Add gypsum with priming sugar solution?

[dlm3]

I have my first IPA in primary and after listening to some pod-casts and reading some, I'm thinking this brew may benefit from a little gypsum. I have two questions..

1. Is it too late to add gypsum (was thinking about adding 1 tbsp to priming sugar boil when bottling)?
2. Is gypsum beneficial with extract brewing, or does the extract already have the right amounts of minerals? This brew has 6.6 lbs of amber LME and 3.3 lbs wheat LME.

 

[noggins]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f13/gypsum-when-add-24861/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/why-does-recipe-call-gypsum-6229/

 

[Revvy]

With extract beers, you don't need to add anything to the water when you dissolve the extract into the water, you are in a sense getting the instant water profile of the city where the extracted was mashed.

That's why folks often (though not everyone) uses distilled in their extract batches because distilled has no water profile so all you will get in your beer is the "correct" profile for that beer. So if you are using distilled, you are workign with a neutral pallet.

(Always reminds me of the joke "instant water....Just add water.")

You add gypsum and such to water in All Grain batches to aid in extraction of the sugars from the grain, but in extract batches you are not doing any mashes.


You don't need anythig in your extract batches, but water.

I'll go back to Palmer...I know elsewhere he talks in grweat detail about the water profile coming from the water used by the maltzer to make the extract, and when we use RO we then get their water profile...but until I find the direct I'll back up my statement with something else he said.

Water is very important to beer. After all, beer is mostly water. Some waters are famous for brewing: the soft water of Pilsen, the hard water of Burton, Midlands, and pure Rocky Mtn. spring water. Each of these waters contributed to the production of a unique tasting beer. But what about your water? Can it make a good beer? When using malt extract, the answer is almost always "Yes". If you are brewing with grain, the answer can vary from "Sometimes" to "Absolutely".

The reason for the difference between the brewing methods is that the minerals in the water can affect the starch conversion of the mash, but once the sugars have been produced, the affect of water chemistry on the flavor of the beer is greatly reduced. When brewing with malt extract, if the water tastes good to begin with, the beer should taste good.

More from Palmer.

Chapter 4 - Water for Extract Brewing
4.2 Water Chemistry Adjustment for Extract Brewing

Some brewing books advocate the addition of brewing salts to the brewpot to imitate the water of a famous brewing region, like the Burton region of Britain. While some salts can be added to extract-based brews to improve the flavor profile, salts are more properly used to adjust the pH of the mash for all-grain brewing. Water chemistry is fairly complex and adding salts is usually not necessary for extract brewing. Most municipal water is fine for brewing with extract and does not need adjustment. So, if you are brewing from an extract recipe that calls for the addition of gypsum or Burton salts, do not add it. The proper amount of a salt to add to your water depends on the mineral amounts already present and the brewer who published the recipe probably had entirely different water than you do. You may end up ruining the taste of the beer by adding too much. Just leave it out; you probably won't miss it.

So if you are brewing a e kit from a good manufacturer, more than likely they created the extract with the correct water chemistry already in place...that's why we don't have to.

 

[dlm3]

Thanks for the quick responses guys. One last question that I have is how can the extract makers who produce versatile products make their extracts have the ideal chemistry for all styles of beer that may be made with that extract? The majority of this IPA (where I want to highlight the hop bitterness) is amber LME, however I could use that same LME in a Scottish Ale, where I don't want the hop bitterness accentuated.

 

[usfmikeb]

It isn't going to be specialized for a particular style, it will be a general beer profile. However, I wouldn't recommend adding to the water unless you have an understanding of what's already in the extract. Without that understanding, you could very easily overcontribute minerals, creating a different problem.

As far as controlling hop bitterness, in extract beers it is easiest to do that by controlling what hops you add and when you add them.

 

[BioBeing]

I have my first IPA in primary and after listening to some pod-casts and reading some, I'm thinking this brew may benefit from a little gypsum. I have two questions..

1. Is it too late to add gypsum (was thinking about adding 1 tbsp to priming sugar boil when bottling)?
2. Is gypsum beneficial with extract brewing, or does the extract already have the right amounts of minerals? This brew has 6.6 lbs of amber LME and 3.3 lbs wheat LME.

I notice you say that after reading and listening to pod casts you think it may need gypsum, but you don't mention tasting the beer to see if it needs anything.

The sulfate in gypsum can accentuate hop flavour, but really it is the ratio of sulfate to chloride that determines this, so without knowing your chloride levels (from sodium chloride or calcium chloride), I'd suggest not messing with it for now.

 

[usfmikeb]

By the way, you can also control the impact of the malt on hops by waiting to add the extract until late in the boil.