Lesson 4 - Brewing Water Composition and Impact
This lesson deals with the influences of water composition on brewing equipment, the brewing process and beer quality. It will cover the positive and negative impacts that the various compounds found in water have on beer. We will explore the recommended water specifications for brewing key beer styles. We will also examine how to correct levels of some of the key salts within water.
Preface
Although potable water is a minimum requirement for brewing water, it is not the sole requirement. You should be aware that brewing water needs to be potable (fit for human consumption) and what a potable water standard should look like.
The reality is that this is not necessarily ideal for brewing beer with and in this lesson we will highlight why the source water may need to be further treated and adjusted to be termed ‘product water’ (this is sometimes referred to use ‘brewing liquor’).
Product water (water used in making beer, or in contact with the beer during the brewing process) requires the right amount of hardness, alkalinity and mineral composition to produce specific beer styles. The water source greatly influences the quantity of different minerals found in the water. These minerals can affect the flavour and quality of the final beer. It is thus important to understand the composition of your source water, so that you can make any necessary adjustments before it is termed ‘product water’.
This lesson will cover the key minerals found in water, and their impact on the brewing process as well as the final beer. We will discuss the suggested quantities of these minerals, as well as the water treatment options available to achieve these quantities. However, before we look at minerals in-depth, let us return to potable source water and consider what needs to be adjusted to make it into a base-line product water.