I intend to brew a Russian Imperial Stout and would like to know if I should be concerned my water chemistry. I’ve read sources that suggest a slightly alkaline mash ph to reduce tannin extraction. I presume I may have to add bicarbonate to an otherwise soft water profile for best results.
Any experienced insight will be greatly appreciated.
For starters, it would be helpful to know the water you are starting with before giving you advice.
In general, since stouts have so much roasted type malt in them, yes, you’re probably going to need to do some adjusting. It would most likely involve adding chalk and/or baking soda to the mash to keep your pH from getting too low.
Like someone else said, if you had a water report, you’d know the exact numbers and could use one of the spreadsheets out there to figure out the correct modifications.