Question for Minnesota folks

[P2000]

Anyone use organic water from the old Schmidt brewery?

 

[TonyR]

Wow I must be showing my age, I thought all water was organic well I guess that water they made on ships when I was in the Navy could count as non organic but heck you could tell by the shine of the fuel oil on top. ::

 

[drainsurgeon]

I live up by Grand Rapids and have a well. I also have an osmosis water maker and use only that for drinking, cooking and wine making. Not sure about water from the city. Too many years of pollution and contaminants going into the soil for me. And the city water comes from the river. Yum!

 

[P2000]

Wow I must be showing my age, I thought all water was organic well I guess that water they made on ships when I was in the Navy could count as non organic but heck you could tell by the shine of the fuel oil on top. ::

I thought so too. However I've found that not all water is created equal. Apparently the water there comes the Mt. Simon aquifer which is 1,050 feet down. It became a federally protected water source in 1995 which means that only wells existing at that time would be allowed to draw from it. Because of both the depth and bedrock it remains completely untouched by human hands and, more significantly, farm chemicals that have leeched into higher veins. That the long answer.
The short answer is the brewmaster gave me a few gallons and told me to not take his word for it, go home and make a pot of coffee with it. I did. Didn't tell my wife. That morning she took a sip and asked what I did differently, it was dramatically better.
Since I've never made wine before I don't have anything to compare so I was wondering if anyone else had.

 

[drainsurgeon]

This is from a poster on homebrewtalk back in 2012.

PHYSICAL WATER QUALITY

PH 7.8
TDS 177
PPM:
Sodium, NA:17
Potassium, K: 6
Calcium,CA: 45
Magnesium, Mg: 19
Total Hardness CaCO3: 192
Nitrate, NO3-N: < 0.1(safe)
Sulfate SO4-S: 1
Chloride, CL: 40
Carbonate, CO3: < 1
Bicarbonate, HCO3: 195
Total alkalinity CaCO3: 160
Fluoride, F: 0.24
Total iron, Fe: < 0.01

He did not specifically say where he got these numbers from, but if this is the water from the old brewery it has a lot of calcium, magnesium and alkalinity is pretty high also. Not sure this would make good brewing water. I'm still voting for osmosis water in my wine. The TDS of my osmosis water at home is 20.

Remember, water is a universal solvent. It dissolves a little bit of whatever it comes in contact with and 30,000 years (the posted age of this water) is a long time surrounded by bedrock and limestone. A TDS of 177 would indicate a hardness level higher than 20 grains. I wouldn't want that water running through the pipes in my home without being treated. It may taste great but this is not that different than city water without the chlorine.

 

[drainsurgeon]

I thought so too. However I've found that not all water is created equal. Apparently the water there comes the Mt. Simon aquifer which is 1,050 feet down. It became a federally protected water source in 1995 which means that only wells existing at that time would be allowed to draw from it. Because of both the depth and bedrock it remains completely untouched by human hands and, more significantly, farm chemicals that have leeched into higher veins. That the long answer.
The short answer is the brewmaster gave me a few gallons and told me to not take his word for it, go home and make a pot of coffee with it. I did. Didn't tell my wife. That morning she took a sip and asked what I did differently, it was dramatically better.
Since I've never made wine before I don't have anything to compare so I was wondering if anyone else had.

If you have a couple of tea bags at home, this is simple. Take water from the old Schmit brewery (or tap water from home) and buy a bottle of osmosis water from the local grocery store water machine. You could also buy a bottle of Aquafina. That is osmosis water also. Make 2 cups of tea (or coffee) side by side with the 2 different waters. You are not going to believe the difference in aroma, color and taste. Seriously, try it.