ginger beer advice.

hello

i have decided to have a go at making an alcoholic ginger beer, but i would like a bit of help before i start. i have used the search function and found numerous recipes all with different ways of going about it. i want to try and do it as simply and as inexpensively as possible, but still get a nice brew at the end. also i have been given a few pounds of fresh ginger which i would like to use.

i would be greatful of and help or advice.

thanks

are you thinking of going the traditional route using 'ginger beer plant' or just fermenting a ginger and malt based drink?

i was just thinking of fermenting a ginger based drink. i think that might be easier?

There's a recipe somewhere on the site that uses 40 oz of ginger.

I made a batch several years ago that only used 1.4 oz and I was pleased with it.

Last I heard, the other guy was pleased with his also.

How much do you like ginger? I shoot for the middle of the range: 250 gm in a 19L batch. May up than for the next batch, my new GF loves the stuff.

You can also "dry hop" with ginger, if the initial flavor isn't how you want it.

Too much? Chamomile tea can mellow ginger.

What kind of finished product are you looking for? have you brewed beer before? if you have a recipe you're interested in, you could post that and we could help figure out what kind of flavor you'll get.

A good, simple start would be to add some ginger (i'd probably go for at least a pound grated or finely chopped) to a standard pale extract beer base shooting for around 3-5% alcohol. This will be dry and have a definite ginger flavor. To add some sweetness, use crystal 20 or 40 as a steeping grain, or add lactose before bottling.

To give some perspective, I brew a ginger ale (soda) that uses 50 ounces of ginger for 5 gallons. This is very gingery, similar to Reed's Extra Ginger Brew if you've had that.

thanks for the replys. my brewing experience is limited, i have done a couple of the cooper's kits. i do like my ginger beer to have a bit of a 'bite' and i dont want to try anything too tricky, as im still learing about homebrew and i only have quite a basic setup. i have just come across this recipe.

5 gallons water
1-1 1/2 lbs. ginger root, coarsley chopped
17 cups sugar
4 lemons, sliced
3/4 tsp. cream of tartar
1 packet champagne yeast

i think this might be a little to basic, even for me! but i was thinking it might be possible to mess with it a little, brewing sugar, cinimon, nutmeg (i think my uncle used to use it when he was around).

thanks

That looks like an alcoholc ginger ale, not a ginger beer. Looks good any way...

I made a pale ale with some ingredients that were originally intended for use in ginger-pear jelly. I boiled up my extracts and hops as usual, and added about 4 inches of ginger grated fresh into the pot at the start of boil, hoping it would mild it down a little. At flameout I added about 4 pounds of chopped pears. The entire fermentation process smelled wonderful, exactly like I wanted the beer to taste. Then after a while in secondary and bottling it there is almost no pear flavor but the ginger comes right out and slaps you around. I would recommend erring on the side of too little ginger in the first boil/ferment and taste testing it as it goes into secondary and adding more there if you want it, a little goes a long way I think.

-dylan

PintOfBitter said:

To give some perspective, I brew a ginger ale (soda) that uses 50 ounces of ginger for 5 gallons. This is very gingery, similar to Reed's Extra Ginger Brew if you've had that.

Click to expand...

Could you post that please?

I made a 3 gal. batch of "ginger ale" last year, and it took about 2 months to be drinkable.

I used:

3 gal water
3 pounds DME
1 oz ginger (grated)

1/2 of ginger was added for the 60 min boil,
1/2 oz ginger at flame out

had a very odd taste for the first month, and not very much ginger taste.

Over the next 3 months it has gotten better--now it is very light, slightly more ginger than regular ginger soda (but not as much as Verners or Blenheim's)

If I do it again, I would increase the ginger to 3 oz, and add 1/2 oz of cascade to it as well.

t

Heckle said:

Could you post that please?

Click to expand...

It's over here.

I noticed a Trinidad ginger beer recipe in the "Clone Brews" book a few days ago. It caught my attention as the recipe had no hops in it. Just grain and ginger.

i'm interested to see where the OP takes this - may be something I'd like to try someday.