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my dad has a small farm and i have access to fresh red wheat and might try a all grain batch tomorrow using it as part of the grain bill just wondering if it is a WASTE of my time but i'm hoping for the best

zach spaetti wrote:my dad has a small farm and i have access to fresh red wheat and might try a all grain batch tomorrow using it as part of the grain bill just wondering if it is a WASTE of my time but i'm hoping for the best

Make sure it's dry and lightly cracked.

I thought the same thing before I was given an agricultural lesson from my brother-in-law that is a buyer for ADM. Before you use any grain straight from the field make sure it has been tested for mold. The grain may not look moldy, but still contain mold. Some entire wheat harvests have to be thrown out due to mold. The mold contains toxins THAT WILL KILL YOU! limited amounts are ok for livestock. Their digestive systems are different.
Sure the heat of boiling may kill the living mold, but it will still leave it's toxic chemical traces behind. Even if there is a small percentage, you are rinsing, and concentrating all that into a beer. Best bet would be to save $5 somewhere else.

Grain smut effects pricing. The higher the smut, the lower you get for your grain. I feel like sometimes when I drink strange european small label beers, you can't be certain of their smut content. I wake the next morning after maybe just one or two beers and my entire sinus cavities feel like they are filled with concrete. I'm obviously one who suffers from mold allergies, even with shots.

I always assumed the wheat we use in brewing has going through a malting process. Is this true?

The wheat used in most recipes is malted, but there are those Belgian, French and German varieties oddities utilizing raw wheat. The raw wheat adds more dextrines for a chewier mouthfeel if using "normal brewers yeast" if using brett, pedio, lacto, etc. It gives those critters something to chew on after main fermentation is complete.

For the most part, I believe you are correct although you can purchase unmalted wheat. But Jack can probably better answer for Cargill.

thanks for the info the wheat was very dry and clean so we went ahead and used it for some reason the og was low probably the wheat

One thing I've found when moving away from American 2-row is that you have to re-think your methods on pH which has a large effect on extraction. The 2-row gets you there a lot easier (differences in the husks) and if you don't consider the effect of changing grains, you are likely off some. I had the same problem with wheat and pilsner.

Raw wheat, cracked or not, isn't going to do anything but take up space in your mash. Until it's malted, the starch and proteins are completely insoluble.

You can use unmalted wheat, but you have to cook it first (simmer for 45 minutes after cracking it, then cool to mash temp before using). I strongly recommend that you use lager malt with a protein rest if you do this, else you will have seriously cloudy beer.

Because it was cooked, it will have zero enzyme activity, too.

Peter