I gave up on brewing after 3 try’s but a friend explained why my beer tasted so bad and my 4th batch was great, He used crystal geyser water. So with it costing $1 a gallon I started Googleing reverse osmosis water (25 cents a gallon) and found way to much information. Anyone use RO and what advice do you have.
I use RO water from MY system. RO is great as it allows you to build each water profile to suit your needs. If you buy from a store I would avoid the stand alone RO systems. RO systems need to be maintained and with those you never know when they are checked/maintained. I would like to assume that if you buy bottled RO water from a reliable company that they would maintain their systems. If it were me and I was BUYING water, I would buy distilled.
I buy distilled. Yeah, nine bucks is a bit of change every batch (all grain, five gallons) but it’s not about saving money for me.
If your local tap water is too mineralized for brewing usage, RO water sources can be good alternatives. Since they purify the local water, RO water is typically less expensive than bottled or distilled water. The only caution is that you should use a TDS meter to check that the RO water from your machine actually has very low TDS. Another thing to understand, is that even RO and distilled water can need some form of treatment to make it better for brewing. Its not a free pass!
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@doskraut what kind of beers did you brew: Porter, Stout, Kolsch, IPA, etc? I am assuming all grain since we are in the all grain forum, so I will exclude the extract commentary. Anyhow, I would get your water tested, or try and obtain a detailed water report from your municipality. Can you elaborate on why your first three tasted so bad? It in all honesty could be a process tweek rather than a water issue.
Crystal Geyser Water looks to be spring water; which is very hard in most cases and is not suitable for lighter colored beers. To save $$ try doing a split 50/50 tap to spring. You may be where you need to be mineral wise.
R/O water is good, but you will need to (in most cases) wrap your head around basic water chemistry to see which salt additions will be needed to get your mineral content in check.
If you are four batches in A.G. brewing you may want to hone in your process before going all in on the water treatment, or spending unwarranted funds on spring water.
If you have the time and the money and the desire (the 3rd being the most crucial) try brewing two all grain stouts. One with your tap water and one with the spring water. See what (if any) noticeable differences there are and take copious notes.
Lastly, take notes on what off flavors you notice. Is it metallic, iron like, melted army men, etc. Once you have that information down, research the cause of those off-flavors and ask around. This forum is a great source of knowledge.
Good luck and happy brewing!!
[quote=“andymag”]
try brewing two all grain stouts. One with your tap water and one with the spring water. See what (if any) noticeable differences there are and take copious notes.
Lastly, take notes on what off flavors you notice. Is it metallic, iron like, melted army men, etc. Once you have that information down, research the cause of those off-flavors and ask around. This forum is a great source of knowledge.
Good luck and happy brewing!![/quote] andymag: I ask one question and now I have so many more, Hefeweizen is my favorite and Kolsch well wheat beer. My first question is why a stout. In Bavaria they use spring water and that’s why I thought of Crystal Geyser Water but RO water I buy all the time.Are city water taste really bad
I would be VERY careful utilizing “traditional city profiles.” First water can change with the seasons. Second water has changed significantly over the years due to processing/sanitization. Last, you don’t know what those breweries are doing to treat their water. You are far better off using a SRM backed program like Bru’n Water (developed by Martin Brungard, who posted earlier). I have to sincerely thank Martin as that program has greatly improved my brewing, as it has so many others.
As far as your thought to use spring water because they do in Bavaria… What makes you think that the composition of the water are the same? It would be very unlikely that a spring in two different regions like that would be similar.
If your starting to dabble in water download Bru’n water. Read through it as it offers great insight into water. Then read it again. Bru’n water seems to be intimidating at first. Play with it and you’ll soon understand it. I do and the only thing I was good at in chemistry class was breaking crucibles and burning myself.
You can read about Bavarian water in an article in Zymurgy printed a couple of years ago. The water across that region is fairly similar. Its moderately hard and alkaline. But the most important thing to understand is that EVERY Bavarian brewery employs acid malt or saurgut to acidify their mash to produce great beer. Using any water without understanding that all water needs some form of acidification is a recipe for uninspiring beer.
You can read about Bavarian water in an article in Zymurgy printed a couple of years ago. The water across that region is fairly similar. Its moderately hard and alkaline. But the most important thing to understand is that EVERY Bavarian brewery employs acid malt or saurgut to acidify their mash to produce great beer. Using any water without understanding that all water needs some form of acidification is a recipe for uninspiring beer.[/quote]
Thanks, I checked your link on Water Information and saw https://sites.google.com/site/brunwater/screenshots Now I’m starting to understand, The advert If you can drink the water then you can make beer was misleading. Much more to this than I thought.
UPDATE: I found a good video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMTA_VmqhbQ and now I’m ready to order a test meter as this water testing looks easy to do. Thanks all
Yeah the “water tastes fine” is misleading. What is the problem your experiencing with your water? It might be a reasonable fix and depending on your water you may not need to buy water.
If Martin weren’t so damned modest, he’d have said, “Download my spreadsheet, read the instructions (twice), get your water tested by Ward Labs, and you’ll never worry about water again!”
If you send Martin a donation he’ll send you an upgraded version of his spreadsheet - money well-spent!
[quote=“Old_Dawg”]If Martin weren’t so damned modest, he’d have said, “Download my spreadsheet, read the instructions (twice), get your water tested by Ward Labs, and you’ll never worry about water again!”
So been reading about TDS Meters and found one. http://www.hometrainingtools.com/ph-met … fgodbfQM1Q
What do you think.
That’s a pH meter. You need something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/HM-Digital-Thermo ... B0002T6L5M[quote=“Loopie Beer”]That’s a pH meter. You need something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/HM-Digital-Thermo ... B0002T6L5M[/quote]And I like the price, Thanks
A TDS meter, pH meter, or anything of the sorts is a colossal waste of money if you do not know the parameters of your water. Get your water tested, or at a minimum contact your municipality and see if they’ll provide you with a detailed water report. From there download a reputable water treatment program like Bru’n water or EZ Water and see what, if any, additions are needed or if R/O water is even appropriate.
I mentioned brewing a stout earlier to compare (Spring vs Tap water) as darker beers tend to be much more forgiving towards problematic water.
Without truly understanding the make up of your water or the profile of the water desired for the beer your making it’s really just a shot in the dark.
Can you elaborate why your beer tasted bad? I may really be a simple fix.
