Copy Link
Add to Bookmark
Report
HOMEBREW Digest #5406
HOMEBREW Digest #5406 Fri 29 August 2008
FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
Digest Janitor: pbabcock at hbd.org
***************************************************************
AUGUST'S HOME BREW DIGEST BROUGHT TO YOU BY:
The Ann Arbor Brewers Guild
Visit them at http://aabg.org
Support those who support you! Visit our sponsor's site!
********** Also visit http://hbd.org/hbdsponsors.html *********
DONATE to the Home Brew Digest. Home Brew Digest, Inc. is a
501(c)3 not-for-profit organization under IRS rules (see the
FAQ at http://hbd.org for details of this status). Donations
can be made by check to Home Brew Digest mailed to:
HBD Server Fund
PO Box 871309
Canton Township, MI 48187-6309
or by paypal to address serverfund@hbd.org. DONATIONS of $250
or more will be provided with receipts. SPONSORSHIPS of any
amount are considered paid advertisement, and may be deductible
under IRS rules as a business expense. Please consult with your
tax professional, then see http://hbd.org for available
sponsorship opportunities.
***************************************************************
Contents:
Beer color (Fred M. Scheer)
RA ("A.J deLange")
Pansy water and what do to about it ("Samuel Bosco")
MALT Turkey Shoot 2008 (Jack Mowbray)
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* The HBD Logo Store is now open! *
* http://www.hbd.org/store.html *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* Beer is our obsession and we're late for therapy! *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Send articles for __publication_only__ to post@hbd.org
If your e-mail account is being deleted, please unsubscribe first!!
To SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE send an e-mail message with the word
"subscribe" or "unsubscribe" to request@hbd.org FROM THE E-MAIL
ACCOUNT YOU WISH TO HAVE SUBSCRIBED OR UNSUBSCRIBED!!!**
IF YOU HAVE SPAM-PROOFED your e-mail address, you cannot subscribe to
the digest as we cannot reach you. We will not correct your address
for the automation - that's your job.
HAVING TROUBLE posting, subscribing or unsusubscribing? See the HBD FAQ at
http://hbd.org.
LOOKING TO BUY OR SELL USED EQUIPMENT? Please do not post about it here. Go
instead to http://homebrewfleamarket.com and post a free ad there.
The HBD is a copyrighted document. The compilation is copyright
HBD.ORG. Individual postings are copyright by their authors. ASK
before reproducing and you'll rarely have trouble. Digest content
cannot be reproduced by any means for sale or profit.
More information is available by sending the word "info" to
req@hbd.org or read the HBD FAQ at http://hbd.org.
JANITORs on duty: Pat Babcock (pbabcock at hbd dot org), Jason Henning,
and Spencer Thomas
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 23 Aug 2008 11:38:31 +0000
From: fredscheer07 at comcast.net (Fred M. Scheer)
Subject: Beer color
HI All:
Just wanted you to know that A.J. deLange has an extremely good
article in the Journal of the ASBC (American Society of Brewing
Chemists, pp 143 - 150). He discusses Beer color in very detail, based on
measurement of 99 beers.
Great Job A.J.
Fred M. Scheer
Nashville, TN
http://www.mbaa.com/emergingIssues/default.htm
- --
The information transmitted (including attachments) is
covered by the Electronic Communications Privacy Act,
18 U.S.C. 2510-2521, is intended only for the person(s) or
entity/entities to which it is addressed and may contain
confidential and/or privileged material. Any review,
retransmission, dissemination or other use of, or taking
of any action in reliance upon, this information by persons
or entities other than the intended recipient(s) is prohibited.
If you received this in error, please contact the sender and
delete the material from any computer.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 29 Aug 2008 00:08:39 -0400
From: "A.J deLange" <ajdel at cox.net>
Subject: RA
In the example in the article (Ca = 225, Mg = 40, Alk = 220) If these
are all in ppm as CaCO3 the proper calculation is RA = 220 - (225/3.5 +
40/7) = 150 ppm as CaCO3. Now as 1 milliequivalent per liter corresponds
to 50 ppm as CaCO3 one could also express this RA as 150/50 = +3 mEq/L
(not -3) but the fact that the digit 3 is involved is suspicious. If
the Ca and Mg numbers are "as the ion" (which is doubtless the case as
the given numbers as the ion are about right for Dortmund) you would use
the formula you quote from me to convert the mg/L as the ion to mEq/L in
which case the calculation is RA = 220 - 50(11.25/3.5 + 3.292/7) = 35.8,
about what you got. In general the RA formula is RA = Alk - ({Ca}/3.5 +
{Mg}/7) where {Ca} and {Mg} can be in units of ppm as CaCO3, mg/L as
the ion, grains per gallon or whatever you like but Alk must be in the
same units and RA is then in those units as well. So I think you aren't
doing anything wrong. I don't have the article to look at but I'm
guessing it's a typo.
A.J.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 29 Aug 2008 10:13:14 -0400
From: "Samuel Bosco" <samuel.bosco at gmail.com>
Subject: Pansy water and what do to about it
My house water is softened by a Culligan water softener. I know that by
itself this water is generally useless for brewing.
At the outset of this question I would like to request that no one replies
in the vein of "remove the water softener" because
that is not going to happen (I do not control the utilities of the house)
and I am not ready to move out.
As of now, I have been using store bought spring water, which has worked
fine but I feel like it is wasteful of both money
and my time. Tap water is much cheaper and much more convenient.
So as I said before I realize that soft water is essential useless when it
comes to brewing, Culligan water systems not only
soften the water in the traditional sense of the term but the essential
remove all non water components and the way mine
is set up it is exchanged with sodium. I do not know the ppm of sodium in
the water but I can tell you that it is below
perception by taste.
Soft water such as mine also has potential to be a "blank canvas" and I can
tailor my brewing liquor to whatever style I wish
to brew. However I am not yet familiar with brewing water chemistry and I do
not know about the intricacies of amending water
with salts. As I make the switch to all grain I would like to utilize the
water from my tap and really understand my home
brewery.
My questions are:
Are there any salt amendments that give the full suite of important brewing
salts? Would the proper addition just Burton
salts be enough to support yeast health and brew a good ale or would a
cocktail of salts be required?
When does one add the salts? Mash? Pre Mash? Boil? Sparge?
What are some good texts that can explain this subject (be they zymurgy/byo
articles or internet articles or book chapters)
As experienced brewers what have you all found that works well?
Thnank you,
Sam Bosco
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 28 Aug 2008 08:20:37 -0500 (CDT)
From: Jack Mowbray <jmowbray at verizon.net>
Subject: MALT Turkey Shoot 2008
Maryland Ale and Lager Technicians (MALT) are pleased to
announce their 4th Annual Turkey Shoot* Homebrew Competition.
This is a BJCP-sanctioned event.
In addition to quality feedback on all entries, cash prizes will be
awarded for Best of Show as well as for 2nd and 3rd place overall.
Ribbons and sponsored prizes will be awarded to individual category
winners.
The competition will be held Sunday, November 9th at Clipper
City Brewing Company in Baltimore, MD. All BJCP beer categories
will be accepted. The deadline for entries is November 1st.
Additional information, rules, entry forms, and bottle labels may
be found at the MALT website: http://www.maltclub.org
As in the past, we welcome the participation of BJCP-accredited
judges. Anyone who is interested in helping with the judging should
contact:
Mike McMahon
fishandbrew at comcast.net
*no live birds will be harmed during this event
------------------------------
End of HOMEBREW Digest #5406, 08/29/08
*************************************
-------
