Brewing water

I'm really enjoying Southby's  "A Systematic Handbook of Practical Brewing". Even if he does go on a bit at times. And keep boasting about his own inventions. But self-publicism and long-windedness aside, it's packed with fascinating facts. Like the comparison of different brewing waters you're about to read.

Burton brewing water (from valley gravels overlying the red marles)
	grains per gallon
Carbonates of lime and magnesia precipitated on boiling	11.4
Lime not precipitated on boiling	17.7
Magnesia not precipitated on boiling	4.3
Sulphuric acid	33.9
Chlorine	3
or combined
Carbonates of lime and magnesia	11.4
Sulphate of lime	43
Sulphate of magnesia	12.9
Alkaline chlorides	5
Source: "A Systematic Handbook of Practical Brewing", by E.R. Southby, 1885, page 159.

"The above analysis was made many years ago, but analyses which I have made of the waters from these Burton valley gravels during the last few years give similar results. When these waters are pure their composition is the same now as it was thirty years ago, and their most marked characteristic is that the amount of sulphuric acid is just sufficient to combine with all the lime and magnesia present in the water, and not precipitated from it on boiling in the form of carbonates. The proportion which these sulphates bear to one another varies slightly, but is roughly as three of the lime sulphate to one of the magnesia sulphate. The dilution of these waters varies much more, than the proportion of the salts to one another in any one water. Thus in good Burton brewing waters the carbonates of lime and magnesia vary from ten to nearly twenty grains per gallon. The sulphuric acid from fifteen to over forty grains, and the chlorine from two to three and a-half grains. Within these limits of dilution beers can be brewed with the true Burton characteristics, but the best results are obtained with waters containing from eighteen to twenty-eight grains per gallon of sulphuric acid. My remarks on these waters only apply in their full force to such as are free from organic impurities, and from their oxodized products ; which latter, in the form of nitrates, now contaminate, to a greater or lesser extent, the majority of the Burton wells situated within the town. A brewer using a pure Burton water can scarcely fail to produce a brilliant delicate and delicious ale, if his malt and hops are of moderately good quality; but it is far otherwise with the contaminated springs which so many Burton brewers have now to depend upon.

The other source of Burton brewing water is from borings sunk to various depths into the marls underlying the valley gravels. These borings are very uncertain, for sometimes one boring will yield a large supply of water, and another sunk within a few yards of it to an equal or greater depth, will yield no water at all.

The following is an analysis of a pure and good water from one of these borings :—

Burton brewing water (from marls below the valley gravels )
	grains per gallon
Carbonates of lime and magnesia precipitated on boiling	15.4
Lime not precipitated on boiling	25.5
Magnesia not precipitated on boiling	10.2
Sulphuric acid	56.8
Chlorine	2.5
or combined
Carbonates of lime and magnesia	15.4
Sulphate of lime	61.9
Sulphate of magnesia	30.6
Alkaline chlorides	4.2
Source: "A Systematic Handbook of Practical Brewing", by E.R. Southby, 1885, page 159.

This water is evidently of the same general character, as those from the valley gravels, but it is more concentrated, and the proportion of the sulphates is two of lime sulphate to one of magnesia sulphate, instead of three of the former to one of the latter."
Source: "A Systematic Handbook of Practical Brewing", by E.R. Southby, 1885, page 159 - 161.

Here's a table compiled from various analyses of brewing water given by Southby:

Brewing water (grains per gallon)
	Burton above marl	Burton below marl	Dublin Grand Canal	chalk water (South of England)	New River (London)	Thames Valley deep well (London)	brewing well Lea Valley
Carbonates of lime and magnesia precipitated on boiling	11.4	15.4	11	14.2	11.2	4.9	12.2
Lime not precipitated on boiling	17.7	25.5	0.9	1.1	1.1		0.7
Magnesia not precipitated on boiling	4.3	10.2	0.9	0.1	0.2		1.7
Carbonates of the alkalies						13
Sulphuric acid	33.9	56.8	0.5	0.6	0.9	8.4	2.4
Chlorine	3	2.5	1.2	0.9	1.4	8	1.6
Nitric acid				0.2	0.4
or combined
Carbonates of lime and magnesia	11.4	15.4		14.2	11.2	4.9	12.2
Carbonates of the alkalies						13
Sulphates of the alkalies						14.4
Carbonates of lime and magnesia precipitated on boiling			11			12.2
Sulphate of lime	43	61.9	0.8	1	1.5		1.7
Sulphate of magnesia	12.9	30.6					2.1
Alkaline chlorides	5	4.2				13.9
Chloride of calcium			1.1	1.4	1.4
Chloride of magnesium			0.7				2.2
Carbonate of magnesia not precipitated on boiling			1.2
Nitrate of magnesia				0.3	0.8
Chloride of sodium					0.8
Source: "A Systematic Handbook of Practical Brewing", by E.R. Southby, 1885, pages 161 -165

There's possibly more to come about water. If I can make it through Southby's verbosity.