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Location:

United States

What it does :

The St. Louis water profile has a low temporary hardness. It is also known for containing low levels of sulfates. The ratio of sulfates to chloride is 1.1 which, if not adjusted for brewing, will contribute to a beer that may be balanced between malt sweetness and hop bitterness for a given hopping rate. The estimated range of beer color that you can brew with this water profile is from pale gold to pale amber. Representative ion levels for the St. Louis water profile are shown below.

What it is:

The city of St. Louis is located in the American state of Missouri, at the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers. At its founding in 1764, the city relied on a system of springs and cisterns for its water supply. Today, its two main water purification plants supply drinking water from the Missouri River. Let's take a closer look at the characteristics of water from the St. Louis area to understand its suitability for brewing beer.

Vital Statistics

How it works:

For brewing purposes, knowing the ion profile of your water is important for four main reasons:

Treating your source water supply is largely needed only for all-grain brewing, since malt extract manufacturers account for the necessary water chemistry in making the extract for you. However, if you use a large percentage of specialty grains in an extract brew, that may make water treatment necessary.

Dosage:

Use our Water Treatment calculator to compute the types and amounts of additives needed to modify your base water to mimic the St. Louis brewing water profile. Knowing the starting ion levels present in your source water supply is important so that you do not overcompensate with additives. You should be able to get this data for your source water from your local water company.

Preparation:

To imitate the St. Louis water profile, we recommend that you begin with distilled water. Then, consider selecting from additives like gypsum, Epsom salts, non-iodized canning salt, baking soda, calcium chloride, and chalk. First determine which of these additives, and how much of each, that you need to modify your local water to meet the target St. Louis water profile. Then, put these additives in the mash, not the plain base water, or some may not dissolve. Monitor the pH of the mash during these additions to ensure that it remains between 5 to 5.5, which is optimal for desired enzyme activity.

Because of water losses that occur throughout the brewing process, you will need more water than your intended batch size. Use our Water Required calculator to determine how much brewing water you'll need from start to finish of your next batch of beer.