wheat kernels, also called wheat berries.  They 
are great for making Belgian wit beer.

Wheat is categorized by several criteria.  You have mentioned one - 
hard or soft.  As a rule, hard wheats have stronger, more elastic 
proteins (gluten), which makes them good for bread because the dough 
will hold CO2 bubbles and allow it to rise well..  Soft wheat 
proteins are weaker and less elastic, making them poor for bread but 
good for pastries, cookies, biscuits, pie crusts, etc. where you want 
tenderness.

Because hard wheats are generally fertilized with more nitrogen than 
soft wheats, they are normally higher in protein than soft wheat 
(typically 11-14% vs. 9-11%).  Lower levels of weaker protein means 
that soft wheat is generally better for brewing.  It's easier to 
mill, too.

Wheat is also classified by when it is sown.  Spring wheat is sown 
in the spring and harvested in late summer.  Winter wheat is sown in 
autumn and harvested mid-summer (just about now in Michigan).  Hard 
winter wheat is what has made Kansas and neighboring states famous 
for their wheat.

Spring wheat is grown mostly in the northern plains states and the 
prairie provinces.  Spring wheat is, so far as I know, all hard 
wheat, and its protein is even stronger than hard winter wheat.  The 
best bread flours are milled from spring wheat, but winter wheat can 
do fine as well.

The third classification of wheat is by its bran color - red or 
white.  Red wheat is the most common in North American and probably 
the wild ancestral color.  Because bran pigments are genetically tied 
to tannins and phenolics in the bran, white wheat is milder flavored 
 - often described as sweeter or less bitter.  If you are making white 
(refined) flour, this doesn't matter, but for whole wheat flour, it 
does.  Shredded wheat cereal is an example of a soft, white winter 
wheat product.

In the last few years, hard, white winter wheats with good bread 
baking qualities have been grown in the US for whole wheat flour. 
King Arthur makes an excellent white whole wheat flour.  I eat whole 
wheat bread from it all the time and it is much milder, as well as 
lighter in color, than bread from red wheat.  Much of the rest of the 
world prefers white wheat since they eat it as whole meal.  Many 
years ago the US sent red wheat to a famine struck region (I think it 
was India), where it was considered an insult.  Red wheat was for 
animals.

Most North American soft white winter wheat is grown in NY and 
Michigan and neighboring states, SE Ontario and BC.  I grew it for 
several years with a farmer friend back in the 80s and malted it in 
small batches.  I believe wheat malt is made from soft wheat, and you can 
get wheat malt that is specified as white wheat malt.

>So the question is, how should i go
>about brewing with it? I have had lots of advice and have these suggestions
>
>1) Cook it for 30 min (un milled), add to mash
>2) mill, cook for 30 min, add to mash
>3) don't cook. Just mill, then add to mash
>
>Which is the right one?

You thought I'd never get to this, I'll bet.  I've just illustrated 
why my kids say I can never give the simple answer.  Can't stop being 
a teacher even though it's been 25 years since I've been in the 
classroom.  #1 won't work too well because the enzymes won't be able 
to get to the starches inside the wheat kernel, and any sugars 
produced would tend to stay in there.

#2 will work fine, but is unnecessary.  #3 is simplest and works fine 
because the wheat starch will gelatinize at mash temperatures.  Just 
mill it coarsely.  I use a Corona mill, but may try my newly acquired 
MaltMill.

I will be making my famous ginger wit beer 
http://hbd.org/brewery/cm3/recs/09_85.html on Monday for our 
daughter's wedding next month (I've already made a CAP, a Vienna mild 
lager and a porter).  I will use 45% coarsely milled soft white 
winter Michigan wheat, 5% rolled oats, and 50% six-row malt.

Have fun brewing with it.

Jeff

PS -  Oh, forgot to mention, there will be a quiz later.
- -- 
Jeff Renner in Ann Arbor, Michigan USA, JeffRenner@comcast.net
"One never knows, do one?"  Fats Waller, American Musician, 1904-1943

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