Second American Pale Ale

[nathank]

Hey guys, I'm getting ready to brew my second pale ale next week and just wanted to get some feedback on the recipe I've "come up with" using BIAB no sparging (I just took a basic recipe and modified it with articles I've read).

Mash water: 10.77 Litres
Batch volume: 7 litres

Malts are 1.5kg Gladfield American ale malt, 200g light crystal malt, 100g rolled wheat

Hops include 6g mosaic at 60 minutes, 20g cascade for 20 minute hop stand @ 82C

Using 6g of US-05 dry yeast

I'll only be modifying the water with one campden tablet and 2ml of Lactic acid.

Let me know what you guys think, I'm really enjoying all grain brewing so far and I can't wait to try out more.

 

[VikeMan]

I'll only be modifying the water with one campden tablet and 2ml of Lactic acid.

What's your starting water profile?

 

[nathank]

What's your starting water profile?

It's just regular drinkable tap water. I haven't really delved into all of that just yet.

 

[VikeMan]

It's just regular drinkable tap water. I haven't really delved into all of that just yet.

I was just curious how you came up with 2 ml lactic acuid.

With this grain bill, you'll almost certainly need some amount of acid adjustment, but if you don't know what you're starting with, I supose 2 ml of 88% lactic is probably safe enough to land you in a reasonable mash pH range with most real world water sources..

 

[nathank]

I was just curious how you came up with 2 ml lactic acuid.

With this grain bill, you'll almost certainly need some amount of acid adjustment, but if you don't know what you're starting with, I supose 2 ml of 88% lactic is probably safe enough to land you in a reasonable mash pH range with most real world water sources..

Just got it from what I've read online. I need to visit my local brew shop before I do this batch so I'll look pH ranges and buy a kit while I'm there.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

regular drinkable tap water. I haven't really delved into all of that just yet.

With smaller batches, store bought distilled or RO water and this article
Water Chemistry – How to Build Your Water – Bertus Brewery
can be an quick way to get started with water adjustments. That article is a great summary of
A Brewing Water Chemistry Primer .

 

[VikeMan]

Just got it from what I've read online. I need to visit my local brew shop before I do this batch so I'll look pH ranges and buy a kit while I'm there.

The first step to figuring out what's in your tap water would be to get a water report, either from your water authority (if yours lists the ions important to brewing) or send a sample to Warb Lab. There are home test kits available, but they are expensive.

 

[nathank]

The first step to figuring out what's in your tap water would be to get a water report, either from your water authority (if yours lists the ions important to brewing) or send a sample to Warb Lab. There are home test kits available, but they are expensive.

Exactly what would I be looking for in the brewing water? My local water authority has a listing on their website from 2020 with Alkalinity as CaCO3, Aluminium, Chloride, Hardness, Iron, Manganese, pH, Silicon, Sodium, TDS, True Colour and Turbidity, if that is useful.

 

[VikeMan]

Exactly what would I be looking for in the brewing water? My local water authority has a listing on their website from 2020 with Alkalinity as CaCO3, Aluminium, Chloride, Hardness, Iron, Manganese, pH, Silicon, Sodium, TDS, True Colour and Turbidity, if that is useful.

Here are the standard ions of interest in brewing:
Ca
Mg
Na
Cl
SO4
Total Alkalinity

Looks like your local water report has the Cl (Chloride), the Na (Sodium), and the Total Alkalinity (as CaCO3). From the hardness value, you could guess the Ca and Mg, but they would likely be wrong. It's also missing SO4 (sulfate), which doesn't directly matter for mash pH, but matters for flavor.

Sometimes water authorties have these (missing) values, but don't bother reporting them because they don't have to. But if you talk to the right person there, they may give you the information.

 

[nathank]

Here are the standard ions of interest in brewing:
Ca
Mg
Na
Cl
SO4
Total Alkalinity

Looks like your local water report has the Cl (Chloride), the Na (Sodium), and the Total Alkalinity (as CaCO3). From the hardness value, you could guess the Ca and Mg, but they would likely be wrong. It's also missing SO4 (sulfate), which doesn't directly matter for mash pH, but matters for flavor.

Sometimes water authorties have these (missing) values, but don't bother reporting them because they don't have to. But if you talk to the right person there, they may give you the information.

So as an alternative would I just be better off getting some spring water from my local shop? Or distilled?

 

[VikeMan]

So as an alternative would I just be better off getting some spring water from my local shop? Or distilled?

Spring water is just as bad (or good) as tap water, if you don't know what's in it. Distilled water is great as a blank slate to build from.

 

[nathank]

Spring water is just as bad (or good) as tap water, if you don't know what's in it. Distilled water is great as a blank slate to build from.

Alright so upon some googling I found that Brewfather actually calculates water agents for you, so that was dumb off me for being so confused. I'll pick up a pH meter soon so I can get my distilled water down to 5.4~ when I do this brew.

 

[VikeMan]

Alright so upon some googling I found that Brewfather actually calculates water agents for you, so that was dumb off me for being so confused. I'll pick up a pH meter soon so I can get my distilled water down to 5.4~ when I do this brew.

One thing... it's not the water that you're trying to get down to 5.4 (or whatever). It's the mash itself. The software should be (i.e. is) set up to accomplish that.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

that was dumb off me for being so confused

It's not you. There are many topics that are hard to web search. "Water Chemistry" is one of them.

If you separate the 1) science behind water 'chemistry' in homebrewing, and 2) the pragmatic adjustments that need to be made to achive a good mash and good flavors, you may find that 1) the adjustments are not too hard to understand and 2) the science is deep.

 

[The_CuRe]

I would go with a clean/neutral hop for the bitterness adition, warrior, magnum maybe and use that mosaic for flame out.