Gluten Free Ginger Beer (Alcoholic)

Continuing my quest for good spring/summer drinking beers, I decided to try a ginger beer. I want something that isn't just sharp ginger flavour.

Boil Size: 7L
Measured OG: 1.052
Estimated FG: 1.004
IBUs: 17.3
Batch Size: 10.25L
Boil Time: 45min

1,00 kg Agave Nectar, Light/Amber - Boil 45,0 mins
0,46 kg Bananas - Boil 45,0 mins
0,25 kg Candi Sugar, Amber - Boil 45,0 mins
200,00 g Ginger Root - Boil 45,0 mins
15,00 g Tradition [6,70 %] - Boil 45,0 mins

100,00 g Ginger Root - Boil 30,0 mins
0,25 kg Milk Sugar - Boil 30,0 mins

5,00 g Irish Moss - Boil 15,0 mins
100,00 g Ginger Root - Boil 15,0 mins

10,00 g Lemon Grass - Boil 5,0 mins
10,00 g Lemon Zest - Boil 5,0 mins
5,00 Items Cloves, Whole - Boil 5,0 mins
5,00 g Nutmeg - Boil 5,0 mins
2,00 Items Cinnamon Stick - Boil 5,0 mins

I plan on letting it ferment for 2 weeks and then rack over another 100g of ginger root soaked in vodka. My thoughts on the timing and additions are the hops providing a basic canvas of a light bitterness. Adding the ginger at different times will provide different depths of flavours and sharpness. The longer ginger is cooked, the more mellow the flavour becomes. Then the remaining ingredients are to provide the additional aromatics.

The apartment smelled awesome while this was boiling and the boil went really well. The wort colour came out a little darker than Vernors/Canada Dry, but I figure it will lighten as trub and such drop out.

I used half a pack of S33 that I had hanging around from my berry beer, rehydrated in 250ml warm water with 30g of brown sugar disolved in it.

So at the first racking this came out tasting pretty thin. So when I bottled it about 10 days ago I split the batch and bottled half with about 50g of maltodextrin. The sample came out tasting really good, a little bitter but a prominent ginger flavour without leaving my lips tingling for hours after. I'm struggling to wait for it to carb up.

Poured one of these this weekend. It was damn tastey! Very clear with a good head and lacing that hung around on the side of the glass. The ginger wasn't overwhelming but there, providing a light tingle with a bitterness in the background. Doing this again I might double the spices at the end, just to add some more complexity.

Does it resemble actual ginger beer? Like the stuff you would use to make a dark and stormy?

SWMBO loves regular ginger beer, I bet she would love this!

I've only had ginger beer a couple times before. This tasted similar but without the overwhelming ginger bite that makes your lips go numb.

Excellent, thanks!
I have a free 1 gallon fermenter right now, might have to give this a go right away.

I'm guessing you just bottle primed like you would for beer and didn't need to pasteurize or anything?

Bottle primed with 70g dextrose and that is the one I tasted. I actually wound up splitting the batch and put 50g maltodextrin to the second half. I haven't tasted one of those yet.

Sorry mate, (noob question)....but I'm assuming you boil all ingredients in first paragraph together for 45min, then add 2nd batch of ingredients in paragraph two and continue to boil for another 30min etc, then do the same for all ingredients in paragraph 3 and 4 for the time specifed???.....
I've been trying to find a good GF Ginger Beer recipe for ages as I'm Coeliac...

Thanks....Colin

You could for a total for 45 minutes. Counting down from 45 you add ingredients at 30, 15 and 5. The idea is your layering the ginger into it so you have different intensities.

Cheers!