Water for Dry Stout kit

I figured I'd do one more extract kit before my all grain setup is complete. It's the cherry dry stout kit from Northern Brewer.

So the well water here is OKAY... a little hard but not super hard... tastes alright but it's a little white-cloudy and has a bit of that chalky calcium type texture that semi-hard well water here in northern CA can have (but again, not super calcium hard like some wells).

Or do I just buy water from the store? I've heard Dry Stouts are good with hard water, so I was thinking it might benefit from the well water. Should I risk it with the well water or just buy bottled? The well water isn't metallic or off-colored other than the white cloudiness that I know of.

Thanks

If it tastes ok to drink, it should be fine for an extract batch.

High carbonate water is good for brewing stouts because its alkalinity counters the acidity created by the roasted grains and helps to balance the pH at an appropriate level. With very soft water, the pH of a stout mash would be too low unless adjustments are made.

In your case, however, it makes no difference if you are using extract.

Mineral content, hardness and pH of your water isn't really a big concern for extract brewing. These things do have an effect of the mash, but the mashing was already done for you by the extract manufacturer. As Kevmoron said, if it's okay to drink, it should be fine for an extract batch.

That said though, you sound unsure about it, so if you want to put your mind at ease, just buy some distilled water (preferable in this case to bottled spring water).