Sparge Acid Addition Mistake

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by FeDUBBELFIST, Dec 7, 2014.

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  1. koopa

    koopa Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2008 New Jersey

    Berliner Weisse Bock :slight_smile:
     
    #21 koopa, Dec 8, 2014
  2. FeDUBBELFIST

    FeDUBBELFIST Pooh-Bah (1,765) Oct 31, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    My gut agrees with you. I am thinking I'll let it ferment out and keg, then fruit or funk it up, whichever seems appropriate (if anything). My next question would be, to anyone who would like to offer their opinion, do you think the yeast would be suitable for re-pitch?
     
    #22 FeDUBBELFIST, Dec 8, 2014
    Last edited: Dec 8, 2014
  3. FeDUBBELFIST

    FeDUBBELFIST Pooh-Bah (1,765) Oct 31, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    Thank you for your optimism but I generally only need 1-2 mL of lactic acid for pale beers.
     
    #23 FeDUBBELFIST, Dec 8, 2014
  4. jamescain

    jamescain Initiate (0) Jul 14, 2009 Texas

    Do you know this because you've taken a pH reading? What does the acid you add do to your beers?
     
    #24 jamescain, Dec 8, 2014
  5. FeDUBBELFIST

    FeDUBBELFIST Pooh-Bah (1,765) Oct 31, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    A pH meter is in the future. But for the time being, I'm relying on the best resources I have available to me, which I have been very happy with so far. The acid, in this case, keeps my sparge water pH close to my mash pH and eliminates tannin extraction during the sparge.
     
    #25 FeDUBBELFIST, Dec 9, 2014
  6. jamescain

    jamescain Initiate (0) Jul 14, 2009 Texas

    What's your water profile?
     
    #26 jamescain, Dec 9, 2014
  7. Tebuken

    Tebuken Initiate (0) Jun 6, 2009 Argentina

    I think your beer is going to be fine, remember that sparging water pH raises during this process, so I wouldn´t be so concerned. Maybe a pinch of NaHCO3 will help you.
     
    #27 Tebuken, Dec 9, 2014
  8. FeDUBBELFIST

    FeDUBBELFIST Pooh-Bah (1,765) Oct 31, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    Ca - 0
    Mg - 0
    Na - 72
    Cl - 48
    SO4 - 18
    HCO3 - 86

    pH - 7.2

    However, I used 100% distilled in the mash and 50% for the sparge (4.22G/5.32G respectively).
     
    #28 FeDUBBELFIST, Dec 9, 2014
  9. jamescain

    jamescain Initiate (0) Jul 14, 2009 Texas

    Yea you have pretty soft water and cutting it with distilled will reduce the hardness as well.

    I have like 274 ppm CaCO3 so I need a decent amount of acid.
     
    #29 jamescain, Dec 9, 2014
  10. Tebuken

    Tebuken Initiate (0) Jun 6, 2009 Argentina

    Did you add any salts to this water before/during mash and/or boilling?
     
    #30 Tebuken, Dec 10, 2014
  11. FeDUBBELFIST

    FeDUBBELFIST Pooh-Bah (1,765) Oct 31, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    Yes. I added the following to the mash:
    CaCl2 - 2g
    CaSO4 - 5g
    MgCl2 - 1g
    + 5mL of lactic acid to achieve a mash pH of 5.23 (not verified).

    Then there was the addition of 12mL of lactic acid to the sparge water.
    No additions to the boil kettle.
     
    #31 FeDUBBELFIST, Dec 10, 2014
  12. Tebuken

    Tebuken Initiate (0) Jun 6, 2009 Argentina

    Ok, those numbers are correct, except the 12 mL lactic acid to the sparge water of course. But I still think your beer is going to be ok
     
    #32 Tebuken, Dec 10, 2014
  13. Tebuken

    Tebuken Initiate (0) Jun 6, 2009 Argentina

    #33 Tebuken, Dec 10, 2014
  14. FeDUBBELFIST

    FeDUBBELFIST Pooh-Bah (1,765) Oct 31, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    So after 2 months of lagering, I've tasted this beer and it indeed has a tartness to it that is out of place for a Helles Bock. Kind of a shame because tartness aside, the beer tastes spot on for what i was going for - its just in no-man's land right now. I'm going to pitch some ECY Bug Country and stash it away for awhile.

    Side note, I have washed this yeast, but I was curious if it would be trustworthy to re-pitch down the road given the overly acidic fermentation environment. If anyone has any insight on this, I'd greatly appreciate it.

    Cheers!
     
    #34 FeDUBBELFIST, Feb 22, 2015
  15. utahbeerdude

    utahbeerdude Maven (1,374) May 2, 2006 Utah

    I missed this thread the first time around, but thought I'd add the following remarks.

    Trying to use any of the calculators to predict mash pH beyond the limits of typical mash pH values is pure folly, as all of the models are not much better than empirical in nature.

    On the other hand, the calculation of sparge water pH upon acid addition is a straightforward process with sound scientific basis. Thus, such calculations for any amount of acid should (or could) be quite accurate.
     
    #35 utahbeerdude, Feb 22, 2015
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