Hard of soft water?

[Ericphotoart]

I use my well water for all purposes including of course wine making, however my water is very hard and next week I will be installing water softener. I wonder how this may influance the fermentation, taste etc. Of course I will be able to use hard water if I want to, before the water softener, but it will be an inconvenience. I'm not fermenting anything now. I will be making some Chilean wines around April but this is a slight change in chemistry so I started to investigate.

 

[Rice_Guy]

I would not use soft water for cooking or for making wine.

Well I actually do use soft water in cooking where salt would be included in the recipe. Soft water replaces divalent calcium and magnesium with sodium. Excess sodium is a health risk. ,,, But in the scheme of things formulated US foods ALL are high sodium, it tastes good.

 

[DrGriz]

I would not use soft water for cooking or for making wine.

Well I actually do use soft water in cooking where salt would be included in the recipe. Soft water replaces divalent calcium and magnesium with sodium. Excess sodium is a health risk. ,,, But in the scheme of things formulated US foods ALL are high sodium, it tastes good.

Precisely why I use potassium salt in my water softener. Yes, it is more expensive.

Potassium chloride treated hard water is better for growing plants. It is better for yeast as well, as they require potassium to grow and function.

 

[ibglowin]

The usual theory is that if your water looks good, taste good and has no off odors it will be fine for making wine. Using filtered water or bottled will remove chlorine which has some benefits.