Beerkench wrote:
With this method, do you include the speciality malts in your Ph estimation, or do they not have enough time to affect the mash Ph?
No - I calculate my "salts" & phosphoric acid additions to get to my target pH excluding the roasted grains.
Reason being that by the time I add roasted and/or crystal grains (last 10-15 minutes of the mash-out @ ~77C), my main mash has already converted.
For roasted (a/k/a highly-kilned) & crystal grains - there is nothing to convert - you just rinse off the color / sugar (respectively) directly into the converted main wort.
My water happens to have very low alkalinity, so any substantial amount of black patent malt will wreak havoc with my pH if I were to add it in the beginning.
However, if your water has high alkalinity - adding roasted grains from the get-go may work for you. YMMV

One more method that Gordon Strong recommends is to cold-steep roasted grains overnight to minimize any potential acridity; however, I am yet to try this.
I don't brew porters/stouts very often
