Process & Ingredients: Water Flashcards
What percentage of beer is water?
85-95%
Can tap water be used for brewing?
Yes, though some mineral adjustments may be needed to mimic water used in historical beer styles.
Does chlorine inhibit bacterial growth?
Yes, and should be removed from tap water to produce high quality beer.
Is distilled water or mineral water better for brewing beer?
Mineral water, as minerals such as iron and zinc are essential for yeast metabolism.
What is the pH of neutral water?
7
Is a lower pH value in water alkaline or acidic?
Acidic
What is the target pH range to breakdown starches and proteins?
5.1-5.5
How can alkaline mash be adjusted?
Adding lactic or phosphoric acid (pale-colored beers) or by adding acidulated malt.
What is the most important anion at the pH of brewing water and wort? This is the primary ion that determines the alkalinity of water.
Bicarbonate (HCO3-)
What is the most important cation in brewing? It is essential for reducing the mash pH to the appropriate range.
Calcium
What taste results from high magnesium content?
Harsh, mineral-like taste.
What ions are present in brewing?
Calcium, Magnesium, Sodium, Bicarbonate
Sulfate, Chloride
What brewing center’s water has a very low hardness and alkalinity allowing proper mash pH with only base malts? This, combined with lack of sulfate, yields rounded malt character and mellow hop bitterness in the beer style.
Pilzn
What brewing center’s water has higher levels of all minerals, producing pale lagers that are bolder, drier, and lighter in color?
Dortmund
What brewing centers’ mineral profiles are remarkably similar? The darker malts used to brew balance the carbonates and acidify the mash, yielding a very smooth malt character. The low sulfate content also provides a mellow hop bitterness.
Munich and Edinburgh
What brewing center’s level of calcium in the water is too low to balance the bicarbonate level to achieve a a sufficiently low pH when brewing pale colored lagers?
Vienna
What brewing center’s water has a greater imbalance of calcium and bicarbonate, which led to beer brewed with a high percentage of roasted barley and malts?
Dublin
What brewing center’s water has a bicarbonate level that is nearly twice that of calcium, as well as a high sodium and low sulfate content? Brewers were forced to use a higher percentage of dark malts to balance the mash pH.
London
What brewing center’s water has the highest calcium and sulfate, but the calcium is nearly perfectly balanced by the bicarbonate? The style produced has an assertive, clean hop bitterness.
Burton-on-Trent (England)
What are the common salts added to water to reproduce mineral contents of brewing centers?
Gypsum, Espom, Non-Iodized table salt, and calcium chloride.
