Ginger question

[lostnfoam]

hey everyone, i was planing on making a ginger beer and ordered crystallized ginger from one site. i thought i had checked what was in the package. I got the package today and well in the ingredents i found that it had sulphur dioxide err so i looked up online what its used for and the round about levels that are used in dryed food. I would not normally use any perservative in my beer but what do you all think? am i being to safe or a little wont hurt me at all. also for more info i was planning on useing the ginger in a wit recipe i made last year, and the amount of ginger i was going to use was less then 6 oz. but the problem im looking at is to buy another type of ginger man im going to have more ginger then i know what to do with.

 

[Moonpile]

Any reason not to just use fresh ginger?

 

[lostnfoam]

i want a sweeter side to the ginger fresh ginger would come on hot and well would taste more like jamican ginger beer. its good to drink but its very spicey or hot some may say.

 

[Moonpile]

(Stream of consciousness from a non-expert fan of ginger)

Now I'm not an expert on what happens to ginger when its candied (or used in beer for that matter!), but I'd think that the "hot" compounds are simply denatured to some extent. You could probably get the effect you want by using less fresh ginger. What proportion you'd use to get the same amount of "hot" compounds that you would when using a certain weight of candied ginger, I wouldn't know, though.

You could also candy your own ginger. Just cut it up and stew it in simple syrup.

Ok, I'm reading the Ginger article on Wikipedia for the crash course on ginger. The Chemistry section seems to indicate that gingerols and shogaols are actually formed when ginger is dried or cooked along with Zingerone which is described as "less pungent and has a spicy-sweet aroma". Sounds like Zingerone is what you're looking for, in which case you do need to cook it, which I think you would do if you simply added fresh ginger to the boil (probably for more like 60 min?).

I can say that I make ginger tea fairly frequently and after steeping fresh, grated ginger it tastes mellower than un-steeped, fresh grated ginger.

I'm awaiting hearing from those who have actually used ginger in beer.

Oh, and I'd stay away from the sulpher dioxide in my beer. Just eat that ginger. Try cubing it up fairly small (1/4") and similarly cube up havarti and granny smith apples. Put one cube of each on a toothpick and serve as hors d'oeuvres.

 

[javedian]

The SO2 on your ginger is a very small amount. The ammount added to a 5 gal batch by a few ounces of ginger would be negligible. IF you add to the boil, or at the end of the boil, any SO2 present should be driven off quickly. Anything remaining would dissipate during fermentation. Adding a several pounds of sulfited fruit may be a problem, but ounces of ginger should be fine. I used candied ginger in a brew I will bottle tomrrow, and had no problems.

 

[BuffaloSabresBrewer]

No the ginger I was anticipating.
But if you have any questions about the other type of gingers alot of us here can answer those questions.

 

[mummasan]

I've made two ginger beers. I just use fresh ginger between .25 and .50 oz at flame out. One beer I just dropped some fresh cut ginger at flame out and another I used frozen ginger that had thawed. The ginger that I had frozen then thawed imparted more flavor in my finished product I think because when thawed the ginger was smooshy and soft. I also added coriander to those beers so there was a spicy-ness to it as well. The two beers had a slight ginger accent to it.

My next ginger beer I will make a standard pale ale recipie, add .5 oz of frozen then thawed ginger at flame out (and a bit of star anise too) then add some more ginger after fermentation subsides (make one to two cups of ginger tea and add to fermenter).

 

[Moonshae]

I've brewed ginger beer a couple different ways, but I always use more than a few ounces, always fresh, and at the start of the boil. I find that after boiling and fermenting, most of the heat is gone. I like that heat on my lips, so I tend to add more fresh ginger (boiled for a minute or so) to the secondary to impart that heat. Without the second addition, though, you'd find it quite mellow.

 

[Homercidal]

Amazing, I was just thinking about whether anyone had ever done a ginger beer, and what it might taste like. So today I'm on the site, and there is a post about it!

Now I"m just curious to see what it tastes like!