These water recipes are guidelines that brewers who build their own water can follow. None of these recipes has been optimized for a given style but the residual alkalinity is chosen such that it should yield a satisfactory mash pH when used for the listed styles. Since the acidity of the grist can vary significantly even for a given style additional adjustments might be necessary. All water recipes include a copy of my water calculation spreadsheet which can be used to make such adjustments. In that spreadsheet you may also enter a starting water profile if that is known.

Some of the recipes used magnesium chloride. I got this salt from a fellow brewer who also keeps fish and used it to build water for the aquarium. If you don't have access to MgCl₂, don't worry and just omit it or make up for it with some more Epsom salt.

very soft water

This is a very soft water option for a Munich Helles or a Pilsner. I have used this for one batch and despite the low calcium level did not have problems with the getting the beer to clear. Paulaner, for example, uses a deep well from which they get very soft (~ 2 dH / 30 ppm CaCO3 Hardness) brewing water. I don't know if they are adding additional minerals when they brew their lighter beers with that water but it is very likely that they don't.

I use this water with a 97% Pilsner malt and 3% acidulated malt (Sauermalz) grist and get a mash pH of about 5.3-5.4.

water_91_Helles.xls

works for:

• Munich Helles
• Weissbier Hell (light Bavarian Wheat)
• Pilsner
• Koelsch style ales