homebrewandbeer.com

If I do a Hoegarden copy can I leave out the coriander and orange rind, will this have a dramatic effect on taste and flavour ?

If I do a wheat beer copy, and I want to add some hops would Hallertau be preferable say about 12gms ?

Cheers.

I think you'll find that the coriander and orange rind is fairly important to get the correct flavour and aroma for a Hoegaarden. Whilst some of the characteristic flavour and aroma may come from the yeast, I think that these adjuncts produce the bulk of the distinct orangey-perfumey character in this beer.

As to your question regarding the addition of Hallertau, I would say that it's an excellent choice for this sort of beer. I added it as dry hopping about a week and a bit into the primary fermentation. I found that the resultant beer smelt and tasted very close to Hoegaarden, albeit somewhat darker in colour.

I think that these spices are necessary for a Belgian Wit, but I have no idea what is in an actual Hoegaarden. I think you could divide most recipe spice additions by 4 and you might be closer to the Ho. Though that could be a dubious prospect

Thanks guys.