At the end of last year, we put forth that one of our goals this year was to experiment with water chemistry to improve our brewing process.
While we were sitting around sipping on the New Albion Ale, we got to talking about SMaSH brewing and how that style of brewing would be good for a number of experiments including water chemistry.
Here’s a video with Mike explaining what his process will be:
To outline:
- Share our town’s water report as a post
- Work out a few experiments to test deliberate mineral additions to our water
- Share details of the experiment process
- Report on results
With an ultimate goal of brewing excellent beer, it’s getting more clear what tactics you have to master before you can reach that ultimate goal.
I don’t know if it is a linear process. Certainly I had to master cleaning and sanitizing before I mastered pitching enough healthy yeast to mastering fermentation temperatures.
With our (these Brew Dudes and the larger homebrewing tribe) collective homebrewing beer experience, I think we’re really honing in on what tactics really make a big difference in the final product.
Stay tuned and brew on.
Allison
I am very interested in this series. I also wonder about testing your personal water versus what the water treatment plant profile says.
brewella deville
Allison, I just had Ward Labs test my water and I can say that the free city report was quite a bit off from my actual sample, not to mention that the city report didn’t mention the crucial HCo3 or Alkalinity numbers (some cities do). I took what I learned from Ward Labs and Palmer’s book, used the online EZ Water calculator and made the necessary salt additions to brew up my last IPA. What a difference. The finished wort had a round, full mouthfeel, a sweetness I hadn’t noticed in previous batches, and the hops were crystal clear. I can’t wait to try this finished beer.
If you’re on the fence about testing your water, I can’t recommend it highly enough.
John
Hi Allison and Brewella,
I think our town didn’t have all the mineral numbers we wanted for our home brewing purposes. We plan to post the municipal report, talk about it, and then see what Ward Labs has to say about our water.