Schmidt Brewery Water, St. Paul MN

[Cromacster]

The old Schmidt Brewery in St. Paul MN, which has been closed for some time re-opened their well in 2010 for public use. The well taps into the Mount Simon-Hinckley aquifer, which I guess has water that is over 30,000 years old.

I'd like to try this water in a batch of beer. Just thought it was cool to use the same water used by a historic St. Paul Brewery.

Here is the water profile if anyone nearby wants to stop by and use it, $.50 per gallon.

PHYSICAL WATER QUALITY

PH 7.8
TDS 177
PPM:
Sodium, NA:17
Potassium, K: 6
Calcium,CA: 45
Magnesium, Mg: 19
Total Hardness CaCO3: 192
Nitrate, NO3-N: < 0.1(safe)
Sulfate SO4-S: 1
Chloride, CL: 40
Carbonate, CO3: < 1
Bicarbonate, HCO3: 195
Total alkalinity CaCO3: 160
Fluoride, F: 0.24
Total iron, Fe: < 0.01

 

[flabyboy]

The old Schmidt Brewery in St. Paul MN, which has been closed for some time, re-opened, in 2010, their well for public use. The well taps into the Mount Simon-Hinckley aquifer, which I guess has water that is over 30,000 years old.

I'd like to try this water in a batch of beer. Just thought it was cool to use the same water used by a historic St. Paul Brewery.

Here is the water profile if anyone nearby wants to stop by and use it, $.50 per gallon.

PHYSICAL WATER QUALITY

PH 7.8
TDS 177
PPM:
Sodium, NA:17
Potassium, K: 6
Calcium,CA: 45
Magnesium, Mg: 19
Total Hardness CaCO3: 192
Nitrate, NO3-N: < 0.1(safe)
Sulfate SO4-S: 1
Chloride, CL: 40
Carbonate, CO3: < 1
Bicarbonate, HCO3: 195
Total alkalinity CaCO3: 160
Fluoride, F: 0.24
Total iron, Fe: < 0.01

Interesting. If they didn't treat their water, that would explain an awful lot

 

[ajdelange]

They'd have to treat it to dispose of the better part of the alkalinity and they didn't probably have RO so I'd guess lime was used.

I wouldn't pay $0.50 a gallon for water like this.

 

[mabrungard]

They'd have to treat it to dispose of the better part of the alkalinity and they didn't probably have RO so I'd guess lime was used.

I agree, probably lime softening to knock down the calcium, magnesium, and alkalinity. Its not a great brewing water for light colored beers as-is. But it could be with treatment.

 

[flabyboy]

This is pretty typical water for the Southern MN area. I could open up my tap and get something very similar. Let's not forget how bad Schmidt beer is. Nasty stuff IMO

 

[ajdelange]

This can't be the "Schmidts of Philladelphia" stuff that I used to drink as an undergraduate. It was pretty nasty stuff but very appealing in that it cost well under a buck for a 6-pack. That should give you an idea about how long ago that was.

 

[flabyboy]

This stuff was brewed in MN and ranks right up there with Hamms, Schlitz and Pabst in the taste department

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

it's basically the same water we get out of our taps here in the cities. i've thought about getting water there since i have a good friend that lives right across w. 7th from the old brewery, but after checking their water specs, i realized i'd save the time and effort and draw the same water out of my tap here in Columbia Heights and save the $.50 a gal for something else.

that said, if you're outta town and wanna try that water, you can come to my house and i'll only charge you $.22 a gal.

 

[Cromacster]

that said, if you're outta town and wanna try that water, you can come to my house and i'll only charge you $.22 a gal.

haha I live in Roseville, but I typically brew in Prior Lake, so I drive right by this well every time I go to brew and have always been curious.

This is pretty typical water for the Southern MN area. I could open up my tap and get something very similar. Let's not forget how bad Schmidt beer is. Nasty stuff IMO

I agree, but it was a local brewery, so there is some nostalgia. Its kind of like Grain Belt Premium, its not that great, but it is local (sort of).

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

haha I live in Roseville, but I typically brew in Prior Lake, so I drive right by this well every time I go to brew and have always been curious.




I agree, but it was a local brewery, so there is some nostalgia. Its kind of like Grain Belt Premium, its not that great, but it is local (sort of).

i hear ya... i prefer the beer refreshing, from the land of sky blue waters over premium, but yeah, beer nostalgia's great. We've actually thought about getting the Schmidt water to brew with, but it's SO close to Mpls city water.

did you by chance get to see when they demolished the larger of the old smokestacks at the Schmidt brewery a few years back? i watched it from a buddys house about a block down Jefferson from the brewery.... pretty sweet. sad that the landmark was gone, but wow, neat stuff to see.

 

[solbes]

i hear ya... i prefer the beer refreshing, from the land of sky blue waters over premium, but yeah, beer nostalgia's great.

Blasphemy! Hamms over Premo? Best thing about Hamms was the bear and their advertising. In college we used to buy an "Ice Chest" 30 pack and make the drive over the Bong Bridge to Superior Wisconsin. It was an annual event for us in the spring costing us $8.25 plus tax and gas. And all 30 of them were tough to choke down. If we put them in the freezer until they were almost slushy they tasted okay

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

Blasphemy! Hamms over Premo? Best thing about Hamms was the bear and their advertising.

kinda comparing rotten apples to rotten oranges there buddy.... they both taste really really bad, but if you're starving you'll grab one of them.
personally, i think both hamm's and premium are not good, but IMO ham's has a bit LESS flavor... and i'll take less bad flavor over more bad flavor anyway.

 

[Cromacster]

did you by chance get to see when they demolished the larger of the old smokestacks at the Schmidt brewery a few years back? i watched it from a buddys house about a block down Jefferson from the brewery.... pretty sweet. sad that the landmark was gone, but wow, neat stuff to see.

I didn't get a chance to see it live, saw it on the news though. Would have been cool to see it happen so close.

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

I didn't get a chance to see it live, saw it on the news though. Would have been cool to see it happen so close.

'twas. groundbreaking....errr shaking.

lotta great beer history around here! :rockin:

happy brewing to ya!

 

[solbes]

Premo is my slummin' corn adjunct beer. Usually buy it once or twice a year. Guess I see the taste as leaps and bounds above Hamms. Oh well, we both agree they are not great beers.

Agree there is some cool brewing history in this town. And most of it is history, deserved or not.

 

[djt17]

With two great brewerys in town (Summit & Surly), whatcha guys doing drinking swill.

 

[solbes]

Who could afford to drink Surly all the time? Good stuff but you pay for it. I do go through my share of Summit. Both are great brands.

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

With two great brewerys in town (Summit & Surly), whatcha guys doing drinking swill.

got 3 four packs of abrasive ale in my fridge, and summit beers are a regular in my fridge. you forgot about schell's though, not local, but damn good. harriet brewing, town hall, herkimer, flat earth brewing and many others too, summit and surly aren't the only guys in town.

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

Who could afford to drink Surly all the time? Good stuff but you pay for it. I do go through my share of Summit. Both are great brands.

yeah, surly's way expensive. i only really buy the abrasive when it's out. and yeah, summit's got some great beer!

 

[flabyboy]

Don't forget Lift Bridge and Fulton. Love Town Hall. Surly is good, but overrated IMO. Their prices are hard to accept

 

[djt17]

Don't forget Lift Bridge and Fulton. Love Town Hall. Surly is good, but overrated IMO. Their prices are hard to accept

Ah, Lift Bridge, everyone needs a little "Farm Girl" once in awhile.

 

[Cromacster]

Ah, Lift Bridge, everyone needs a little "Farm Girl" once in awhile.

Don't forget the Lonely Blonde, shes always craves attention (hrmm Fulton)