Owly055
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I've been brewing non-alcoholic beers, and hop soda lately as I'm on a projected 3 month "sober". It's been interesting to say the least, and I'm finding that hop soda appeals to me more than denatured beer. I'm currently drinking a hop soda that was made from 3 ounces of "leaf hops" and about a cup of sugar in 2 gallons of water. The hops were Columbus and Crystal 1oz and 2 oz. Steeped in 160F water for a few hours. There is also a small amount of dark DME...just a few ounces. The product was reheated after straining off the hops, and held at 160 to pasteurize, then force carbonated.
It is very tasty, and pleasantly bitter....... surprisingly so. I used these leaf hops because they were the only ones I had on hand. Next go around I will be trying pellet hops, using Willamette and Mosaic, and plan to make up a tea bag to contain the hop material. I have a bunch of do it yourself tea bags on hand.
I would like to achieve crystal clarity, but unfortunately it is pretty cloudy.
Casting about for recipes on the net, I encountered this recipe for Bills Hop Soda (note that it uses yeast to carbonate) I plan to more or less try it, but force carbonated:
http://abushelofhops.co.uk/news/bills-hop-soda/
Bill’s Basic Hop Soda
(produces 1 gallon)
1-3 oz. hops (fresh or dry-packed and frozen)
2 cups sugar
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon champagne yeast
One Step No-Rinse Cleanser
8-10 16-oz. plastic bottles and caps
Method
In a large non-reactive kettle (stainless steel) combine 1-3 oz. hops (fresh or dry-packed and frozen) in 2 cups water + 1 cup sugar + 1 T. lemon juice +1 T. lime juice and let soak for a few days until it tastes right (yep, that’s the recipe).
After soaking, use cheesecloth or a straining bag to filter out the solids.
Add 2 quarts water. Add lemon juice and lime juice and remaining 1 cup sugar now to taste.
Warm the liquid to 120-140 degrees for 10 minutes to kill any wild yeasts.
Cool the mixture to below 90 degrees. Add champagne yeast per packet instructions.
Use One Step No-rinse Cleanser to sterilize bottles, caps and bottling equipment (funnel and measuring cup)
Fill bottles with the cooled mixture and cap. Dent the plastic.
After 24 hours, start checking the bottles. When the dent is pushed out and the bottle feels firm, move the bottles to the refrigerator to slow the fermentation.
Cascade and Citra hop varieties make a grapefruity soda. Centennial has a bit more bite. I generally prefer a mixture.
It is very tasty, and pleasantly bitter....... surprisingly so. I used these leaf hops because they were the only ones I had on hand. Next go around I will be trying pellet hops, using Willamette and Mosaic, and plan to make up a tea bag to contain the hop material. I have a bunch of do it yourself tea bags on hand.
I would like to achieve crystal clarity, but unfortunately it is pretty cloudy.
Casting about for recipes on the net, I encountered this recipe for Bills Hop Soda (note that it uses yeast to carbonate) I plan to more or less try it, but force carbonated:
http://abushelofhops.co.uk/news/bills-hop-soda/
Bill’s Basic Hop Soda
(produces 1 gallon)
1-3 oz. hops (fresh or dry-packed and frozen)
2 cups sugar
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon champagne yeast
One Step No-Rinse Cleanser
8-10 16-oz. plastic bottles and caps
Method
In a large non-reactive kettle (stainless steel) combine 1-3 oz. hops (fresh or dry-packed and frozen) in 2 cups water + 1 cup sugar + 1 T. lemon juice +1 T. lime juice and let soak for a few days until it tastes right (yep, that’s the recipe).
After soaking, use cheesecloth or a straining bag to filter out the solids.
Add 2 quarts water. Add lemon juice and lime juice and remaining 1 cup sugar now to taste.
Warm the liquid to 120-140 degrees for 10 minutes to kill any wild yeasts.
Cool the mixture to below 90 degrees. Add champagne yeast per packet instructions.
Use One Step No-rinse Cleanser to sterilize bottles, caps and bottling equipment (funnel and measuring cup)
Fill bottles with the cooled mixture and cap. Dent the plastic.
After 24 hours, start checking the bottles. When the dent is pushed out and the bottle feels firm, move the bottles to the refrigerator to slow the fermentation.
Cascade and Citra hop varieties make a grapefruity soda. Centennial has a bit more bite. I generally prefer a mixture.
