Easy water profiles?

[clint404]

Do they make tablets you mix with distilled water and get different regional water profiles? I know it would be more than plop plop fizz fizz but there's got to be a way to get some of those famous water profiles without breaking out your microgram scale and ordering 15 different kinds of minerals and micro nutrients?_

 

[Black Island Brewer]

Do they make tablets you mix with distilled water and get different regional water profiles? I know it would be more than plop plop fizz fizz but there's got to be a way to get some of those famous water profiles without breaking out your microgram scale and ordering 15 different kinds of minerals and micro nutrients?_

One of the easier ways to get started on brewing water is to follow the advice of the Brewing Water Chemistry Primer written by AJDelange and posted by Yooper. Using the primer you can make simple adjustments using differing amounts of Calcium Chloride, Calcium Carbonate (gypsum) and acidulated malt. It's not "plop plop fizz fizz", but it gets the profiles necessary for good yeast health, mash pH and flavor enhancers based on styles.

 

[clint404]

But wouldn't it be great if someone did produce profile tablets? I smell a new brewing product.

 

[grathan]

How would you split the tablet for 5 gallon vs. 6 gallon batch?

 

[clint404]

1 tab per gallon. I need a chemical engineer and a rich person to pm me asap

 

[giraffe]

The most important thing is to hit mash ph. The tablets wouldnt gaurentee that. You still need to do the math, these days there are enough tools it is not hard.

 

[grathan]

1 tab per gallon. I need a chemical engineer and a rich person to pm me asap

Now you've involved math again...

 

[clint404]

I mean why study equations or buy any brewing literature when all you have to do is pay $7.99 to not think.

 

[grathan]

That's the beauty of homebrewing, you can make it as challenging as you want. I think the tablets would be a great way to get people thinking more about what they put in their beer besides malt, hops and barley. Though honestly, unless they made a significant impact on flavor (which I am guessing they wouldn't with normal water additions, an in fact probably mess up some people's beer as mentioned) they probably wouldn't sell. Perhaps mixing flavor additions into the pills would be a good cheat. Like licorice in one of the stout blends or perhaps orange oil into wit or ipa blend, or even some synthesized hop flavor.

 

[Calichusetts]

I was gifted Burton salts last year. No idea whats in it and never used it

 

[CorporateHippie]

Easier then that, I wish a program was out there that at least told you what to add. Punch in your water numbers, your grain bill, your desired outcome, and ...BAM!.... "Here are the exact additions to make to your water."
Until then I guess I have to keep "studying and learning" how to do it.

 

[grathan]

what about ezwater or bru'n water?
http://www.ezwatercalculator.com/
https://sites.google.com/site/brunwater/

 

[cernst151]

Do they make tablets you mix with distilled water and get different regional water profiles? I know it would be more than plop plop fizz fizz but there's got to be a way to get some of those famous water profiles without breaking out your microgram scale and ordering 15 different kinds of minerals and micro nutrients?_

I get what you're saying. Many brewers probably don't want to keep 5-10 different bottles of salts and minerals lying around for when they want to clone a true Pilsner or English Stout then measure out by the 1/10 of the gram. I know I've never messed around with water chemistry for exactly that reason. I would consider doing it if I could just buy a bottle of "Pilsen Region Water" tablets and stir them in before the mash.

 

[uncleleon]

I was gifted Burton salts last year. No idea whats in it and never used it

"Also known as brewing salts, it's a mixture of gypsum, potassium chloride, and Epsom salt..."

Doing a little math ... Quick figuring each gram in 5 gal batch should add:

Ca 7.5 ppm
Mg. 2.1
Carbonate 5.3
Sulfate. 21

It works for hoppy pales, but I find it a little salty if not used with restraint. Can work for any English style imho.

They used to sell a product called instant water that had different style/ regional profiles.

I just have a few basic water profiles I have tweaked to taste and I stick with them. (Pale malty, pale hoppy, Amber hoppy, dark)

 

[uncleleon]

Styles were born from the water of the region, maybe you could base your brews off your water profile?

 

[MindenMan]

EZ-Water is easy water. I plugged in my water test results and my grain bill, and it calculated what I should add both mash and sparge. The beer I just brewed is a brown porter, and it did taste different when I racked to the fermenter, different in a good way, I will have to wait and see.