I just made your ginger ale this week with a couple of changes. I added the ginger to the wort in 3 additions to get the sweet mellow ginger flavor and the spiciness. I saved about a 1/3 of it to add to the secondary, as you suggested, and I subbed lime for the lemon and added the peel of one orange. I also used a dry ale yeast, since I was really looking for the ginger flavor and felt the ginger would overpower anything the white labs ale yeast would've imparted. I'm hoping this will be super spicy and citrusy. Thanks for the recipe!
p.s. I made a Ginger Kolsch this spring that was published on the AHA's beginner guide. It was delicious, but with only 6 oz. of ginger, it was merely a ginger whisper.
I made this tonight. I knocked the initial ginger down to 8oz and will be adding 4oz after a week in the primary. I also added 3.5oz malto-dextrin for body. My OG came in at 1.060.
Just cracked a bottle of this. I used 8oz of ginger in the boil and 2.5oz in the secondary, and I think it's just about perfect for what I was looking for. There's a subtle ginger aroma when you stick your nose in the glass and a great ginger flavor on the tongue. It's fantastic!
And it cleared and carbonated beautifully. I couldn't be more happy with how it came out. Thanks for the recipe!!
Has anyone here tried this with the full 40oz? I like strong ginger brews and find most to be too weak. Has anyone kept one of these for a year and then cracked it open? What was it like then? Hoping to get a batch of this going and ready before July 4.
Has anyone here tried this with the full 40oz? I like strong ginger brews and find most to be too weak. Has anyone kept one of these for a year and then cracked it open? What was it like then? Hoping to get a batch of this going and ready before July 4.
Nope, only about 6oz in the primary and 2oz in the secondary. I cracked one after about 8 months and if anything the ginger flavor had intensified. Still not overpowering, but definitely the dominant flavor.
I'm planning to do this as an AG recipe soon, replacing the extract with 4# of 2-row.
Welp. Brewed it up, following the recipe as is. So far, tastes great, but hella sweet. I imagine the sweetness will back off as it ferments. It is now in the primary.
Few notes, following the recipe as-is, I ended up with an OG of 1.058.
Followed the recipe. It has been in the fermenter for a week. It off-gassed non-stop for four days, it kept the airlock going vigorously. I did not test its SG until now ... and I have hit an SG of 1.008! On tasting, it is just right on ginger. However, I think I am going to bottle half of it with lemon juice and simple syrup ... which leads to a question.
How can I add some sweetness back into this for half the batch, and not create bottle bombs?!? I know I am going to add a touch of sugar to all of it to prime it .. . so what should I add to make it a bit sweeter, without making bottle bombs? Thanks!
Right now the ABV is 6.83%, I don't expect it to change too much more, but we will see. I can't wait to open a bottle of this!
If the OP is still around, any advice he may have is appreciated (as is everyone elses).