AvgWhiteGuy
Member
So I finally sent in my water test to Ward Labs to try and dial in one of the few variables I have left to try and nail down. I've played around with it a bit and come to the conclusion that I'm a little lost in all this. I understand (I think) basics but need some clarification.
Here's my water profile:
pH 7.0
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est, ppm 202
Electrical Conductivity, mmho/cm
Cations / Anions, me/L 0.34/3.4 / 3.1 ppm
Sodium, Na 21
Potassium, K <1
Calcium, Ca 26
Magnesium, Mg 15
Total Hardness, CaCO3 128
Nitrate, NO3-N 0.4 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S 5
Chloride, Cl 7
Carbonate, CO3 <1
Bicarbonate, HCO3 154
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 126
Fluoride, F 0.11
Total Iron, Fe < 0.01
"<" - Not Detected / Below Detection Limit
My main concern is when I do a darker beer like a brown ale or similar, I don't treat the water and everything tastes fine. When I do IPA's or similarly hoppy beers I don't feel I'm getting the full hop character I'm looking for. I've done gypsum additions to try and get it in range but I don't think I'm doing enough.
Chemisty guru's, what can I further learn to help my understanding of all this information? FWIW, I'm using Bru'n water spreadsheet as a starter to get general ideas.
Here's my water profile:
pH 7.0
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est, ppm 202
Electrical Conductivity, mmho/cm
Cations / Anions, me/L 0.34/3.4 / 3.1 ppm
Sodium, Na 21
Potassium, K <1
Calcium, Ca 26
Magnesium, Mg 15
Total Hardness, CaCO3 128
Nitrate, NO3-N 0.4 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S 5
Chloride, Cl 7
Carbonate, CO3 <1
Bicarbonate, HCO3 154
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 126
Fluoride, F 0.11
Total Iron, Fe < 0.01
"<" - Not Detected / Below Detection Limit
My main concern is when I do a darker beer like a brown ale or similar, I don't treat the water and everything tastes fine. When I do IPA's or similarly hoppy beers I don't feel I'm getting the full hop character I'm looking for. I've done gypsum additions to try and get it in range but I don't think I'm doing enough.
Chemisty guru's, what can I further learn to help my understanding of all this information? FWIW, I'm using Bru'n water spreadsheet as a starter to get general ideas.