Does this look wrong?

I will be brewing a Belgian Tripel, my first, next week.

I do not have my local water report, and due to the astonishing amount of construction going on around my home right now, I wouldn't trust it from day-to-day anyhow. Also, I have not yet purchased a pH meter, it is on my wish list along with a bench top refractometer, nonetheless, I do not have one yet, so I rely on the accuracy of the spreadsheets and my water reports.

Having said that, I normally "build" my water to suit from RO water which I purchase at a local outfit called Water Street Station. They provide water reports which are administered about every 3 months, and each time I have purchased my water the reports have been relatively consistent.

I use Bru'n Water spreadsheet because it seems to be the most versatile (allowing me to use pickling lime to boost my HCO3 for PA's and IPA's) which I think is great. Plus it seems to be less complex than Palmer's, and more accurate than TH's, not that I haven't used them or been happy with their results, I have just found that Bru'n Water provides detailed explanations of specific instructions with the addition of a simplified "water knowledge" explanation section.

Without further ado, to the screen-shots Brewman!!!

I have provided a screen-shot of my Beersmith recipe as well as the text recipe for reference.





Style: Belgian Tripel
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (30.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 14.48 gal
Post Boil Volume: 12.48 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 11.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 11.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.082 SG
Estimated Color: 4.1 SRM
Estimated IBU: 33.7 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 79.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 88.6 %
Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
21 lbs 8.0 oz Pilsen (Dingemans) (1.6 SRM) Grain 1 76.3 %
1 lbs 2.1 oz Acidulated (Weyermann) (1.8 SRM) Grain 2 4.0 %
8.5 oz Aromatic Malt (Dingemans) (19.0 SRM) Grain 3 1.9 %
5 lbs Sugar, Table (Sucrose) (1.0 SRM) Sugar 4 17.8 %
84.50 g Saaz [5.80 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 5 32.5 IBUs
15.87 g Saaz [5.80 %] - Boil 10.0 min Hop 6 1.2 IBUs
1.0 pkg Abbey Ale (White Labs #WLP530) [35.49 ml Yeast 7 -


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Light Body, Batch Sparge
Total Grain Weight: 28 lbs 2.6 oz
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temperat Step Time
Mash In Add 30.91 qt of water at 163.9 F 149.0 F 75 min

Sparge: Batch sparge with 3 steps (Drain mash tun, , 4.78gal, 4.78gal) of 168.0 F water



I normally use RO water and build my water to suit for most recipes, so I didn't feel the need to provide the "Water Report Input" sheet. (If anything it might have a NaCl of 2--I don't have the most recent report, but as I have stated it is incredibly consistent.)





These are the adjustments I have arrived at. The only problem is that the Total Hardness is somewhat high for a "soft" water profile.




I went the acid/acidulated malt route to keep my pH in check, yet I don't know if 4% of the grist is considered too much. I could add lactic acid to the mash water, but I have read that liquid lactic acid can contribute its own flavor. Am I mistaken? Will lactic acid whether it be in liquid or malt form contribute a tartness or twang that is undesirable, especially in the amount I need to add?





Here is the summary of results, pH is in line, but once again Total Hardness seems high.





Basically, I want to know how this water profile looks, and how it will work with my recipe. Bear in mind that I am using 100% RO water, and if it is any consolation I will more than likely be adding my sucrose post boil to increase the chances of full attenuation.

If anyone could provide any input or suggestions on how to alter or improve my water for the Belgian Tripel recipe I have listed, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks to everyone in advance!

This is a bump for any takers...please...

Bump #2, can anyone tell me if I am on the right track with this water profile?

The glaring error I see is the use of pickling lime and sauermalz. They are antagonistic the former being a base and the later a source of acid. The acid requirement is high because of the lime. I don't see any reason to use lime.

With Pilsner malt the mash pH should go to about 5.7 with straight RO water and to pull it down to 5.4-5.5 would require 2 - 3% sauermalz. That alone should do the trick. With some calcium in there the 2% addition should do and I would start with that using more next time if needed.

As to hardness, my understanding is that tripels are brewed with diverse water ranging from quite low in mineral content to quite high. I would thus start out with just some calcium chloride and experiment with addition of sulfate in the glass for possible use in later brews. I would also skip the epsom salts again trying additions of some of that in the glass. Magnesium generally doesn't bring much to the party (except, in the opinion of some, longevity and if you were really interested in that you would be drinking carrot juice and not tripel).

In other words, I would follow the advice of William of Ockham and follow the Primer.

Alright, that s what I needed to hear. Thank you for your reply.

I guess what I was trying to do is keep all of my minerals at the minimum recommended values.

I will follow the primer. Thank you AJ.