Hard Seltzer... current wisdom?

[DVCNick]

So I've read several threads on this, but they are mostly older and unfortunately mostly devoid of end results. (Maybe that should tell me something). They just trail off into oblivion with few "it turned out this way" conclusions at the end.

As I'm sure the story goes often, my girlfriend loves these things, and it kills me that a 12 pack of sugar water costs $16.
So, I bought the Northern Brewer kit and am giving it a go. $20 for the 5gal kit, and I'm sure it could be way cheaper if you started buying ingredients in bulk.
It is four pounds corn sugar, three yeast nutrient packets, EC-1118, and flavoring.
I did a full volume, 10 minute boil and chill but if you wanted to risk it with unsanitized top off water, you could easily do a 5 gallon batch in your kitchen with a couple gallon boil, top off with room temp water, and probably be pitched in well under an hour. Super easy. If it works.

I've followed the kit instructions exactly, and fermentation never appeared super fast, but looks almost done now. At "high krausen" it was very hazy, but over the last three days has dropped noticeably clearer each day. I can see through the whole carboy now. It's been in the fermenter about a week and a half. It has a sulfury smell right now.

Has anyone done one of these successfully? Should I let it go a few more days? Will the sulfur go away with more time in the fermeter, or time in the keg?
Can I hit this with gelatin if a week in the keg doesn't get it crystal clear?
Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Also, if anyone has had success making something like this with diluted vodka and carbonating, I'd like to hear about that too... would be FAR quicker and even easier, if not slightly more expensive.
Thanks

 

[Sammy86]

Also, if anyone has had success making something like this with diluted vodka and carbonating, I'd like to hear about that too... would be FAR quicker and even easier, if not slightly more expensive.

Here ya go brew brother:

http://brulosophy.com/2020/05/14/bru-it-yourself-bruclaw-berry-hard-seltzer/

 

[DVCNick]

Here ya go brew brother:

http://brulosophy.com/2020/05/14/bru-it-yourself-bruclaw-berry-hard-seltzer/

You sir, are the man. My 1.75gal keg is begging for a test batch. That is going to be way easier and probably better than fermenting it yourself; I can see that already.

 

[Sammy86]

You sir, are the man. My 1.75gal keg is begging for a test batch. That is going to be way easier and probably better than fermenting it yourself; I can see that already.

@Brulosopher is the man! Many don't like his experiments but his recipes are on point!

 

[DVCNick]

I wonder if Everclear would work instead of vodka? Should be even cheaper.

 

[DrKnow]

Ditch the EC1118 and use US05 instead. Keep the nutrients. The US05 seems to produce almost no sulfur where the EC1118 is a sulfur bomb. Pretty cheap to make if you buy the ingredients separately instead of in kit form. The diluted vodka method works too but it kinda shortcuts the whole “hobby” aspect of it.

 

[DVCNick]

I can definitely try US05 if there is a next time.
I agree on the hobby aspect, however, I don't drink these and not really looking for the hobby angle on this. The main goal here is to create a good approximation of the commercial product as easy and cheap as possible and save money. If, after some trial and error, the diluted vodka route gets there for just a little more money than fermenting yourself, and doesn't tie up fermenter space or take weeks, that is probably the route I'll go..... it will still be vastly cheaper than the commercial products.

 

[Kealia]

I did this and had bad luck with the included yeast. I ended up getting some Mangrove and pitching that which ultimately worked just find. Once mine hit terminal gravity I did use gelatin just to help it clear completely. I didn't use the included flavor crystals, either. We have Torani syrups at home for Italian sodas so we just use those in the glass when pulling some from the tap - unlimited flavor choices instead of 5G of the same flavor.

 

[matt_m]

I tried fermenting sugar water (after a 10 minute boil and chilling) with US-05. After a few weeks it was a long, long way from being done and had the sulfur odor you mention. I used yeast nutrient at pitching and after 24 hours based on some reading. I finally dumped it as we were in Indiana which is the closest place to buy Everclear so I bought some and did 32oz of that to 4.75 gallons of water which by my calculations should be right about 4.75% IIRC. I force carbed Tuesday and tapped Saturday. My wife is adding flavoring to the glass and said its really good.

 

[DVCNick]

One of my first thoughts even for this batch was to not add the flavoring, get a few different flavor extracts, and flavor each glass to taste with an unflavored keg.. but gonna let she who is going to drink it make that call.
If this yeast is so bad, I wonder why they settled on it, but good to know.. thanks.

 

[DVCNick]

Took a sample of the existing batch... 1.023; its only dropped ten points. Probably headed for the drain.

 

[zacster]

Any update on this? My 23yo daughter is looking for me to make this. It seems like a lot of work just to get seltzer and will eat up my CO2 supply quickly. I was thinking the vodka recipe would be easier and ultimately cleaner tasting in any case.

 

[bracconiere]

Also, if anyone has had success making something like this with diluted vodka and carbonating, I'd like to hear about that too... would be FAR quicker and even easier, if not slightly more expensive.

my recipe for alco-pop.....pretty good, i just whip up a wheat germ sugar wash with plain sugar...run it to make it clean, then dilute back down....cheap-cheap...i'd make it more often, but my light beer has less calories....


you guy's can call it "Bracc's Hard Lemonaid" lol

 

[DVCNick]

I hit it with another bit of nutrient, waited 24 hours, and nothing... didn't drop another point.
Sent it down the drain then.
Haven't tried the diluted vodka route yet.

 

[DVCNick]

my recipe for alco-pop.....pretty good, i just whip up a wheat germ sugar wash with plain sugar...run it to make it clean, then dilute back down....cheap-cheap...i'd make it more often, but my light beer has less calories....


you guy's can call it "Bracc's Hard Lemonaid" lol

Interesting, so you are adding some sugar and lemon juice for flavoring... I was wondering if just straight vodka water wouldn't be too boring, even with flavor crystals added.

 

[bracconiere]

Interesting, so you are adding some sugar and lemon juice for flavoring... I was wondering if just straight vodka water wouldn't be too boring, even with flavor crystals added.

no that's pretty good recipe.... you could adjust it to your taste, the reason i only use 2 32oz bottle of lemon conc., is price...and only 3 cups of sugar is calories.....

probably be a bit better with 3x32oz lemon conc., and 4 cups sugar....but i like it that way.....for 'reasons'...lol...and it's 8% alcohol by weight....i use 65% ABV vodka, but you can do the math, and adjust the water addition....if you've ever had Mike's Hard Lemonaid....pretty much what it tastes like, just not as sweet.....


(and that is for a 5 gallon keg, force carbd)

 

[bracconiere]

oh and another alco-pop you can make is hard kool-aid....just get two of these:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Kool-Aid...-Powdered-Drink-Mix-23-9-oz-Canister/10292770
and sub for the lemon juice and sugar.....done that with good results also....

edit: haven't made it since 25% more though....maybe just 1 and a half for a keg.....

 

[bracconiere]

any dare me to try a keg of rum and pineapple juice? and i will report back how it is! i'm out of beer, need something to drink...i got 1 32oz jug of pineapple juice, and two gallons of rum....i'm thinking it'd be worth a shot, and will probably do it in about an hour no matter if i get "Oh, my god, no, no, no!" back lol

i'll burst carb it, so i'll be able to report back later tonight, or tomorrow morning.....

(oh, it's dark rum)

 

[bracconiere]

welp, i put the rum in the keg, added the pineapple, and shook it up.......i'd say very drinkable!

(i wouldn't have added the three cups of sugar though, the pineapple juice wasn't as tart as the lemon conc. i usually use, and it's a little too sweet)

 

[bracconiere]

oh and @DVCNick not counting the 3 cups of sugar....this alco-pop, is running me somewhere around 83 cents a twelve pack.....

 

[Nathan Graen]

I'm currently fermenting a Midwest Supplies Grapefruit Seltzer. I'm on day 15. My specific gravity has dropped to 1012 from 1035 and is still dropping 0001 points daily.

I thought this was too slow, I checked pH and it had dropped to 3.5. I dropped in a tsp of baking soda and it fizzed like crazy. I didn't check pH after.

I expect it's going to take another 3 weeks minimum.

I did taste it at 1015 and it was pretty clean.

 

[matt_m]

Anyone put this in growlers for travel?

 

[bracconiere]

Anyone put this in growlers for travel?

what? i force carb my alco-pop...so i just counter fill a liter soda bottle, or three....

 

[bracconiere]

Well this keg of rum, pineapple is almost dead....
was good but a little to sweet....

trying my hands at a dilute, carbonated whiskey sour now:

whiskey 4lb's 65% ABV
sugar 2 cups
orange juice 2.5lb's

topped it up with water burst carbed, with 2.7oz's of co2...i'll try it tomorrow, when it's cold.....

 

[bracconiere]

well my orange juice/whiskey...it is carbed perfectly 'for my taste', but i think maybe someone else would like it....i'm not sure if OJ and whiskey are exactly soul mates though....but it's good enough to drink.....

 

[eric19312]

I made a batch and it was ok but not as clean as the commercial products. It was to my taste cleaner than a couple I've tried at small craft breweries but not like a White Clase. A fair amount of reading I came to conclusion that the commercial products get to that level of clean via activated carbon filtration post fermentation. I decided I'd try the vodka route from Brulosophy instead but actually never got around to it.

Then I decided to make some plain seltzer (no alcohol). Just a tiny bit of typical brewing salts and my very soft tap water and a keg set to 35psi and I have made what I think is very good mineral water. When I want a hard seltzer a shot of vodka in a glass of seltzer is easy enough and if I want it flavored that Mio stuff is cheap, zero cal and tastes as good as the commercial flavored hard seltzers. Flavored alcohols seem promising too but so far I've only tried it with bourbon --- that was quite nice! If I had any around the house my guess is gin or tequila would be interesting too. In the end I'm making the selzer to cut back on calories and skipping the alcohol reduces them even further. I'm really enjoying the mineral water on its own for that purpose and have dedicated 2 of my four keg slots to keeping it in stock (one serving and the other carbing up).

 

[DVCNick]

I'd be interested to know your exact targeted profile for the plain water? Sounds interesting.

Also any issues getting it out of the keg carbed that high? Seems like it would be challenging.

 

[eric19312]

I'd be interested to know your exact targeted profile for the plain water? Sounds interesting.

Also any issues getting it out of the keg carbed that high? Seems like it would be challenging.

I've matched salt profiles for 10 gallon batches of san pellegrino, calistoga and topo chico using version 6 of the spreadsheet I found on this site: Mineral waters í la carte

Last batch I was in a hurry and just did 1/4 tsp each of chalk, gypsum, epsom and sea salt in each 5 gallon keg which was a bit more salt than the topo chico recipe but a bit less than the other two. I use an inline carbon filter for my water it is pretty close to RO out of the tap here. I'm not boiling or anything, just fill the kegs, add the salts, drop into kegerator and hook up CO2.

I have a dual body regulator with one carbonator line set to 35 PSI and then my main serving manifold set at 12 PSI. The water faucet is on a longer serving line but foaming is not and issue with water and the longer line is probably not critical.

 

[NewJersey]

Does anyone here know of a water profile to target for these hard seltzers?
Also how much flavoring to add to a whole keg?
I was specifically looking at using the attached options.
I also have some monkfruit/stevia sweetener (I use it to make ketchup primarily) that I would like to use to introduce a tiny bit of sweetness.
Thanks, fam

 

[Lurker]

I have made BruClaw about 6 times and have learned a few things. Cheap vodka give you a definite alcohol taste that never gets covered up with flavoring. Use good vodka if you can. I use Brewers Best flavorings and had the best luck with blueberry and lemon. Now my dificulity came in serving. My 1st few kegs were great. Carb was teriffic. I dont know what changed but the carb is way off now. After filling my keg with everything I roll the keg on 30psi of CO2 for 10-15 min then let it sit overnight on gas. Im using a 10' beverage tube because thats what works for beer. I am constantly fiddling with serving pressure but the carbonation seems to fall out of suspention as it exits the tap. I bought a carb stone and was planning on adding it to a floating dip tube...that might help? But as for the recipe its great and way easier than brewing seltzer.

 

[Nathan Graen]

I stumbled upon this video the other day. Comparing three seltzer recipes. I might try the winning one "Lutra", with table sugar and see how it turns out.

 

[DVCNick]

I have made BruClaw about 6 times and have learned a few things. Cheap vodka give you a definite alcohol taste that never gets covered up with flavoring. Use good vodka if you can. I use Brewers Best flavorings and had the best luck with blueberry and lemon. Now my dificulity came in serving. My 1st few kegs were great. Carb was teriffic. I dont know what changed but the carb is way off now. After filling my keg with everything I roll the keg on 30psi of CO2 for 10-15 min then let it sit overnight on gas. Im using a 10' beverage tube because thats what works for beer. I am constantly fiddling with serving pressure but the carbonation seems to fall out of suspention as it exits the tap. I bought a carb stone and was planning on adding it to a floating dip tube...that might help? But as for the recipe its great and way easier than brewing seltzer.

Given that 10' is basically the absolute minimum that might work for beer, my guess is that it would be totally insufficient for anything like a seltzer at higher pressure, but I still have not done one of these... thanks for the info.

 

[NewJersey]

Given that 10' is basically the absolute minimum that might work for beer, my guess is that it would be totally insufficient for anything like a seltzer at higher pressure, but I still have not done one of these... thanks for the info.

10' is not the absolute minimum.
I use 5.5' on all three kegs and get flawless pours.
4mm ID EVA barrier

 

[DVCNick]

That is a little smaller ID than my line, but still, your beer must be different than mine...

 

[NewJersey]

That is a little smaller ID than my line, but still, your beer must be different than mine...

It's not. A 5.4% pilsner, 7.5% saison, and 9.2 IPA. 43⁰ kegerator. 11lbs serving pressure.
You're just wrong is all.

 

[DVCNick]

Ok... Didn't realize I was imagining those half foam beers with 10ft line, but good to know.

 

[crane]

10 feet is the minimum of vinyl tubing. Eva barrier and other newer tubing have shorter minimum length. So there isn't just one answer.

 

[bwible]

Here’s a source for flavors that are made specifically for the alcohol industry for flavoring alcoholic products. They have a large variety of interesting flavors. Many of these were specifically developed for seltzer:

Apex Flavors
https://www.apexflavors.com/Beverage-Industry
No affiliation

 

[Lurker]

olive nation makes great extract too. I just looked and actually have 20' of line on my seltzer tap. seltzer line on left and beer on right. I do realize that union is probably creating an issue too....just havent had time to explore. I'm planning on switching everything to 4mm ID

 

[Nathan Graen]

olive nation makes great extract too.

I was looking and they have "extracts", "super extracts", "fountain flavors", and "emulsions". Which do you use? How much do you use?