Whenever we talk about ingredients for our recipes we inevitably talk about Malt, Hops and Yeast. All very important of course but with over 94 % of the final Beer being water it makes a lot of sense to think about and discuss this overwhelmingly vital component, because logically it must have a significant influence on the final outcome, whether we like it or not. Water chemistry and the role it plays in brewing is seen as rather daunting and way too complicated and after all you can still make Beer with what comes out of the tap anyway, can't you?
Yes. And in East Anglia we are quite lucky in that our water is actually pretty good straight out the tap for brewing quite a number of styles. Except for one BIG problem. But before we allow it to make its entrance a brief discussion about where water comes from will help to set the scene.
Before I do, a brief comment on the objective for all this. My brief is to give a simple and practical guide to what we need to know and do, not give a water chemistry lecture. Two reasons. One, I don't understand it enough myself to adequately answer highly technical questions. Two, you don't need to know it, you just need to know what to do and crucially a little on why...
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