Gluten Free Hefeweizen — Grain to Glass

A wheatless wheat beer — the hardest kind of gluten-free brewing there is, because a hefeweizen's entire identity depends on wheat character. The workaround: pale millet as a clean base, buckwheat malt as the star bringing that full, velvety wheat-like texture, and flaked quinoa and rolled oats for the classic hefeweizen haze and slick mouthfeel. Hallertau Mittelfrüh hops, WB-06 yeast, and a rising step mash with Ondea Pro and Ceremix enzymes complete the build.

The tasting is a win: pulpless-orange-juice glow, solid white head, and an aroma that started as a wall of banana at kegging and settled into a balanced banana-clove-vanilla profile. This beer was brewed as a gift for a family member who loves hefeweizens but recently went gluten-free — it's destined for his retirement party from the Milwaukee fire department.