Root Beer Recipe? Process?

I am new to brewing and just started up my first brew. Fermenting nicely in my primary now.

So now, I have started considering the many varieties of flavors I can brew in the future. One of which will just be a plain Root Beer for the kids...

Can anyone give me a brief description of how to make a non-alcoholic, carbonated beverage with my brew equipment?

Also who has a good Root Beer recipe...

thanks

While I can appreciate your jumping into this whole-heartedly, I must tell you that given the time and $$$ at brewing homemade root beer, it's much simpler to go pick up a 2 liter bottle for $.99.

I don't like poo-pooing other peoples ideas, dreams, etc., but I couldn't keep my mouth shut on this one...sorry...did not mean to offend...

homebrewer_99 said:

While I can appreciate your jumping into this whole-heartedly, I must tell you that given the time and $$$ at brewing homemade root beer, it's much simpler to go pick up a 2 liter bottle for $.99.

I don't like poo-pooing other peoples ideas, dreams, etc., but I couldn't keep my mouth shut on this one...sorry...did not mean to offend...

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no offense taken...

can you elaborate on the time, $$$'s and process?

BrewProject said:

no offense taken...

can you elaborate on the time, $$$'s and process?

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Sure...the entire process of boiling water, buying and adding sugar, mixing, sanitizing the bucket and bottles, bottling time, wasting caps that could be used for beer, etc.

I find it much easier to just go get a cheap bottle of root beer next time you're at the store.

IMO, the ONLY good thing about it was saying you made it yourself.

Plus you can talk to this guy about it: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=11212

homebrewer_99 said:

Sure...the entire process of boiling water, buying and adding sugar, mixing, sanitizing the bucket and bottles, bottling time, wasting caps that could be used for beer, etc.

I find it much easier to just go get a cheap bottle of root beer next time you're at the store.

IMO, the ONLY good thing about it was saying you made it yourself.

Plus you can talk to this guy about it: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=11212

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i saw that thread, not sure what went wrong with his carbonation, but neither is he...

not to offend you, but, the process you describe sounds like brewing beer and although I have only mixed up one batch so far, it was fun to me. (except for the cleaning and sanitizing ).

anyway, my question of the process comes more from a time factor. obviously there is no fermentation time needed for root beer. but what about the carbonation time?

is it just a mix/boil, then bottle with a specific yeast that creates no alcohol?

i am clueless on the non-alcoholic aspect of this stuff...

I'd say boil and keg carbonate, then use a counter-flow filler. Or serve from the keg. With all that sugar to feed the yeast, you have cases of bottle bombs. It was my first attempt at brewing when I was 15 years old. Good thing I left the cases in the garage. I've never exploded anything since.

homebrewer_99 said:

... IMO, the ONLY good thing about it was saying you made it yourself....

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That's exactly it! I'm looking to make some root beer, just for the helluvit, sometime soon. Here's a good reference, and another and another.

I'd recommend using a top-notch root beer extract like Gnome or, if you're going to force carbonate, try some Sprecher extract!

Rhoobarb said:

That's exactly it! I'm looking to make some root beer, just for the helluvit...

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It was only my opinion. I tried making it many years ago and got a lot of bottle grenades (see, I've been there too... )

How I think about it is... its not how much time and money it takes but its something that you and the kids can do together. Its stuff like that that you cant pass up. BLG and I made some with her kids. I can tell you it will be done again.

homebrewer_99 said:

It was only my opinion. ...

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Oh, I got that. Sorry if I came off otherwise. I think the idea of using PET bottles might be a good one. I, too, have heard too many stories about bottle grenades when doing sodas. Plus, I need my glass bottles for actual homebrew!

Rhoobarb said:

That's exactly it! I'm looking to make some root beer, just for the helluvit, sometime soon. Here's a good reference, and another and another.

I'd recommend using a top-notch root beer extract like Gnome or, if you're going to force carbonate, try some Sprecher extract!

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thanks exactly the information i was seeking...

thanks a bunch... :rockin:

sailman said:

How I think about it is... its not how much time and money it takes but its something that you and the kids can do together. Its stuff like that that you cant pass up. BLG and I made some with her kids. I can tell you it will be done again.

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my thoughts too...

sailman said:

How I think about it is... its not how much time and money it takes but its something that you and the kids can do together. Its stuff like that that you cant pass up. BLG and I made some with her kids. I can tell you it will be done again.

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Hey, I'm all for fun times with the kids...I had my greatgrandkidss out here last (and this) weekend flying my kites.

Here is a link to the green board for a root beer recipe that I found. I have made this recipe several times, with great results. I have also tried other recipes, and extract brands, all of which were OK, but none have been more enjoyed or requested then the recipe I linked to.

Enjoy,
John

johnsma22 said:

Here is a link to the green board for a root beer recipe that I found. I have made this recipe several times, with great results. I have also tried other recipes, and extract brands, all of which were OK, but none have been more enjoyed or requested then the recipe I linked to.

Enjoy,
John

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thanks John

Is there a way that doesn't involve purchasing a flavor extract? How can i make the flavor on my own?

I've been kicking back bottles of ICB this weekend and thinking that I wouldn't mind having 5 gallons on hand. Plus, it would be nice to show He Who Must Be Obeyed, Attended To, and Changed Frequently that daddy has interests outside of just beer.

homebrewer_99 said:

Hey, I'm all for fun times with the kids...I had my greatgrandkidss out here last (and this) weekend flying my kites.

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You're 51 and you have great grandchildren? Wow, you must have started young!

Cheesefood said:

Is there a way that doesn't involve purchasing a flavor extract? How can i make the flavor on my own?

I've been kicking back bottles of ICB this weekend and thinking that I wouldn't mind having 5 gallons on hand. Plus, it would be nice to show He Who Must Be Obeyed, Attended To, and Changed Frequently that daddy has interests outside of just beer.

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These posted by Rhoobarb seem to be extract free...

Rhoobarb said:

That's exactly it! I'm looking to make some root beer, just for the helluvit, sometime soon. Here's a good reference, and another and another.

Click to expand...

Cheesefood said:

Is there a way that doesn't involve purchasing a flavor extract? How can i make the flavor on my own?

I've been kicking back bottles of ICB this weekend and thinking that I wouldn't mind having 5 gallons on hand. Plus, it would be nice to show He Who Must Be Obeyed, Attended To, and Changed Frequently that daddy has interests outside of just beer.

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i have these recipes that came from BYO magazine. i used my character recognition software and scanned it, but have not proof read it. so if there are errors please let me know and ill edit.

Extract Root Beer (5 gallons/19L)

Ingredients

4 fl. oz. (117 mL) root beer extract
5 Ib. (2.3 kg) cane sugar
1/2 pkg (~5 g) ale yeast (optional)

Step by Step
Add 2 gallons (7.6 L) of water to your brew kettle and begin heating it. Gradually stir in sugar and bring solution to 160 °F (71 °C), add root beer extract and hold for 15 minutes. (This will sanitize the solution.) Cool the solution by placing your brewpot in a sink full of cold water. (Don't risk staining and flavoring your copper wort chiller for this.) Let cooled solution sit for 5 minutes to let any particles settle out. Siphon to a keg and add water to make 5 gallons (19 L). Or, add water in your brew kettle to make 5 gallons and stir in yeast. Siphon directly to plastic bottles. (As with your wort chiller, don't risk a permanent root beer flavor by using your bottling bucket.) Cool keg and force carbonate or let bottles condition at room temperature until carbonated. To make only one gallon (3.8 L), divide all ingredients by five.

Half and Half Root Beer (5 gallons/19 L)

Half of the flavor — (artificial) sassafras and vanilla, plus spruce and birch — in this recipe comes from root beer extract. The other half comes from boiling various ingredients. The licorice root and anise lend a licorice-like flavor (not unlike that in IBC), while the star anise and hint of wintergreen round out the flavor profile.

Ingredients

2 fl. oz. (59 mL) Zatarains root beer extract
2 oz. (56 g) licorice root
1.5 oz. (43 g) anise seed
0.5 oz. (14 g) star anise
0.25 oz. (7 g) dried wintergreen leaves
4.4 Ibs. (2.0 kg) cane sugar
up to 2.5 tsp. citric acid (to taste)
1/2 pkg (~5 g) ale yeast (optional)

Step by Step
Heat 2 gallons (7.6 L) of water to a boil, turn off heat and add licorice root, anise, star anise and wintergreen. Let this solution simmer for 30 minutes, then strain out as much of the solids as is feasible with a kitchen strainer. Stir in sugar and check that temperature is at 160 °F (71 °C) or higher. Let sit for 15 minutes, covered, then cool brewpot in your kitchen sink. Siphon cooled root beer to keg and add water to make 5 gallons (19 L). Taste root beer and add citric acid, if desired, to taste. Cool root beer overnight and force carbonate to 3-3.5 volumes of CO2. Alternately, add yeast and bottle.

Old Prospector Root Beer (5 gallons/19 L)

Ingredients

4 oz. (113 g) dried sarsaparilla root
2 oz. (57 g) dried burdock root
2 oz. (57 g) dried yellow dock root
2 oz. (57 g) dried spikenard root
1 oz. (28 g) hops (your choice)
8 cups sugar
12 fl. oz. (355 mL) molasses
1/2 pkg (~5 g) ale yeast (optional)

Step by Step
Simmer herbs in water for 30 minutes. Add sugar and molasses, stir to dissolve, and let sit for 15 minutes above 160 °F (71 °C). Cool root beer, siphon to keg and add water to make 5 gallons (19 L) . Force carbonate. (Or, add yeast and bottle.)

Birch Bark Canoe Root Beer (5 gallons/19 L)

Ingredients

4 oz. (113 g) birch beer extract
2 inches (5.1 cm) cinnamon stick
3.5 Ibs. (1.6 kg) corn sugar
1.0 Ib. (0.45 kg) honey
1/2 pkg (~5 g) ale yeast (optional)

Step by Step
Boil cinnamon stick for 15 minutes, add sugar, honey and birch beer extract and let sit for 15 minutes. Cool, add water and either keg or bottle condition.

subwyking said:

Old Prospector Root Beer (5 gallons/19 L)
[/COLOR]
Ingredients
[/B]
4 oz. (113 g) dried sarsaparilla root
2 oz. (57 g) dried burdock root
2 oz. (57 g) dried yellow dock root
2 oz. (57 g) dried spikenard root
1 oz. (28 g) hops (your choice)
8 cups sugar
12 fl. oz. (355 mL) molasses
1/2 pkg (~5 g) ale yeast (optional)

Step by Step
Simmer herbs in water for 30 minutes. Add sugar and molasses, stir to dissolve, and let sit for 15 minutes above 160 °F (71 °C). Cool root beer, siphon to keg and add water to make 5 gallons (19 L) . Force carbonate. (Or, add yeast and bottle.)

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HOPS!!! IN ROOT BEER!!! I LOVE IT!!! OK, I have a question tho. Adding yeast to rootbeer is going to cause it to ferment out. I want to make a root beer to take to the park and share with my friends and my brother's son. How would adding yeast not cause the rootbeer to become a cidery wierd tasting rootbeery concoction? I'm just not getting that. Is the sugar used a non-fermentable one? Sorry, kinda missed the boat on this one... someone please explain. I really want to make a rootbeer and bottle it but I also don't want to blow up my brew closet with bottle-thermal-neuclear-devices...

Naturally carbonating root beer is an artform. You have to approximate when the soda has fermented enough to carbonate it and then immediately refrigerate it. At this point, your soda has a rough shelf life of a month, as the soda will still be fermenting, just at a slower pace.
The average length of time is usually three days at room temp and then refrigerate, however I did have a ginger beer carbonate within hours and then detonate after 24 hours.
This is why I now keg my soda.

Vermicous said:

Naturally carbonating root beer is an artform. You have to approximate when the soda has fermented enough to carbonate it and then immediately refrigerate it. At this point, your soda has a rough shelf life of a month, as the soda will still be fermenting, just at a slower pace.
The average length of time is usually three days at room temp and then refrigerate, however I did have a ginger beer carbonate within hours and then detonate after 24 hours.
This is why I now keg my soda.

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uhhh.... ok, I know my luck... HAHAHA!! Think when I make some root beer I'll just force carbonate. I would be devistated if my nephew asked for a rootbeer, I said sure, go grab one and it EXPLODED in his hand before his favorite uncle could open it. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Of course that would be a twisted kodak moment for sure, HAHAHAHA!!! ROFLMAO!!!! BOOOM!!! HAHAHAHAH!!!!!

Ginger Ale is good too.

This is essentially the recipe I use to keg (not bottle). I skip the yeast part and force carb makining it non-alcoholic.

http://www.netcooks.com/recipes/Beverages/Dave's.Ginger.Beer.html

Once you get the hang of it all you are making is syrup (to taste) and carbing making any type of soda (pop) possible.

You can even carb fruit.
http://www.browniepointsblog.com/2005/05/01/carbonated-fruit/

yeah carbonating with the yeast sounds kinda sketchy to me.... a little too much crossing the fingers and hoping for my taste.

subwyking said:

yeah carbonating with the yeast sounds kinda sketchy to me.... a little too much crossing the fingers and hoping for my taste.

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after having heard some stories of the bottle grenades, i am beginning to wonder about this process also...

might just have to wait til someday after i get a keg setup...

Just pasteurize it once fully carbed