1 gram of a typical brewing salt often addressees more than a single mineral, so I guess this isn't a practical way to try to wrap or heads around additions?joshua wrote:Is the a scale to measure mg???? or do I need 1000L to add 1 gram???
onkeltuka wrote:Getting back to this water stuff. One thing I can't get my mind around is this: when calculating mineral additions in BW, I calculate the mineral amounts based on the TWN, but once I'm done boiling I might have only 60% liquid of that left, so won't I end up with hugely concentrated amount of minerals in that smaller volume of wort?
Yes, you are reading too much into the importance of calcium and the resulting concentration of ions through the boil. Trying to extrapolate what the ionic concentrations are after the boil is full of potential error since one brewer's boil may not be similar to another. In addition, we need to understand that malt adds a LOT of ionic content to the wort.
You can brew with distilled water and still have a bunch of calcium in your wort. The issue is that we brewers have empirically found that having around 50 ppm calcium in the starting water is good for helping ale yeast flocculate. Most brewers like their beers to clear in a reasonable amount of time. Conversely, lager brewers are not as interested in quick flocculation since they lager their beers and the yeast will fall out of suspension eventually.
So, 50 ppm is not a sacred level of calcium for brewing water. There is more than that level in wort made with distilled water and the yeast need very little calcium for their health.
Now I do have a minimum calcium level that most brewers should strive for and that is to provide at least 40 ppm IN THE MASH to help precipitate oxalate from the wort. That oxalate can cause beerstone problems around the brewery and it MIGHT promote kidney stones in beer drinkers if not precipitated (inconclusive). So you can have this minimum level in the mash and then dilute it with low calcium water and the beer will turn out fine. Some lagers benefit from low mineralization while other beers have improved flavor with more mineralization (ie: pale ales).
So, its not worthwhile to consider the concentrating effects of the boil on ions. Just standardize on targeting pre-boil concentrations in your water and alter those concentrations with subsequent brews to produce the results you prefer.
Don't overthink it! Enjoy.
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