Minerals, water, and extract

I've read several threads on this subject and emailed Briess, but haven't gotten a clear answer. I know that when an extract is made, there will be minerals in the DME in proportion to the water the plant used. That's why you can get away with using distilled water with extracts. But what if I am trying to hit a certain style with a partial mash? If I am doing AG, I can use one of the tables for the correct water type (Burton, Pilzen, etc) and get somewhere close to the target. If a use a few pounds of DME, though, is there a way to find out what contribution that makes to the water profile? I wrote to Briess and I don't think they understood the question. Does anyone know if there is a source for this information?

Well my friend, you're outside my realm of *cough* expertise. However, I can tell you, that if you're doing partial mashes or even sticking to extract beers you can get a product that is awfully close. For instance if you're going to try a pilsner you can just buy a "Pilsner" or "Extra Light" DME. That'll get you close enough.

The problem with copying a water profile is that you have to copy the water profile. There's no "kinda copying". You have to just do it. So here's my two cents....

If I were you, and in search of a very authentic style (Pilzen, Burton, Dublin, London, etc.) I would do a search for the water profile of the region, then one of my own (always have this handy), then use any number of charts to figure out the salt additions to mimic that region's water supply in an all-grain. Like I said before, this is well outside my range but I think in the truest sense, yes the DME is going to alter the flavor to the very dedicated taster enough that they could point out something's off, but for the rest of us, it'll taste like a delicious lager. If you really want to be legit, go all out.

OK, I admit that I'm splitting hairs here, but the question intrigues me. Most of us probably wouldn't be able to tell the taste difference, but if I am trying to make a style that has soft water, it could make a difference.

I did hear back from Briess today. They could tell me the amount of sodium and calcium in Pilsner LME, but do not have bicarb measurements. It contains 80 mg of sodium per 100 grams and 38 mg of calcium per 100 grams. If I did the math right, that comes to 19 ppm of sodium in a 5 gallon batch for every pound added, and 9 ppm calcium for every pound. If you add 5 pounds of LME, you're up to 95 ppm sodium even with distilled water. Seems to me it could make a difference for certain styles.

I'm glad to hear if I've got it wrong, or if there is a flaw in judgement.