Type of water to use

Before embarking on alternatives to tap water, I would get the tap water tested to see if you could use it as a base.

That said, RO or Distilled is what the majority of homebrewers use when they want a "clean slate."

 

Are you doing All Grain or Extract for you first brews? If the latter, I'd recommend RO/Distilled water without any salt additions. The minerals from the water used in the mash that made the extract are still in the extract. Or if you know your tap water profile, and it's very soft, you could treat with Campden tablets for chlorine/chloramines and use that. If your tap water is very hard, you could treat it for chlorine/chloramines and use it, but risk having extremely minerally water in the finished product (tap water minerals plus extract minerals).

BTW, regarding "salinity..." when we talk about adding salts to brewing water, we're not (usually) talking about Sodium Chloride. It's usually salts like Calcium Chloride, Calcium Sulfate, etc. These can be important for mash pH (which you don't need to worry about for extract batches) and for flavor. But I wouldn't generally recommend adding them to extract batches, because you're already starting with an unknown (but hopefully good enough flavor-wise) mineral profile from the extract.

 

A GAC filter will remove some things from the water, but not the mineral ions that make up the water profile for the beer.

RO is a good starting point.

You are a chemist, so the book Water by Palmer and Kaminski will have all the information you need.

 

You're correct, but I think a clarification is needed here for the benefit of those for whom this is new ground. While a "clean slate" is a good starting point for building your own water profile, you typically don't want to brew with it as-is. Some of the minerals that are stripped out by RO or distillation are necessary for a proper mash.

This doesn't apply to extract beers. RO/distilled are just fine for those.

 

this is easy.

you are chemists, so developing a water profile and getting the needed minerals should not be too difficult. use your chemistry skills. water is sort of the final frontier for even the most experienced brewers. you have an advantage in that area.

you have a supply of RO water. homebrewing is very much a DIY hobby, always has been. any time you can repurpose a tool, pot, gauge... anything, do it. use the RO water.

just don't use RO without any modifications if you are brewing all grain.
Cheers.

 

If you are chemists I would advise you to taylor your water for brewing, I think it would be extremely easy for you to do that and I assume you have the means to do it accurately. So starting from RO water you will add the different salts to reach a beer style water profile(as Vikeman said just in case you are going to brew all-grain otherwise it is not necessary) wich is a key factor to get a beer over the average.

Some important information here :

http://www.howtobrew.com/section3/chapter14.html

 

Going forward, I'd suggest getting your water analysis done as well. I took my time getting mine, but it was worth it.

I know that I can simply just filter my tap water through my charcoal filter, treat for any residual chlorine or chloramines, and have pretty damn good water that is suited for most any style, with minimal work to be done with additions on my part.

 

Water cban change a good beer to a great beer.

One should get the good beer precess down first.