Witbier

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Witbier

Country of Origin	Belgium
Original Gravity	1044-1050
Final Gravity	1006-1010
Bitterness IBU	14-22
Color (SRM)	2-4
Attenuation	63-68
Yeast type	Ale
Malt percentage	90-100
Alcohol by volume	4.5-5.2%
Serving Temperature	7-10°C (45-50°F)
This article forms part of a series on beers and breweries of the world. (Project)

Witbier, or White beer (French : bière blanche) is a barley/wheat beer brewed mainly in Belgium, although there are also examples in the Netherlands and elsewhere. It gets its name due to suspended wheat proteins which cause the beer to look hazy, or white, when cold. It is a descendant from those Medieval beers which were not brewed with hops, but instead flavoured and preserved with a blend of spices and other plants referred to as gruut. It therefore still uses gruut, although nowadays the gruut consists mainly of coriander, orange, bitter orange, and hops. The taste is therefore only slightly hoppish, and is very refreshing in summer. The beers have a somewhat sour taste due to the lactic acid. They have a second fermentation in the bottle.

Witbier differs from other varieties of wheat beer in their use of gruut. French laws (the territory was French in the 14th century) prohibited the use of hops in gruut. Witbier is also often made with raw wheat, as opposed to the malted wheat found in other varieties.