Silver_Is_Money
Larry Sayre, Developer of 'Mash Made Easy'
What if it is nominally "presumed" (as in speculatively presumed) that a ballpark typical naturally derived source water has within it a ballpark 150 ppm (mg/L) of Alkalinity (as CaCO3), and also thereby, a ballpark 180 ppm of Bicarbonate ion?
And what if one starts from this nominal ballpark baseline and then acidifies said water to ~5.40 pH for use as sparge water, for which the remaining Alkalinity will factually be on the order of ~15 ppm, and the remaining Bicarbonate will factually be on the order of ~18 ppm? Nigh on all of us would (incorrectly) presume at this juncture that the water we are sparging with is quite effectively both Alkalinity and Bicarbonate free.
And additionally if one starts with this same source of water and then adjusts their mash to pH 5.40, the mash itself is taking place within an environment whereby the remaining Alkalinity will nominally be on the order of ~15 ppm, and the remaining Bicarbonate will be on the order of ~18 ppm. Yet the beer will generally be fine to very good if overall process parameters are all kept to within norms as to practical standards. And yet again nigh on all of us would once again presume at this juncture (I.E., at mash pH 5.40) that the beer we are creating is both Alkalinity and Bicarbonate free.
And then what if along comes an endlessly repeated proclamation (or Mantra) that assuredly better beer can be made via the use of Deionized, Distilled, or amazingly good RO water as the foundation, wherein its Alkalinity is on the order of Zero to 2 ppm, and its Bicarbonate is on the order of Zero to perhaps 2.5 ppm?
Might it not be better to add ballpark 1 gram of Baking Soda to each 10 gallons of the likes of Deionized, Distilled, or amazingly good RO water whereby to place it on a level HCO3- and Alkalinity ballpark playing field with that of acid adjusted (to pH 5.40, be it for sparge or within the mash) natural source water?
What if beer loses some of its defining character if denied the active presence of some minimal level of HCO3- (Bicarbonate, the prime source for Alkalinity) ions?
Short version: What if no (or insufficient) residual HCO3- makes Johnny a dull beer?
PS: I'm fully aware that by the time fermentation is over both Bicarbonate and Alkalinity (as CaCO3) are likely to have finally achieved an actual ppm level of right near Zero, but what if the dullness/damage occurs upstream of the terminus of fermentation?
And what if one starts from this nominal ballpark baseline and then acidifies said water to ~5.40 pH for use as sparge water, for which the remaining Alkalinity will factually be on the order of ~15 ppm, and the remaining Bicarbonate will factually be on the order of ~18 ppm? Nigh on all of us would (incorrectly) presume at this juncture that the water we are sparging with is quite effectively both Alkalinity and Bicarbonate free.
And additionally if one starts with this same source of water and then adjusts their mash to pH 5.40, the mash itself is taking place within an environment whereby the remaining Alkalinity will nominally be on the order of ~15 ppm, and the remaining Bicarbonate will be on the order of ~18 ppm. Yet the beer will generally be fine to very good if overall process parameters are all kept to within norms as to practical standards. And yet again nigh on all of us would once again presume at this juncture (I.E., at mash pH 5.40) that the beer we are creating is both Alkalinity and Bicarbonate free.
And then what if along comes an endlessly repeated proclamation (or Mantra) that assuredly better beer can be made via the use of Deionized, Distilled, or amazingly good RO water as the foundation, wherein its Alkalinity is on the order of Zero to 2 ppm, and its Bicarbonate is on the order of Zero to perhaps 2.5 ppm?
Might it not be better to add ballpark 1 gram of Baking Soda to each 10 gallons of the likes of Deionized, Distilled, or amazingly good RO water whereby to place it on a level HCO3- and Alkalinity ballpark playing field with that of acid adjusted (to pH 5.40, be it for sparge or within the mash) natural source water?
What if beer loses some of its defining character if denied the active presence of some minimal level of HCO3- (Bicarbonate, the prime source for Alkalinity) ions?
Short version: What if no (or insufficient) residual HCO3- makes Johnny a dull beer?
PS: I'm fully aware that by the time fermentation is over both Bicarbonate and Alkalinity (as CaCO3) are likely to have finally achieved an actual ppm level of right near Zero, but what if the dullness/damage occurs upstream of the terminus of fermentation?
