Careful attention to pH may help you get a little more extraction or a bit more protein coagulation in the boil. pH control is often a fine-tuning operation that results in small changes in the resulting beer. That article will describe their construction, give some guidelines on their use and maintenance, and offer some pointers on what to look for in buying one.įirst, it is important to say that pH measurement is not something that all brewers necessarily need to worry about. The second and final installment will look at the practical methods available for measuring pH, with emphasis on electronic pH meters. The article then reviews the various steps in the brewing process in which pH is a factor, with discussion of when and why we make pH measurements in each of them.
This first article lays the basic foundation for understanding pH, beginning with a definition of pH as the concentration of hydrogen ions in a solution, discussing the question of where these ions come from in brewing, and introducing the important topic of buffering. The question of pH often arises in brewing circles - what is it, why is it important, and do we as brewers really need to worry about it? And if we do need to worry about pH, do we need a pH meter to measure it or will simple paper test strips do? And if we do need a pH meter, what kind should we get, how expensive are they, and how are they used, anyway? This two-part article will answer all these questions, and perhaps a few others. Part I: Fundamentals and Relevance to Brewhouse Procedures Understanding pH and Its Application in Small-Scale Brewing. « Back to Articles Understanding pH and It's Application in Small-Scale Brewing