Gypsum Taste.

[Pjam]

Obvious answer but still clever :)

 

[Pjam]

Ive done that Steve and your right! ..... my problem taste is not Gypsum!

 

[strange-steve]

I would also try stirring some into a little beer to see how it interacts with hop flavours.

 

[Pjam]

Nice idea. Your good at this Steve :)

 

[An Ankoù]

Gypsum "hardens" the water, decreases the mash pH and makes everything taste sort of "crisper", but at a subtle level. There shouldn't be any sense of metallic harshness. Yes, it can make the mouthfeel drier, but not mouth-puckeringly astringent. Might be worth getting a new pack of gypsum. It doesn't go off, but it might be mis-labelled.

 

[Pjam]

mouth-puckeringly astringent is what I had. But its not the Gypsum. I'm only on 3rd day of ferment so things might change.

 

[Hanglow]

every time I've tried london water when I have visited there I have found it utterly appalling, I personally would not consider it drinkable on it's own and I'd use a seriously good RO system to drink it and brew with it. I know it is supposed to be perfectly potable, but **** me is it hard to drink. The last few places I have stayed there were Richmond, Chiswick, Hackney Wick and Hackney. Maybe it's better/different elsewhere

Makes me sound like some horrendous water hipster

 

[Pjam]

hahhaha yes. London water is horrible, but some say it's not as bad as it tastes! And my dark beers are not too bad.
I would guess it changes quiet a bit from day to day though.

 

[Edison]

Do you filter at all, maybe a Brita type? Metallic could be iron in pipe work perhaps?

 

[Pjam]

No filter. Not sure how easy it is with limited space? London kitchen stockpiled for armagedon! lol

 

[SteveH]

No filter. Not sure how easy it is with limited space? London kitchen stockpiled for armagedon! lol

You can get single stage filters which fit under your kitchen sink, so it doesn't necessarily need to take much space, I use a similar filter that's inline to my fridge which has a water outlet on it.

Before investing in any of that you could try a brew with Tesco ashbeck bottled water, that would at least prove if it's your water or some other problem?

 

[QED]

I use one of these connected to my outside tap.
Camco 40043 TastePURE Water Filter with Flexible Hose Protector Camco 40043 TastePURE Water Filter with Flexible Hose Protector:Amazon.co.uk:Car & Motorbike

 

[Linalmeemow]

Before investing in any of that you could try a brew with Tesco ashbeck bottled water, that would at least prove if it's your water or some other problem?

This should be your first step. I only ever brew with the 17p 2l bottles of Chase Spring water from Aldi or Tesco. The water profile is right there on the bottle so you can plug it into a water calculator and make additions with (relative) confidence.

 

[Pjam]

Excellent idea. I did do Ashbecks when I first started but that's no guide of course, I technique was poor back then.
Next brew with Ashbeck and software :) ........... that's if MM has any grain!

 

[QED]

I only ever brew with the 17p 2l bottles of Chase Spring water from Aldi or Tesco.

Quite a lot of single use plastic involved in that solution. Very conscious of trying to cut down on that theses days.

 

[Linalmeemow]

It's not an ideal solution, but the bottles are all recyclable.

 

[QED]

but the bottles are all recyclable.

Technically they are but you’d be horrified to find out the reality of “recycling”.
https://www.theguardian.com/environ...cycling-myth-what-really-happens-your-rubbish

 

[strange-steve]

A Brita type filter is fine to use with a couple of provisos. Use only an activated carbon and/or sediment filter, not an ion exchange filter, and be aware that this won't change the ion composition, but only remove chlorine/chloramine.

A small 4-stage RO system is relatively cheap, but before that I recommend finding out what's in your water to see if you can work with it as is. Contacting your water supplier is a start.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

I thought London water was quite soft

It's a mix of water from the Thames and groundwater from chalk aquifers, so it has a lot of carbonate in it, and I suspect that's what the OP is tasting. There's a reason why London is associated with porters but London brewers often set up a separate brewery in Burton to make pale ales.

If you look at Fuller's tapwater as an example (you can punch your postcode into the Thames Water website to get a report for your area, but be aware that this will be an historical average and it does vary a bit day to day - the recent dry weather will mean they're using more carbonate-rich groundwater for instance) :
Total hardness 270 ppm as CaCO3
Alkalinity/temporary hardness 200ppm as CaCO3
Cl 50ppm
SO4 50ppm
Na 35ppm
Mg 5ppm (cute that they explicitly mention brewing in the notes!)

So at the very least you should be boiling the water before brewing with it. I suggest the OP does some small stove-top trials brewing the same beer in maybe 2l water/pop bottles, with and without boiling, and adding gypsum to boiled water at a rate of 0.4g per litre.

 

[nixhaz]

Quite a lot of single use plastic involved in that solution. Very conscious of trying to cut down on that theses days.

I bought a batch of Ashbeck water in the 5L bottles, and am going to try to get them filled with RO water at a local fish place.