BucketHead
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- Jun 21, 2020
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Hi all, I have a question about the results (flavor, sour, etc...) of using Soft water (water without enough hardness, essentially no HCO3) to brew Stouts or Porters.
I am trying to learn if the beers would taste sour or acrid from using this water.... or if it would just taste fine but just be without body, head, etc...?
I live in the southern region of Chile, the water I use comes from my tap..it has very little chlorine in it but I run it through a particulate filter, then carbon filter followed by another particulate filter... (previously I always boiled the full volume of brew water then cooled it to brew with which was too much work, time and LPG).
TDS shows this water with total tds of 74. Actual individual ions I cannot know as a water analyses here costs much more than I am willing to spend.... so considering the low tds, I treat this water as though it has no ions and I supplement with CaCl, CaSO and sometimes baking soda. I reduce the pH of the waters (mash and liquor) to 5.9 using phosphoric acid. I steep the dark grains, and add the liquid to the last 5 minutes of the boil. My mash pH is good at 5.3.
My light colored beers always are excellent.
My stouts and porters are good for the first month, then they develop a slight sour taste... still drinkable but not very enjoyable. The beers are very clear, no cloudiness, no evidence of anything strange in it. The head is good, the aroma is good... just a lip puckering taste.
I had this happen when I would keg, and thought that I may have not cleaned and sanitized enough (sanke kegs). I have since stopped kegging and I bottled the last beers. The bottled Stout had the same symptoms... one month being very fine.... after a month, they are drinkable but do have a hint of sour.
I even thought maybe one of my dark grains may have been exposed to moisture, causing this issue... but have made this last stout without using grains from the same bags... and still have the issue.
I just made a new stout, in fermenter, but I added extra Bicarbonate to it to see if this resolves the taste. I won't know for another 6 weeks to 12 weeks how this turned out. Hoping to get scientific advice on what the expected results would be by trying to brew a dark beer with water which doesn't have the residual alkalinity (hardness).
thanks.
I am trying to learn if the beers would taste sour or acrid from using this water.... or if it would just taste fine but just be without body, head, etc...?
I live in the southern region of Chile, the water I use comes from my tap..it has very little chlorine in it but I run it through a particulate filter, then carbon filter followed by another particulate filter... (previously I always boiled the full volume of brew water then cooled it to brew with which was too much work, time and LPG).
TDS shows this water with total tds of 74. Actual individual ions I cannot know as a water analyses here costs much more than I am willing to spend.... so considering the low tds, I treat this water as though it has no ions and I supplement with CaCl, CaSO and sometimes baking soda. I reduce the pH of the waters (mash and liquor) to 5.9 using phosphoric acid. I steep the dark grains, and add the liquid to the last 5 minutes of the boil. My mash pH is good at 5.3.
My light colored beers always are excellent.
My stouts and porters are good for the first month, then they develop a slight sour taste... still drinkable but not very enjoyable. The beers are very clear, no cloudiness, no evidence of anything strange in it. The head is good, the aroma is good... just a lip puckering taste.
I had this happen when I would keg, and thought that I may have not cleaned and sanitized enough (sanke kegs). I have since stopped kegging and I bottled the last beers. The bottled Stout had the same symptoms... one month being very fine.... after a month, they are drinkable but do have a hint of sour.
I even thought maybe one of my dark grains may have been exposed to moisture, causing this issue... but have made this last stout without using grains from the same bags... and still have the issue.
I just made a new stout, in fermenter, but I added extra Bicarbonate to it to see if this resolves the taste. I won't know for another 6 weeks to 12 weeks how this turned out. Hoping to get scientific advice on what the expected results would be by trying to brew a dark beer with water which doesn't have the residual alkalinity (hardness).
thanks.
