Yes, with more water in play extra consideration needs to be given to alkalinity. Two out of three brews in my Grainfather have given me slight higher Mash pH than I was used to getting with my old system - 5.6 as opposed to 5.3/5.4. While I am not doing full volume mash as most seem to be doing with BM, there is still more water present than with the traditional 2.5L:1kg, i.e. (grain bill * 2.7)L + 3.5L (dead space). This means there is more carbonate, even though the rate maybe the expected 20-30 ppm for a pale ale.Sadfield wrote:Interesting. Never used one, or come across this as an issue. Always stuff to learn in brewing.barneey wrote:I tend to go a lot lower with my water profile when using a BM.Sadfield wrote:Surely the alkalinity shouldn't present a problem in a porter?
Calcium level also needs to be considered in greater detail, whatever system you are using - 3V, BM, GF etc. Some are advocating levels of 150 ppm or more and I agree. Ongoing experiments are indicating that 50% or more calcium is being left behind in the Mash due to precipitation, meaning less is available for the boil and beyond.