RIS Water Question

[DaveDiedDancing]

I am planning to brew a RIS soon (see below, hopefully the link works)

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=238807

I have been using brewers friend to calculate my Mash Ph, and it has worked very well for my light colored beers, but I am having some difficulty with the planning of this RIS.

I am aiming for a Mash Ph of 5.5. When I predict Mash Ph based on the grain bill, it comes out dead on. However, when I predict it based on SRM, it drops down to 4.88, which seems a bit excessive.

I am second guessing myself now, and am not sure if I am making a mistake entering information in, or am otherwise doing something incorrectly with this tool.

My water report is as follows (I plan on batch sparging with distilled water):

Sodium: 2
Potassium: <1
Calcium: 20
Magnesium: 9
Total Hardness (CaCO3): 88
Nitrate: .1
Sulfate: 2
Chloride: <1
Carbonate: <1
Bicarbonate:100
Total Alkalinity: 83

Total Phosphorus: .01
Total Iron: <.01
Ph: 8.1

I greatly appreciate any help the community can offer. This site has been a wonderful resource for me and I recommend it to everyone. I look forward to any feedback. Thank you again.

Dave

 

[hanuswalrus]

Are you adjusting the "malt type" under the Grist Info section? That should change how much that particular grain will influence the pH

 

[DaveDiedDancing]

Walrus thank you for responding. Yes, I am adjusting the malt type under the grist info and also entering the Lovibond.

This is my first time using this particular water source for the mash (usually I start with distilled and build it). I thought this water would be a good start bc of the alkalinity.

As a side note, I am also reserving all of my mineral additions for the kettle.

 

[Rhumbline]

I just recently brewed an RIS, it's bulk aging but the recipe recommended bumping the Bicarbonate level up above 200.

I learned a lot by downloading the excellent Bru'n Water spreadsheet. It's free. there's a sheet on it that gives a good introduction to the roles that different elements play.

 

[DaveDiedDancing]

Thanks for the info Rhumbline. I'll go ahead and do that. Maybe I should also look into using picking lime. The baking soda seems to add too much sodium.

What I'm really wondering though is if my Ph as predicted by grist Info is correct, or if the Ph I get from using SRM to predict Ph is more accurate. Seems really low though to logically make sense (4.88) but I'm definitely still learning.

 

[TexasWine]

When I predict Mash Ph based on the grain bill, it comes out dead on.

Sounds like you have a pH meter, otherwise you wouldn't know it was spot on. Why not go with the grain bill prediction for this next brew since it has been accurate in the past?

 

[DaveDiedDancing]

Texas, I think that is what I am going to do. I was just concerned with the discrepancy between predictions mainly because this is my first dark beer since I began adjusting my water and do not recall seeing a discrepancy like this. I am also going to download Bru'n Water.

I very much appreciate the replies.