Match your waters alkalinity to your beers SRM color

[Silver_Is_Money]

If your water has a moderate (yet appropriate) level of mineralization, what range of recipe SRM's can you reasonably expect to brew without the need for adding acid or base to your strike water, while retaining a reasonable probability of mashing within the "ideal" pH range of between 5.2 and 5.6, given your waters inherent nominal level of alkalinity (as ppm CaCO3)?

Below is a simple chart that I worked up to use as a general guideline for 'specifically' a water to grist ratio of 1.33 : 1 (Qts. : Lbs.). If your water to grist ratio is higher than 1.33 you will generally need less alkalinity, and if lower, you will generally need more alkalinity. You should be able to brew within a range one SRM level above to one level below the reading your water correlates to on this chart.

 

[Big Monk]

If your water has a moderate (yet appropriate) level of mineralization, what range of recipe SRM's can you reasonably expect to brew without the need for adding acid or base to your strike water, while retaining a reasonable probability of mashing within the "ideal" pH range of between 5.2 and 5.6, given your waters inherent nominal level of alkalinity (as ppm CaCO3)?



Below is a simple chart that I worked up to use as a general guideline for 'specifically' a water to grist ratio of 1.33 : 1 (Qts. : Lbs.). If your water to grist ratio is higher than 1.33 you will generally need less alkalinity, and if lower, you will generally need more alkalinity. You should be able to brew within a range one SRM level above to one level below the reading your water correlates to on this chart.

Be sure to state the assumption that this is GRAIN SRM. Some recipes that use dark syrups or Sinamar would throw your table for a loop!

 

[Silver_Is_Money]

Yes, and also dark roasted grains/malts are generally less acidic vs. the range of the much lighter in color overall caramel/crystal grouping of malts, so if the darkness of your brews SRM is primarily from roasted it may well require less alkaline strike water than if your batches SRM color is derived more heavily from caramel/crystal malts. I tried to walk a tightrope to some extent. Your tightrope walking mileage may very as much as beer recipes can vary. That is why I highlighted the word "general". There are multiple variables that simply cannot be expressed within a fixed chart.