Questions about salt...

[HollisBT]

I have some questions regarding salt in brewing... I am looking for a way to make hop bitterness (among other flavor subtleties) more apparent in my finished brews, and I am thinking that perhaps my brewing liquor could benefit from some mineral additions, but I can't quite find definitive answers anywhere.

If I am wanting to make the bitterness stand out a bit more, is salt the mineral that I should be looking to add? And at what point should I be adding it? I have read in the mash, in the total liquor, and that I can even add it post boil or post fermentation...

Does anyone have some solid feedback regarding this? Or some published literature that might help steer me in the right direction?

Thanks,

Hollis


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[JonM]

Here's a great place to start.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f128/brewing-water-chemistry-primer-198460/

Also Palmer's newest book, "Water," is a great read and will give you all you need to know.

Sulfates are what you want to make the hop bitterness stand out, and those typically come from gypsum and epsom salts.

 

[HollisBT]

Here's a great place to start.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f128/brewing-water-chemistry-primer-198460/

Also Palmer's newest book, "Water," is a great read and will give you all you need to know.

Sulfates are what you want to make the hop bitterness stand out, and those typically come from gypsum and epsom salts.

Thanks for that read, I'll peruse though it tonight at work.

I had told myself before that I really didn't need to read the water book, because I didn't want to get to that level of beer nerdery, but I think I'm there... Lol


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[JonM]

The first chapter and the last couple chapters are extraneous/over my head, but the meat of the book is really good. If you're like me and aren't a real science mind, just take your time, go over it a couple times, and it'll click. It's really well-written. Cheers!

 

[billl]

What to add to your water is determined entirely by what is in your water to start with. Typically, hoppy beers call for more sulfates, but again, "more" is a comparative term. You'll need to get a water report if you want to make informed decisions about additions.

Just to clarify though, brewing "salts" aren't table salt. You can google "whatever style" and "water profile" and you'll get a baseline for most traditional brews.

 

[stevedasleeve]

Gypsum. Try a little at first - 4g for a 5 gallon batch to start.

 

[HollisBT]

What to add to your water is determined entirely by what is in your water to start with. Typically, hoppy beers call for more sulfates, but again, "more" is a comparative term. You'll need to get a water report if you want to make informed decisions about additions.

Just to clarify though, brewing "salts" aren't table salt. You can google "whatever style" and "water profile" and you'll get a baseline for most traditional brews.

Yeah my water is absurdly pure... I've looked through the water report a bit, but like I said, it is overly pure and needs something to help accentuate certain aspects of my brews.

From the research I have done though, I have seen the different kinds of salts available, but it looks like table salt does have a place in brewing, just depends what nutrients/minerals you are looking to add.


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[tally350z]

yes, table salt or sodium chloride is used in brewing, just make sure is non-iodized..Do you have a copy of your water report? I used bru'n water and it comes in handy. You can also do some post fermentation additions. Try taking a little sample and adding the different minerals and see how they adjust the overall flavor profile. Just remember to start with small additions and do small steps.