Hard Root Beer recipe

[Fuzzymittenbrewing]

I like this but I'm confused about all the talk of carb difficulties and bottle bomb worries. The sweetness is all from lactose, right? Why are people bottling this before primary is complete instead of upping the lactose?

Basically, I'm trying to judge whether 4oz is really the right lactose measurement if you want a shelf-stable beer. Is a partially fermented beer (fridged or pasteurized) preferable to more lactose for some reason? Flavor?

Generally if you try to carb with that much honey and sugar yeah you gotta pasturize or bombs. Has nothing to do with the lactose, lactose is a unfermentable sugar

 

[ROLLTIDE]

Subd.....now I'm mad that my carboy is already occupied.

 

[fearwig]

Generally if you try to carb with that much honey and sugar yeah you gotta pasturize or bombs. Has nothing to do with the lactose, lactose is a unfermentable sugar

Yeah, I get it now--when the recipe listed all that sugar in secondary I didn't read that as bottling. Lactose is widely used for backsweetening precisely because it's unfermentable, but I gather you have to use an awful lot and there are differing opinions about flavor. I'm debating between giving this a try with xylitol and pasteurizing. Heating carbed bottles to 170f makes me nervous, but I know people do it.

 

[pkrath84]

From what it sounds, you made hard root beer extract. You could try mixing it with soda water, and get it back to carbonated hard root beer.

I should mention Pasteurizing this works great, doesn't effect the flavor, and best of all, no bottle bombs.

Yeah I thought about that. I was also thinking about thinning it out with some water and borrowing my friends soda stream.

 

[Bauerbrewery1989]

Fearwig- I've successfully pasteurized this, and it came out great. As long as you follow the steps in the cider forum, you should be fine.

 

[1fast636]

Fermenting away, finally found a use for this old LBK. Used fuzzy recipe with 1lb brown sugar and the 001. As you can see it went nuts.

 

[MedicMang]

Is there an updated recipe that I couldn't find or is the original post the go to recipe? Waning to brew this soon.

 

[Bauerbrewery1989]

Here's my original recipe.



---Primary---
1 tsp yeast nutrient
1/2 tsp yeast energizer
4 oz brown sugar
4 oz lactose
1 pound light DME
Nottingham Ale Yeast

Boil DME, brown sugar, and lactose with about 4 cups water. Pour in primary. Add nutrient and energizer. Top off. Let cool and pitch yeast. Ferment for 5-7 days. Stabilize (if kegging). Wait another week.

---Before Kegging---
1 cup sugar boiled in 1 cup water
5 1/2 oz wildflower honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp root beer extract (McCormick)

Boil sugar and add to bottling bucket. Then add honey (warm it so its easier to pour) and the extracts. Let cool and add primary. Pour in Keg or bottles.

If bottling, let carb and put in fridge so the yeast doesn't continue to carb and over carbonate bottles

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Getting ready to make a batch of this in a few days and the mrs is paranoid because the only rootbeer flavoring she could find says concentrate not extract. Would somebody please confirm my suspicions that this is the same thing you are all using? I'm pretty sure it's just semantics extract or concentrate same difference. I'm right on this yes???

 

[duboman]

Getting ready to make a batch of this in a few days and the mrs is paranoid because the only rootbeer flavoring she could find says concentrate not extract. Would somebody please confirm my suspicions that this is the same thing you are all using? I'm pretty sure it's just semantics extract or concentrate same difference. I'm right on this yes???

its the same

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

its the same

Thanks. I figured as much. Hopefully that will calm the Mrs.'s Concerns

 

[1fast636]

Bottle and sampled what didn't fit wow im diggin this a lot also harvested my 001 for later use

 

[1fast636]

Ok got a question, after bottling did your guys root beer extract settle out and need mixed in like a hefe when you pour I'm extremely confused because it seems the beer is clear on top and all the flavor extract is settled on the bottom just trying to see if this is usual. I did rotate a bottle a couple times and it mixes up perfect but settles out again after sitting. Prolly got one more day till fully carbed half way right now

 

[Bauerbrewery1989]

Same thing happened to me with one of my batches. If there is a good amount of floating particulates the rootbeer extract binds to it and settles to the bottom. I just swirled before pouring and it worked pretty well. If you make this again let it settle out alittle longer before adding extract/sugar.

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

So I have a 5gallon batch of this going. in 11days I still have a very dense kreusen on top. Is this normal for the rootbeer. All my batches of beer had long since dropped mostly clear by now. Was going to take a FG reading but was surprised there was a thick kreusen on top still so I figured I'd let it sit a bit longer. Not impatient all that much just curious if this is something normal for the rootbeer or if I'm just lucky this time around. As stated its a 5gallon batch OG came out at 1.060 if that helps anything. Fermenting with US-05. Thanks for any input anyone.

 

[1fast636]

Pasteurizing question: alright first time doing this my question is do the bottles have to be fully submerged or as long as it's 3/4 covered its good?

 

[Philistine]

I'm getting ready to try a 5 gallon batch of this. I'm basically multiplying the 1 gallon recipe's ingredients by 5. When I was at my LHBS one of the employees there was concerned that 20 oz of lactose was going to be too much and may impart an acidic taste. He suggested substituting some or most of the lactose with powered milk. It sounds reasonable, I'm just wondering what everyone else thinks?

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

I'm getting ready to try a 5 gallon batch of this. I'm basically multiplying the 1 gallon recipe's ingredients by 5. When I was at my LHBS one of the employees there was concerned that 20 oz of lactose was going to be too much and may impart an acidic taste. He suggested substituting some or most of the lactose with powered milk. It sounds reasonable, I'm just wondering what everyone else thinks?

I just used a 1lb bag of lactose when I brewed up my 5gallons of it. Still in primary though so can't comment as to an acidic taste as of yet.

 

[fearwig]

Lactose is a sugar, it isn't related to lactic acid (except that both are derived from milk). It shouldn't impart sourness. I think subbing lactose with powdered milk is like subbing... well, I don't know, it just sounds completely insane. One is a complex sugar, the other is powdered milk. One of those is used in brewing, I don't see how he's concerned about the taste lactose might impart but oblivious to what powdered milk of all things would do to a beer.

Anyway, I have these Enfamil coupons, maybe you can give him those for his next brew.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/lactose-powdered-milk-320491/

 

[Philistine]

Thanks fearwig. I'll stick with the lactose.

I've got my yeast starter going right now. I'll be brewing this in a couple days.

 

[Newsman]

Great thread! I'm going to try this, eventually, but I have a few other recipes I need to brew first!

 

[craftbeerfan]

I think I'm excited to try this one too

 

[bolus14]

Pasteurizing question: alright first time doing this my question is do the bottles have to be fully submerged or as long as it's 3/4 covered its good?

3/4 is fine. You just wantto heat up the bottle and liquid to kill the yeast essentially.

 

[1fast636]

Thanks pasteurized like 5 bottles to give out to a few people the rest I just cold crashed seems the ones I pasteurized worked out the two on top of my fridge haven't exploded so think it worked lol

 

[1fast636]

Has anyone done the all grain version for this if so how did it turn out and do you have a recipe, and has any one had one from a five gallon batch with extract if so what was your recipe for that. Want to do 5 gals but trying to decide on all grain version or just doing the extract

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Has anyone done the all grain version for this if so how did it turn out and do you have a recipe, and has any one had one from a five gallon batch with extract if so what was your recipe for that. Want to do 5 gals but trying to decide on all grain version or just doing the extract

I did a 5 gallon all grain batch
7Lbs 2 row
2 Lbs light brown sugar.
1LB lactose

Then at kegging added
5oz root beer extract
1 oz. vanilla extract
1.75Lbs honey

Came out to 1.059 and finished at 1.010

Everyone has loved it. Getting ready to brew another 5 for when the keg kicks I'll have backup for refilling.

 

[fearwig]

Has anyone considered doing an AG batch with high mash and lots of crystal? I bet you could get a sweet 1.030 FG wort without backsweetening if you start around 1.070, and you'd get a nice malty sweetness instead of straight sugar. Maybe I'll give it a 1gal go and report back sometime, I have a 50# sack of C20 I want to burn through, this would be a good use of it if it works, maybe with some MO.

 

[fearwig]

Actually my calc says that's basically impossible, that even brewing straight C20 at 160f you'd wind up around 7% abv just to get 1.018 abv. Maybe some low-attenuating yeast would be in order. I also suspect the calcs may not be prepared for this kind of extreme ingredient use. I think if you break about 162f you're getting into "starch" territory.

 

[1fast636]

I did a 5 gallon all grain batch 7Lbs 2 row 2 Lbs light brown sugar. 1LB lactose Then at kegging added 5oz root beer extract 1 oz. vanilla extract 1.75Lbs honey Came out to 1.059 and finished at 1.010 Everyone has loved it. Getting ready to brew another 5 for when the keg kicks I'll have backup for refilling.

Guessing 60 min boil all ingredients in at 60?

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Yes I added the lactose and brown sugar at the beginning of the boil. And boiled for 60minutes