Heady Topper (The Alchemist), USA. Hard water with low residual alkalinity - suited to pale beers, with a sulfate-forward balance that sharpens hop bitterness.
| Ion | ppm |
|---|---|
| Calcium (Ca²⁺) | 150 |
| Magnesium (Mg²⁺) | 10 |
| Sodium (Na⁺) | 15 |
| Chloride (Cl⁻) | 75 |
| Sulfate (SO₄²⁻) | 300 |
| Bicarbonate (HCO₃⁻) | 0 |
| Brewing numbers | |
|---|---|
| Total hardness (as CaCO₃) | 415.7 ppm |
| Alkalinity (as CaCO₃) | 0 ppm |
| Residual alkalinity (as CaCO₃) | -112.9 ppm |
| Sulfate-to-chloride ratio | 4.0:1 |
Salts to add to reverse-osmosis or distilled water, calculated by the BrewWaterSolver solver with the most common homebrew salts.
| Salt | 5 gal (18.9 L) | 20 L |
|---|---|---|
| Calcium chloride (CaCl₂) | 2.82 g | 2.98 g |
| Gypsum (CaSO₄) | 8.81 g | 9.31 g |
| Epsom salt (MgSO₄) | 1.73 g | 1.83 g |
| Baking soda (NaHCO₃) | 0.01 g | 0.01 g |
Closest match with these salts; it can't reach Na 3.1 ppm vs 15 exactly.
Estimate, not a published brewery analysis. A Ward Labs test of the finished beer (Ca 110, Mg 113, Na 25, Cl 339, SO4 468; thirdleapbrew.com) is sulfate-forward; malt and fermentation raise sulfate and chloride and drop calcium (Tonsmeire, BYO), and a back-calculation from that test put the brewing water near Cl 75 / SO4 275 / Ca 180. Second-hand reports of John Kimmich's own advice ("lots of gypsum", SO4 ~500, Cl ~30) and common clone recipes point the same way. Rounded to a ~4:1 SO4:Cl target.