English Bitter Foundation

$5.99
Burton-light mineral blend for English ales and bitters.
  • Pre-measured brewing water salts for English ales & bitters
  • 11.0 g, treats one 5-gal batch (extract or all-grain)
  • Use with RO or distilled water, not tap
  • Sulfate-forward (222 ppm, 4.4:1) for crisp English bitterness

Burton-on-Trent water is famously hard, famously sulfate-heavy, and it's the reason English pale ale exists as a style. This blend dials back the full Burton salt load to a more manageable profile: enough sulfate to emphasize English hop bitterness, moderate calcium, and a touch of bicarbonate to support the crystal malts at the heart of a proper ESB. One pouch into 5 gallons of RO or distilled water.

Target Water Profile
The mix of minerals in your brewing water (measured in ppm) is what shapes hop bitterness, malt sweetness, and body. These numbers are the target this pouch builds in 5 gallons of RO or distilled water: the ideal mineral balance for this style, pre-measured so you don't have to calculate a thing.
Per 5 Gal RO/Distilled

All values in ppm. Sulfate-to-chloride ratio 4.4:1 (Burton-light, sulfate-forward).

In this pouch
  • 5.5g Gypsum — high sulfate defines the English dry-hopped character
  • 2.9g Epsom Salt — magnesium rounds mineral bitterness
  • 0.9g Calcium Chloride — minor chloride for malt body
  • 0.9g Sea Salt — moderate sodium adds character to ESBs
  • 0.8g Sodium Bicarbonate — slight alkalinity for crystal malt balance
  • ESB
  • English Bitter
  • English Pale Ale
  • English IPA
  • Ordinary Bitter
  • Best Bitter

Extract brewers

Empty the entire pouch into 5 gallons of RO or distilled water. Stir until fully dissolved (about 60 seconds). Brew your recipe as usual — no further mineral additions needed.

All-grain brewers

Dissolve the pouch into your total brewing water (mash + sparge combined, typically 7-8 gallons for a 5-gallon batch). Split roughly 60% in mash water, 40% in sparge. Brew as usual.

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English Bitter Foundation
$5.99

Explore More Water Profiles

Brewing more than one style? Each beer has its own ideal water. Explore the full Brew Foundations lineup, with pre-measured mineral blends for everything from crisp lagers to hop-forward IPAs and rich, roasty stouts. Match the profile to your recipe and get the water right on every batch.
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$5.99
English Bitter Foundation

Frequently Asked Questions

Empty the entire pouch into 5 gallons of RO or distilled water and stir about 60 seconds until dissolved, then brew as usual. All-grain brewers: dissolve in your total brewing water (7-8 gal for a 5-gallon batch) and split roughly 60% in the mash, 40% in the sparge.

These blends are built from a zero-mineral baseline, so tap water's existing minerals would stack on top unpredictably. RO water is about $0.40 per gallon at most grocery stores, and distilled water works just as well.

Yes. One pouch is formulated for a 5-gallon batch either way. One pouch, one brew day.

It's formulated for final water mineral profile, not precise mash pH. The calcium and bicarbonate will influence mash pH, but exact pH management may still call for acid adjustments based on your grist.

It's Burton-inspired but dialed back: enough sulfate to emphasize English hop character without the extreme hardness of undiluted Burton-on-Trent water.

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