1 gallon jug of distilled water plus?

#1: Post by **LBIespresso** » June 15th, 2020, 1:44 pm

OK, My head is spinning from reading all of the water recipes. So I thought i would try to make an attempt at having a thread with the EASIEST good, not necessarily best water recipe for 1 gallon of distilled water.

I think the categories should be:

1: straight powder in the jug and for espresso.
2: straight powder in the jug for pour over
3: concentrate for espresso
4: concentrate for pour over

Considering the open boiler of a kettle as well as the price of a kettle, I figure scale concerns are different. Does this mean a different recipe? I have not come across that in my searches here.

I picked 1 gallon because that would be easier to scale up to five. I thought about going with liters (and probably should have) but it is easier to buy gallon jugs of water than liters here in the US.

I am hoping this doesn't just turn into another long thread in the long list of long threads about water. In that respect I am open to suggestions. I will do my best to edit this 1st post with results if we get there. And to all those who like to say, "the search function is in the top bar." I apologize in advance.

#2: Post by **belegnole** » June 15th, 2020, 1:51 pm

Hi Andrew,

The amount of minerals added to one gallon of distilled water are very small. The following is a bit more complex than you would like but it is easy.

Here's what I've gotten from Dr Pavlis' posts.

My concentrate recipe; same ratio, smaller volume.

10 grams potassium bicarbonate
100 grams distilled water

That's it done.

Now here's where the Dr's 50-100 gram variable comes in. He stated that he would vary the strength based on the type of roast coffee. For dark 50%, for light 100%.

So worth that in mind. As I use gallons I add the following concentrate to a gallon of distilled water.

1.9 grams for a dark roast.
3.8 grams for a light roast.

Most people just use the 100% (3.8gram) recipe. Obviously you could adjust this to your taste. Others have added other minerals to do this or that. I'm not sure if there's a perfect recipe. But I like it simple, and this one is.

June 15th, 2020, 3:55 pm

David, Thank you for posting this here in this thread. I saw you post of this recipe and was just going to go with that but I would also like others to have an easier time finding it! Additionally, I would like to see what people think about water for different brew methods as well as any dry recipes.

Again, thank you for your contribution as well as that of at least 4 others here who have contributed so much what I have learned in my research here!

#4: Post by MB » June 15th, 2020, 4:10 pm

Dry potassium bicarbonate per gallon is less than a gram, so you'd need a 0.01g resolution scale.

0.38g of potassium bicarbonate per gallon.

#5: Post by **Sideshow** » June 16th, 2020, 9:44 am

For me, one gallon of distilled water + 379 milligrams of potassium bicarbonate. Done. Same as MB basically. I have a milligram scale.

June 21st, 2020, 1:29 pm

Wow, that is a simple and solid method for good water. Thanks all!

Had it with pour over and espresso and it was great!

I also wanted to make sure I use the same water for cupping my roasts as I do so in 2 different locations with very different tap water so this is great for me.

June 21st, 2020, 1:48 pm

Andrew if you have the space, as it cuts the measuring in half and the wide mouth makes pouring easy. Also the angled steel jigger from OXO is great if you ever decide to make pre mix stock, and if you want to measure and pour your minerals. The trick is getting all the minerals into your gallon and being able to mix them up.

June 22nd, 2020, 12:56 am

I saw your setup in another thread and thought it looked good. For now I will stick with the gallon jug in the closet as my Cremina isn't too thirsty. But time will tell. Thanks for the suggestion!

July 1st, 2020, 7:26 pm

belegnole wrote:Hi Andrew,

My concentrate recipe; same ratio, smaller volume.

10 grams potassium bicarbonate
100 grams distilled water

Quick question: Is there a "shelf life" of this concentrate? I am keeping mine in a tiny glass bottle in the fridge.

And thanks again for the help with this!

July 1st, 2020, 8:13 pm

Not sure if there is a shelf life, I've never had any issue with mine. I did throw some out once after I forgot it sitting on the counter open overnight. I considered that contaminated. Otherwise I just have mine in a small Kerr jelly jar in the cabinet.