Wheat beer

Wheat beer is beer that is brewed with a large proportion of wheat relative to the amount of malted barley; it is usually top-fermented. The two main varieties are Weissbier and Witbier; minor types include lambic, Berliner Weisse and Gose.

Varieties

Two common varieties of wheat beer are Weißbier (German – "white beer") based on the German tradition of mixing at least 50% wheat to barley malt to make a light coloured top-fermenting beer, and witbier (Dutch – "white beer") based on the Belgian tradition of using flavorings such as coriander and orange peel. Belgian white beers are often made with raw unmalted wheat, as opposed to the malted wheat used in other varieties.

Both German Weißbier and Belgian witbier are termed "white beers" because "wheat" has the same etymological root as "white" in most West Germanic languages (including English).

U.S. brewers and Canadian brewers follow both of the main wheat beer traditions, usually with greater variation.

In Britain, wheat beer is not considered traditional, however sales over the years in wheat beer have soared. It tends to be a hybrid of the continental style with an English bitter, rather than an exact emulation.