Too much ginger

Please help. I think I added too much ginger to my ale. I am a week in the primary, can anyone think of something to balance the flavor so it doesn't have such a bitter/sour aftertaste?


Here's the recipe:


6.6 Lbs LME
8oz. Dark Crystal Grains (steeped for 30 min)
2oz. Pillgrim Hops (60 min)
1oz. First Gold (1 min)
6oz. fresh grated ginger

SG: 1.046

whoa. 6 oz?
thats a lot. was the recipe maybe .6?

No recipe. I was just f*cking around.

6oz is nothing.
My original recipe for Ginger Ale uses 40oz, but I add it to the boil, which "cooks" much of the harsh/bitter flavor out of it. My current, Ginger Honey Wheat, only uses 2.5oz in the secondary, but is a little bitter.
I think the next time I make it, I'll omit the late hop addition.
As for your batch, age it awhile.
Some of the bitterness will age out.
The next time you make yours, cut back the 60 min hops to 1oz, that will cut back on some some of the bittering.

I was thinking on more on the lines of adding something. Maybe some fruit. Oranges might pair well with ginger, or quite possibly lemon.

I have had a similar experience. I added 1 tablespoon of fresh ground ginger at boil, and my beer had an overpowering ginger flavor upon my first taste test.

Here's what I did. I boiled 3 cinnamon sticks in 1 cup of water, let it cool and added it to my secondary. After a little extra bottle aging, around 4 weeks, it is now drinkable. Still gingery, but not too bad. I found that with some extra time and some carbonation the ginger flavor improves/mellows.

I have used fresh ginger in several of my beers. Here's my advice. RDWHAHB. Ginger mellows out a ton. Its starts as spicy and mellows into more of a gentle flavor. My Christmas brew is undrinkable for the first two months of it's existance. It will mellow out, I promise.

Thanks guys. I think I will add some cinnamon sticks I think.

DragonTail: my beer is called Doggie's Tail Ginger Ale. Want to swap a bottle for Dragon's Tail Ginger Ale?

dzamba said:

Thanks guys. I think I will add some cinnamon sticks I think.

DragonTail: my beer is called Doggie's Tail Ginger Ale. Want to swap a bottle for Dragon's Tail Ginger Ale?

Click to expand...

PM me.
I'll have to look and see if I actually have any left. If not I should be bottling the Ginger Honey Wheat soon.

Chamomile tea will balance the ginger.

I know this post is long gone, but in case anyone stumbles upon it, I highly recommend waiting. Also if you are formulating your Ginger Ale, don't be afraid to use lots of ginger (a pound or two), just make sure you boil it for a half an hour, if you want to add a little ginger bite, then use a few ounces in the last 5-10 minutes or in the secondary. The longer it boils, the more mellow the flavor. If it comes out too strong, just let it age.

I am interested in doing ginger beer of sorts, as I like ginger ale and ginger beer (the non-alcoholic stuff that tastes like strong ginger ale). My concern is that the only time I've really had ginger was sliced up with sushi, and I think it tastes like soap in that format. I would hate to have 5 gallons of soap water.

The ginger they use with sushi has been pickled and will not taste anything like your ginger beer.

I recommend following my recipe, with just one or two modifications, instead of adding the last 4 ounces of ginger 10 minutes before the end of the boil, add the 1/2 lb 20 minutes before the end.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f12/ginger-beer-horray-144253/

I just racked mine to the secondary and it tastes really good, just a little too much heat from the ginger (the burn you get from biting into fresh ginger, try it) and boiling the second addition longer will minimize that. I know it sounds like a pound and a half of ginger is a lot, but boiling really REALLY kills the heat and just gives you that ginger taste you describe in your ginger sodas. If you like the heat than do it the same as my recipe. Also you might want to add another pound of light DME, I think it would give it a bit more body. Good luck and don't be afraid, it wont taste like soap water.

Oh, just read my reply and have a couple clarifications. When i say my recipe resulted in the ginger heat... I don't mean it is as strong as biting into fresh ginger. Its no where near that strong, but it is definitely noticeable. Also, (I don't know from experience, but have read several places elsewhere) if it does end up a bit too hot, just let it age for a month or so and the heat will go away. If it isn't hot enough, just add some fresh sliced ginger to the secondary (just an ounce or two).