Dunkelweizen is not a complicated beer to brew, but it rewards attention to detail. Wheat malt forms the base of the mash here, and Tettnang 4.5% carries the hop character through to the glass.
Recipe at a Glance
Recipe at a Glance
| Style | Dunkelweizen |
| Batch Size | 5 gallons (19L) |
| Boil Time | 60-90 minutes |
| Original Gravity | 1.044-1.052 |
| Final Gravity | 1.010-1.014 |
| ABV | 4.5-5.5% |
| IBU | 8-18 |
| SRM | 3-9 (pale gold, often hazy) |
| Difficulty | Beginner to Intermediate |
Brew Day, Step by Step
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1
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Mash · ~60 min Mash the grain bill, led by Wheat malt, at a steady temperature to build the fermentable sugars this style needs. Sparge slowly so you do not lose efficiency. |
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2
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Boil · ~60-90 min Bring the wort to a boil and work through the hop schedule, starting with Tettnang 4.5%. This is also where you will add any fining agent for a clearer finished beer. |
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3
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Ferment · 32C (90F) Pitch Wyeast 3056 Bavarian Wheat Blend once the wort has cooled to fermentation temperature and hold it steady. Primary fermentation is the most active week, do not rush it. |
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4
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Condition · 2 weeks at 10C (50F) Rack to secondary (or leave in primary if your recipe calls for it) and let the beer round out at a cool, steady temperature. This step does more for the final flavor than people expect. |
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5
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Package · 1 day, then wait Bottle or keg once gravity has held steady for a few days in a row. Give it time to carbonate and, for bigger styles, additional time to mellow before your first taste. |
That’s the shape of brew day and the weeks after it. For the exact grain bill, hop schedule, and full step-by-step instructions with amounts, use the recipe card below.
What You Will Need
Sourcing your own ingredients locally is always fine, but if you want to skip a homebrew store trip, here is what’s in stock in our shop right now:
- Base and specialty grain: Grains & Adjuncts (e.g. Weyermann Chocolate Rye Malt 1 Lb)
- Bittering and aroma hops: Brewing Hops (e.g. Chinook Hop Pellets 8 oz)
- Yeast: Brewing Yeast (e.g. LalBrew Nottingham Brewing Yeast (2 Pack) – Make Beer at Home)
- Secondary fermenter for conditioning: Fermenters & Carboys (e.g. 3 Gallon Clear Glass Italian Carboy)
- Priming sugar for bottling: Priming Sugar (e.g. Corn Sugar Dextrose Bottling Priming Sugar 1 lb Highly Fermentable N)
- General kit and tools: Homebrew Equipment (e.g. Deluxe Bottling Kit Craft a Brew Homebrew Bottler Equipment Home Bre)
- Pour it right when it’s ready: a tulip glass shows off the color and holds the aroma better than a straight pint glass
Serve It Right
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A Dunkelweizen is best served in a weizen glass, it fits the body and carbonation of this style better than a straight pint glass. Here is one from our shop: |
Ingredients & Gear for This Batch
Grain / Adjuncts |
Hops |
Yeast |
Fermenter |
Priming Sugar |
Equipment Regular 5/16″ Auto Siphon 24″ Length with 8 feet of Tubing, clear |
Full Recipe: Grain Bill, Hops, and Instructions
Dunkelweizen
Equipment
- 1 Mash tun
- 1 Brew kettle
- 1 Fermentation vessel
- 1 Airlock
- 1 Brewing thermometer
- 1 Brewing paddle or spoon
- 1 Wort chiller
- 1 Hydrometer or refractometer
- 1 Brewing sanitizer
- 1 Racking cane or auto-siphon
- 1 Bottling bucket
- 1 Bottles or kegging system
- 1 Bottle capper or kegging equipment
- 1 Brewing brush or scrubber
- 1 Brewing burner or heat source
- 1 Timer or clock
- 1 Measuring cups and spoons
- 1 Funnel
- 1 Brewing pH meter (optional)
- 1 Grain mill (optional, if milling your own grains)
Ingredients
For the Mash – Liquor 10 Litres (17½ Pints) – Mash Time 1 hr – Temperature 64°c/147 °F
- 6 lb Wheat malt Quantity 2.7kg
- 5 lb Munich malt Quantity 2.3kg
- 10½ oz Caramunich III Quantity 300g
- 10½ oz Special B Quantity 300g
For the Boil – 27 Litres (47½ Pints) – Boil Time 1 hr – 15 mins
- 1 oz (Hops) Tettnang 4.5% When to add – At start of boil (IBU 15.3)
- 1 tsp Protofloc Other – When to add – For last 15 mins of boil
To Ferment – 32°C (90°F) – Conditioning 2 weeks at 10°C (50°F)
- 1 Wyeast 3056 Bavarian Wheat Blend
Instructions
Mash Preparation:
- Heat 10 liters (17.5 pints) of water to a temperature of 64°C (147°F).
- Add the following ingredients to the mash tun: 6 lb (2.7 kg) of wheat malt, 5 lb (2.3 kg) of Munich malt, 10.5 oz (300 g) of Caramunich III, and 10.5 oz (300 g) of Special B.
- Stir the mixture well and let it rest for 1 hour at the mash temperature.
Boiling:
- Transfer the mash to a brew kettle and heat it to a boil.
- Once boiling, add 1 oz (28 g) of Tettnang hops.
- Allow the mixture to boil for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
Protofloc Addition:
- During the last 15 minutes of the boil, add 1 tsp of Protofloc to help clarify the beer.
Fermentation:
- After boiling, cool the wort to a temperature of 32°C (90°F).
- Transfer the cooled wort to a fermentation vessel.
- Add 1 packet of Wyeast 3056 Bavarian Wheat Blend yeast to the vessel.
- Seal the vessel with an airlock and let it ferment for approximately 26 days at a controlled temperature of 32°C (90°F).
Conditioning:
- After fermentation, transfer the beer to a secondary fermentation vessel for conditioning.
- Condition the beer for 2 weeks at a temperature of 10°C (50°F).
Ready to Drink:
- After the conditioning period, your Dunkelweizen beer should be ready to drink.
- The estimated alcohol by volume (ABV) is 5.6% and the bitterness rating is 15.3 IBU.
- The color rating of the beer is 29.5 EBC.
Get the fermentation temperature right on Dunkelweizen and most of the rest of the process takes care of itself.
What Makes Dunkelweizen the Style It Is
There is nothing exotic about the roots of Dunkelweizen, it grew out of practical brewing choices, local ingredients, and the tastes of the people drinking it.
What you get in the glass is a beer that leans on wheat malt and tettnang 4.5%, with a finish shaped by Wyeast 3056 Bavarian Wheat Blend. Get the fermentation temperature right and the rest of the process is mostly patience.
Style Characteristics at a Glance
- ABV: 4.5-5.5%
- Bitterness: 8-18 IBU
- Color: 3-9 (pale gold, often hazy)
- Serving temp: 40-45F (4-7C)
- Glassware: a weizen glass
- Food pairings: light salads, grilled sausage, citrus desserts
Common Questions
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes, the grain bill and hop schedule scale linearly with batch size. Just make sure your equipment, mash tun and boil kettle both, can actually handle the volume you are scaling to.
What is the biggest mistake homebrewers make with this style?
Rushing the schedule. Pulling a beer off yeast too early or skipping conditioning time is the most common way to shortchange a recipe like this one.
Can I substitute a different yeast strain?
You can, but expect the flavor profile to shift. Stick close to the same yeast family (English ale, American ale, Belgian, lager, etc.) if you want a result close to what this recipe is aiming for.
Keep Exploring
Once you have this one down, here are a few more homebrew recipes worth trying next:
Browse the full homebrew recipe collection for more styles, or if you are just getting into the hobby, start with one of our homebrewing starter kits for new brewers.
This recipe is for adults of legal drinking age. Please brew and drink responsibly, and always sanitize your equipment thoroughly to avoid infection.
