I found this (http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/forum/index.php?topic=5792.0) post on boiling brewing water to reduce temporary hardness. If you don't have access to cheap distilled water or slaked lime, this could come in handy.
Yea me too. And if you are any distance away from your nearest water works the water profile achieved in the treatment centre will change as the water flows through the local environment.
Thanks for citing my thread on Boiling.
You are correct that there is no single Dublin water profile now. But prior to the completion of the Vartry reservoir in the Wicklow Mountains, you probably could summarize Dublin water as a more uniform character...hard and alkaline! All the other reservoirs in the mountains probably produce similar water quality since its very granitic up there.
One thing is certain, the success of brewing porters and stouts in Ireland was due to its alkaline waters. St James Gate brewery relied on Liffey River water or local groundwater for over a 100 years before the reservoirs and aqueducts were created. Guinness undoubtedly had to revise their brewing methods when the new water supply was introduced. That is probably the genesis of the Guinness Flavor Extract that they prepare separately so that they can mash the main pale malts separately.
Enjoy!
Very good information.
Thanks, Tube!