Better to hit target water profile in mash or overall (using RO to dilute after mash)

[GlowingApple]

I used Bru'n water for the amber ale I made recently. I used RO water and adjusted using salts. It was the first time I've used anything besides my tap water... and it tasted delicious! Used to have some background off-flavor in all of my brews, but no longer; I'm sold on adjusting my water!

So I'm brewing this same beer again, but to try to fix some issues with low efficiency in the first batch, I'm changing the process. The first batch I mashed, BIAB, in the full volume of water. Now I'd like to mash with a thicker mash, and add hot water to do a mash-out. That means I have to separately adjust my mash water, and dilution water. It would be easiest to just add salts to my mash water and then dilute with RO water for mash-out. So I set Bru'n water to "Add Sparging Water mineral additions to the Mash?".

If I adjust my salts so my mashing water profile matches the target water profile, the overall finished water profile is significantly different from my previous batch. Will this affect the flavor of the finished beer? Or is it better to adjust my salts so my overall finished water profile is similar, albeit ensuring my mash pH is correct, even if my mash water profile differs from the target?

 

[mabrungard]

The free version doesn't include the precise calculations on how the mashing water and sparging water profiles affect the finished wort concentrations. But it should be close enough. I see that you have the supporter's version that includes more utility.

Using that Add sparging minerals to the mashing water button has proven to be a great addition when I brew lagers. That way I can boost the mashing water calcium content so that pH and oxalate removal are enhanced, and then the sparging water dilutes the final wort down to low calcium that benefits lager yeast performance and lager flavor.

 

[GlowingApple]

I never realized just how different the free version is! I filled it out and compared to my version. It looks like the free version targets the overall finished beer with the "actual water adjustment", whereas the "actual finished water adjustment" in the supporter's version targets the mash water.

Is hitting the profile in the mash more important to the flavor of the beer?

 

[mabrungard]

Is hitting the profile in the mash more important to the flavor of the beer?

No. The overall concentrations of the flavor ions have the greatest effect on flavor.

The concentration of calcium and the residual alkalinity in the mash was the reason a closer look at the mash concentrations is presented in the Supporter's version.

 

[GlowingApple]

Thanks for the clarification!

The supporter's version appears to mark the actual finished water adjustment green when it hits the mashing water profile, not necessarily when it hits the overall finished water profile. This works well if the mash and sparge have the same concentration of all ions.

When adding sparge additions to the mash water, or if using alkaline salts in the mash (which are not added to the sparge), then even hitting the overall finished water profile, many of the actual finished water adjustment boxes are not green. It would be nice if these boxes turned green when the overall water profile was on target.

I really love Bru'n water by the way. It makes water adjustments so much easier, and appeals to the scientist in me! Thanks!