So I recently got the report from the tests run on my drinking water from my commune (Yes, the smallest administrative municipalities of Sweden are called "communes"). Therefore, I want to get a head start in preparation for my first all-grain brew.
I want to brew a dark lager. I haven't yet decided on a recipe, but it's going to be a classic dark lager.
So, here's the relevant info on my water:
as mg/l (practically equivalent to ppm)
pH: 8.4
Cl: 36
SO4: 5.8
Ca: 14
Mg: 1.9
Na: 30
Alkalinity as HCO3: 59 (Internet tells me this equals 48 CaCO3)
So as you can see, it's soft-ish, has a high pH (I think?) and is in general not too plastered with minerals. Water in Sweden is lightly chlorinated, but so lightly that you cannot taste it. I'm going to boil my water before brewing it, which is supposed to get rid of the chlorine, just to be sure.
What I'm not sure of is what I need to add. I get that I want a pH around 5.4, and I'm not quite ready to invest in a pH-meter yet, and pH strips are too hard to read to give any useful results. Minerals doesn't seem like anything I'll need to intervene with.
Help?
I want to brew a dark lager. I haven't yet decided on a recipe, but it's going to be a classic dark lager.
So, here's the relevant info on my water:
as mg/l (practically equivalent to ppm)
pH: 8.4
Cl: 36
SO4: 5.8
Ca: 14
Mg: 1.9
Na: 30
Alkalinity as HCO3: 59 (Internet tells me this equals 48 CaCO3)
So as you can see, it's soft-ish, has a high pH (I think?) and is in general not too plastered with minerals. Water in Sweden is lightly chlorinated, but so lightly that you cannot taste it. I'm going to boil my water before brewing it, which is supposed to get rid of the chlorine, just to be sure.
What I'm not sure of is what I need to add. I get that I want a pH around 5.4, and I'm not quite ready to invest in a pH-meter yet, and pH strips are too hard to read to give any useful results. Minerals doesn't seem like anything I'll need to intervene with.
Help?