7 replies to this topic

[denny]

Martin Brungard posted this on the AHA website. I thought it was kinda interesting...."Another unfortunate thing that an extract brewer needs to watch out for is the very high sodium content of Briess extracts. At a reconstituted gravity of 1.045, a Briess extract wort contains 100 ppm sodium. Add that concentration to any sodium that the brewing water already contains. Double the wort gravity and the sodium content of the wort goes to 200 ppm. This problem with Briess extract comes from them using the local Chilton, WI tap water which is ion-exchanged softened by the City prior to distribution. I've already had a long conversation with the water system manager in Chilton and he confirmed the water quality they produce for their customers. Because of the high sodium content, I have to recommend that extract brewers consider using other extracts for their brewing. By the way, this sodium result for Briess extract applies to all of their liquid and dry malt extract products. All the other ions in their extracts are in appropriate ranges. "

[SchwanzBrewer]

Has the extract been tested to see if the combined ion concentrations are what he says they are? Saying things like this are dangerous to a company and should not be taken lightly. You could be slandering them if those results are not correct, and it could cost Briess a lot of money. So please back up any statements like that with good science or be prepared to face the consequences.

[Mynameisluka]

i was doing some research on breiss extracts a while back, and found a lot of info online suggesting similar sodium concentrations. this has been a topic of conversation for several years, it looks like.

[denny]

You would have to ask Martin those questions. Personally, I believe that if he knows what the water is going in, he can easily calculate what the ion concentration is coming out.

[denny]

https://www.homebrew...php?f=6&t=15177 (contains info from AJ deLange)

[SchwanzBrewer]

OK. has anyone contacted Briess to see if they realize this could be a problem they might be willing to solve?Also, I'm not sure how big of a problem this really is. How many extract brewers are serious enough to even worry about water? I know I wasn't and I still made some good beers before switching to all grain.

[denny]

it's about beer flavor. If you use the extracts and you like the beer you make, you can ignore the info. If you've had a problem, this may provide some info to help you correct it.

[zymot]

Somebody could mix up a known volume of Briess extract with a volume of distilled water and send a sample to a lab for analysis.Briess sells their malt in 3 lb cans, clearly a product marketed to homebrewers. They should be able to answer a question as basic as how much sodium is in their product.