Brewing Water Chemistry How to analyze and adjust brewing water for Mashing to achieve authentic styles and optimize conversion
Mash ph and Enzymes (ph at Mash Temp) Alpha Amylase optimized at ph of 5.3 5.7 and 154 F to 162 F and makes a sweeter beer Beta Amylase optimized at ph of 5.0-5.5 and 131 F -150 F and makes a drier beer Optimum for both is ph of 5.3 and Temp from 147 F to 158 F
Malt effect on ph Base Malt only with deionized water will give a ph of ~ 5.9. Darker (Munich type) malts with deionized water will give a ph of ~ 5.7. Darker Malts will lower the ph, Pale Malts may need treatment Ions in the water (hardness and alkalinity) react with malt to raise and lower ph
Hardness and Alkalinity Hardness is the total amount of positively charged Calcium (Ca) and Magnesium (Mg) cations in the water. Alkalinity is the amount of bicarbonate (HCO3 ) or carbonate (CO3 ² ) in the water.
Hardness Total Hardness = Carbonate Hardness + Non- Carbonate Hardness Carbonate Hardness is those Calcium and Magnesium ions associated with Bicarbonate (HCO3 ) and carbonate (CO3 ²) Non-Carbonate Hardness is those Calcium and Magnesium Ions associated with other anions such as chloride (Cl ), Sulfate (SO4 ²)
Effect of Carbonate and Non- Carbonate Hardness on the Mash Non-Carbonate Hardness reacts with Phosphates and amino acids in the Malt, releasing ph lowering H + ions (lowers the ph of the Mash) Carbonate Hardness reacts with Phosphates and amino acids in the Malt, releasing ph raising OH ions (raises the ph of the Mash)
What do we want in a Water Report Total Alkalinity (as CaCO3) - which lets us know the Carbonate vs Non-Carbonate stuff Total Hardness (as CaCO3) - which lets us know the Calcium and Magnesium to associate with the alkalinity. (If the water report is just Ca and Mg, we can convert)
Conversion Many calculations are available to convert different units back and forth. The main thing at this stage is to convert everything to Equivalents or milliequivalents so that the later calculations can be done. Many brewing books have these conversions and most are based on the ions molecular weight and valence state Don t Sweat the conversions or the Calcs!
Midland City Water Example Local Area Water Analyses Test Data Midland Township Location Tap Water Sample Date 2/14/2007 ph 8.8 Ca, ppm 30.31 Mg, ppm 7.962 Na, ppm 3.7575 K, ppm 0.9159 Chloride, ppm 11.3 CO3²-, ppm 6.65 In this case, only Calcium and Magnesium were reported so we convert it to Total Hardness (as CaCO3). HCO3-, ppm 80.6 Total Alkalinity as CaCO3, ppm 77.1 Sulfate (SO4), ppm No Data
Midland City Water Example Midland Township Location Tap Water Sample Date 2/14/2007 ph 8.8 Ca, ppm 30.31 Mg, ppm 7.962 Na, ppm 3.7575 K, ppm 0.9159 Chloride, ppm 11.3 CO3²-, ppm 6.65 HCO3-, ppm 80.6 Total Alkalinity as CaCO3, ppm 77.1 Sulfate (SO4), ppm No Data Hardness Calculations Ca,mEq 1.51 Mg,mEq 0.66 Ca & Mg, meq 2.17 ppm of CaCO3 (Hardness) 108.4 (Optional) We convert the Calcium and Magnesium to milliequivelents, add them together, and then convert them back to the unit of ppm of CaCO3.
Non-Carbonate Hardness Ca, ppm 30.31 Mg, ppm 7.962 Na, ppm 3.7575 K, ppm 0.9159 Chloride, ppm 11.3 CO3²-, ppm 6.65 HCO3-, ppm 80.6 Total Alkalinity as CaCO3, ppm 77.1 Sulfate (SO4), ppm No Data Hardness Calculations Ca,mEq 1.51 Mg,mEq 0.66 Ca & Mg, meq 2.17 ppm of CaCO3 (Hardness) 108.4 Residual Alkalinity Calculations Total Hardness, ppm of CaCO3 108.4 Cabonate Hardness, ppm CaCO3 77.1 Non-Carbonate Hardness, ppm CaCO3 31.3 (Optional) Now we know Total Hardness and Total Alkalinity (both is the same unit of ppm as CaCO3) We can calculate Non- Carbonate Hardness. Non-Carbonate Hardness = Total Hardness Carbonate Hardness (if all in the same units)
Residual Alkalinity (The good stuff!) Since the Carbonate and Non-Carbonate Hardness both react with the Malt to raise and lower the ph, we can perform a calculation to determine what the water will be like in the mash. We can use this Residual Alkalinity number to compare against famous brewing waters or to directly predict Mash ph (and adjustments that will be necessary based on style).
Residual Alkalinity Residual Alkalinity(RA) = meq of Alkalinity-[(mEq of Ca/3.5)+(mEq of Mg/7)] Residual Alkalinity Calculations Total Hardness, ppm of CaCO3 108.4 Cabonate Hardness, ppm CaCO3 77.1 Non-Carbonate Hardness, ppm CaCO3 31.3 Residual Alkalinity, meq 1.02 Residual Alkalinity, ppm of CaCO3 50.8 Evaluating Water Quality (Guidelines) Pale Pilsner RA, ppm of CaCO3 (Maximum) 36 Pale Lager RA (Maximum), ppm of CaCO3 89 Pale Lager RA (Typical), ppm of CaCO3 36 to 54 Ca Hardness (Maximum), ppm 250 Mg Hardness (Maximum), ppm 22.0
Residual Alkalinity (Optional) Residual Alkalinity can be used in an equation to predict Mash ph as follows: Convert RA (ppm as CaCO3) to RA as dh (degrees German Hardness) by dividing by 17.85 Mash ph=lab Wort ph+(0.03 x RA as dh)
Lab Wort ph (Congress Mash) Malt ph Wheat 6.10 Pils 5.93 Helles 5.88 CaraPils 5.75 Munich 5.65 CaraHell 5.48 CaraDunkel 5.30 Roasted 5.07 Acidulated 3.50
How to Brew Nomograph By John Palmer You can use your Ca and Mg numbers (ppm) to predict RA, ph, and base color of beer without having to calculate anything. Allows you to determine whether you have to raise or lower your ph to make a lighter or darker beer. Subtract 0.35 ph to get Mash Temp ph
Famous Water Profiles Dublin Dortmund Vienna Munich Londen Edinburgh Burton Pilsen Dry Stout Export Lager Vienna Lager Oktoberfest Brittish Bitter Scottish Ale IPA Ca 10 118 225 200 76 52 125 352 Mg 3 4 40 60 18 32 25 24 HCO3-3 319 220 120 152 104 225 320 SO4-- 4 54 120 152 10 32 140 820 Na+ 3 12 60 8 86 55 54 Cl- 4 19 60 12 2 34 65 16
Area Water Profiles Location Bay City Brewpub HLT Sanford Water District # 1 Sanford Water District # 1 Carbon Filtered Sample Date 2/7/2007 2/12/2007 2/19/2007 ph 9 8.31 8.03 Ca, ppm 29.98 33.537 30.092 Mg, ppm 17.27 8.288 7.544 Na, ppm 23.78 3.927 3.668 K, ppm 2.05 0.943 0.9041 Chloride, ppm 52.1 12.03 11.83 CO3²-, ppm 10.3 0 0 HCO3-, ppm 62.4 102.4 96.7 Total Alkalinity as CaCO3, ppm 68.2 83.9 79.2 Sulfate (SO4), ppm No Data No Data No Data Hardness Calculations Ca,mEq 1.50 1.68 1.50 Mg,mEq 1.42 0.68 0.62 Ca & Mg, meq 2.92 2.36 2.12 ppm of CaCO3 (Hardness) 145.9 117.8 106.2 Residual Alkalinity Calculations Total Hardness 145.9 117.8 106.2 Cabonate Hardness, ppm CaCO3 68.2 83.9 79.2 Non-Carbonate Hardness, ppm CaCO3 77.7 33.9 27.0 Residual Alkalinity, meq 0.73 1.10 1.07 Residual Alkalinity, ppm of CaCO3 36.7 55.1 53.3 Evaluating Water Quality (Guidelines) Pale Pilsner RA, ppm of CaCO3 (Maximum) 36 Pale Lager RA (Maximum), ppm of CaCO3 89 Pale Lager RA (Typical), ppm of CaCO3 36 to 54 Ca Hardness (Maximum), ppm 250 Mg Hardness (Maximum), ppm 22.0
Area Water Profiles Midland Township Well Midland Township Midland Township Tap Location Water Well Water (boiled) Water How to Brew Brewing Range Sample Date 2/14/2007 2/14/2007 2/14/2007 ph 7.925 10.03 8.8 Ca, ppm 43.28 1.575 30.31 50 to 150 ppm Mg, ppm 17.76 8.443 7.962 10 to 30 ppm Na, ppm 36.92 53.96 3.7575 0 to 150 ppm K, ppm 1.354 1.934 0.9159 Chloride, ppm 10.9 11.3 0 to 250 ppm CO3²-, ppm 0 55.8 6.65 HCO3-, ppm 294.6 65.6 80.6 0 to 50 for pale, base-malt only beers; 50 to 150 for amber colored, toasted malt beers; 150 to 250 ppm for dark, roasted malt beers Total Alkalinity as CaCO3, ppm 241.3 146.7 77.1 Sulfate (SO4), ppm No Data No Data No Data 50 to 150 for normally bittered beers; 150 to 350 for very bitter beers Hardness Calculations Ca,mEq 2.16 1.51 Mg,mEq 1.46 0.66 Ca & Mg, meq 3.62 2.17 ppm of CaCO3 (Hardness) 181.1 108.4 Residual Alkalinity Calculations Total Hardness 181.1 108.4 Cabonate Hardness, ppm CaCO3 241.3 77.1 Non-Carbonate Hardness, ppm CaCO3-60.2 31.3 Residual Alkalinity, meq 4.00 1.02 Residual Alkalinity, ppm of CaCO3 200.0 50.8