Hefeweizen Water Profile and pH

JohnAdam · Oct 14, 2016

Dear All,

I've been getting into my water chemistry recently, and its fun learning about it. But now I'm really coming up a against a query that may be best answered with some real human experience. I'm brewing a Hefeweizen with 3kG of Weyerman Bohemian Pilsener and 3kG of Dingemans Wheat malt, fermented with WLP300. I'm also considering hopping it with Huell melon to make it a Hopfenweisse.

I have very clean water in the tap. Low chlorine, Alkalinity as CaCO3 is 15 (salifert checked) calcium is down at 11.8ppm, Mg at 2ppm, Na 8ppm, Cl 12ppm, SO4, 25ppm. Any style needs additions for Calcium, Na and Cl, to get into the region where they can improve flavour / for fementation nutrition. I understand a hefe wants low calcium and equal, low Cl:SO4 rates so I am adding CaCl and MgSO4 to get to 30ppm Ca, and around 45ppm Cl/SO4 each. So, my water calculator (EZ calculator) gives me a mash pH (understandably) at a high 5.86. I understand that this is a guide, but I fully expect a mash to yield a high pH with low colour malts and soft water. I don't want to load it with Calcium salts.

Now, here's the real question: I am doing a 3 stage mash with at 40, 62 and 71 degrees (heating with HERMS system between steps) and I have read up on acid rests (40-50 degrees C) which allow the lacto bacteria / protens to sour the mash, but will this be enough? I have lactic acid (80%) if needed, but maybe I need to be checking the pH as I go. I don't want to add the required 5ml lactic acid to get down to the pH 5.5 if the malt will achieve this anyway at 50 degrees C, but also don't want too high a pH if it dosn't.

Anyone been in my shoes and have any answers? If not, I'll measure pH just before the furst temperature rise and adjust accordingly!
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GFHomebrew · Oct 14, 2016

JohnAdam said:
Dear All,

I've been getting into my water chemistry recently, and its fun learning about it. But now I'm really coming up a against a query that may be best answered with some real human experience. I'm brewing a Hefeweizen with 3kG of Weyerman Bohemian Pilsener and 3kG of Dingemans Wheat malt, fermented with WLP300. I'm also considering hopping it with Huell melon to make it a Hopfenweisse.

I have very clean water in the tap. Low chlorine, Alkalinity as CaCO3 is 15 (salifert checked) calcium is down at 11.8ppm, Mg at 2ppm, Na 8ppm, Cl 12ppm, SO4, 25ppm. Any style needs additions for Calcium, Na and Cl, to get into the region where they can improve flavour / for fementation nutrition. I understand a hefe wants low calcium and equal, low Cl:SO4 rates so I am adding CaCl and MgSO4 to get to 30ppm Ca, and around 45ppm Cl/SO4 each. So, my water calculator (EZ calculator) gives me a mash pH (understandably) at a high 5.86. I understand that this is a guide, but I fully expect a mash to yield a high pH with low colour malts and soft water. I don't want to load it with Calcium salts.

Now, here's the real question: I am doing a 3 stage mash with at 40, 62 and 71 degrees (heating with HERMS system between steps) and I have read up on acid rests (40-50 degrees C) which allow the lacto bacteria / protens to sour the mash, but will this be enough? I have lactic acid (80%) if needed, but maybe I need to be checking the pH as I go. I don't want to add the required 5ml lactic acid to get down to the pH 5.5 if the malt will achieve this anyway at 50 degrees C, but also don't want too high a pH if it dosn't.

Anyone been in my shoes and have any answers? If not, I'll measure pH just before the furst temperature rise and adjust accordingly!

I'm pretty sure Ozark's on this forum is your man John Adam I've seen a post of his referring to acidification of sparge water on his system which sounds similar to yours large amounts of sparge volumes going on. Sounds like you've got a ph meter and are pretty switched on when it comes to water chemistry mate. You've got some great Pilsner profile is all I can say. And I adjust with calcium chloride and calcium sulfate and acid malt by Weyermann for ph. I have used magnesium sulfate for adjustments but am holding back for now as its a laxative and yea we won't get into that

. Hefes don't know the style interesting about low calcium count for this style too I know the yeast like the calcium in fermentation and some magnesium too. Good luck and hope to see you round the forum JohnAdam. Good luck

Ozarks Mountain Brewery · Oct 14, 2016

when I start mashing, for what ever beer I brew I add the salts and acid the site recommends for both the mash and sparge water then I take 3 ph readings during mashing one after the mash has recirculated for at least 10 minutes, then I add any acid to get my ph into the 5 range, second 30 minutes into the mash just to check and add more if necessary to get my ph down to 5.5 or so and the third right before sparging as well as check my sparge water ph
different beers should not matter even if you step mash so first I would use the advanced calculator on the edit recipe to link your recipe to the advanced water calculator, add your water profile as the source then pick or add a target water profile then play around with your salts, pick add to mash only then fill out the acid section clicking add to mash only and specify mash by target , it should tell you how much acid to add to the mash only example: Add 2.56 ml

after all of this is done you need to take a preboil ph reading and it doesn't matter if you screw up before this point, if the preboil ph is close to your target your good