Weizen vs. witbier: what is the difference?

Have you ever stood in the supermarket in front of the specialty beer shelf, wondering whether Weizen is simply German witbier, only to find yourself at home unable to put your finger on exactly what the difference is? Sounds familiar! We’re happy to tell you more…

I don’t drink beer very often anymore, but because you haven’t truly experienced Berlin without wandering through its parks and streets with a Weizen from the späti in your hand, I became a fan of this beer back in the day. And why is it different from a witbier on a terrace—or even better, on the terrace of the brewery itself? We investigated…

Beer diploma

Bierista, the platform for recognized beer knowledge, is a wonderful source of information. You can even take a beer course there! Not a bad idea, now that even the most iconic restaurants are serving beer (even from cans!) with their dishes. You can find out all kinds of things about beer there, so we decided to brush up on our knowledge too.

Beautiful white isn’t white

First fun fact: ‘white’ has nothing to do with the color of witbier—and certainly not with Weizen (also called weisse or weissbier). Weizen means wheat, and weit is also an old type of wheat. ‘Weit’ became ‘wit’, so the names for the pale yellow witbier and the orange to dark yellow Weizen derive from the grain.

To malt or not to malt

The technical explanation is that witbier is brewed with barley malt and unmalted wheat, while Weizen is made with barley malt and wheat malt. Another highly characteristic difference is fermentation. Witbier is often fermented with a so-called Belgian witbier yeast, which gives it its distinctive tart freshness (and makes you think you can keep drinking it endlessly because it’s ‘so refreshingly good’), while Weizen is fermented with special Weizen yeast that gives it fruity, sweet aromas. Do you know what experts taste in it? Banana foam sweets! Well, we can totally get behind that…

Spicy stuff

Flavorings may be added to witbier, which also give it its characteristic taste; coriander and orange peel, for example. Nothing wrong with that—we love spices. Whether you toss them into chhonk for soup or into our witbier: all welcome. No herbs or spices may be added to Weizen, which is brewed according to Germany’s strict Reinheitsgebot. Brewers can vary the roasting of the malts or the filtering process, however, resulting in darker or crystal-clear varieties.

Germany-Belgium: 1-1

After a dip in the middle of the last century, Weizen made a full comeback in the beer scene, both nationally (accounting for ten percent of German beer consumption) and internationally. Belgian witbier also suffered a setback when the last Hoegaarden brewery closed its doors around the 1950s. Salvation came a few years later, when beer icon Pierre Celis restarted production and turned witbier into a major success once again.

So next time you’re standing in front of the shelf, wondering what to choose, listen to that little voice in your head and get both! Cheers!

Also read:

• Trend: beer pairing
• What is the difference: pilsner is always beer, but beer isn’t only pilsner
• The very best non-alcoholic beers

Source: Bierista