The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Food & crafts => Home brewing => Topic started by: gstar9 on December 06, 2010, 04:01:19 pm
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Im gonna give making a batch of ginger beer ago, found a receipe on the River cottage site, Has anyone on here made some? any tips or pitfalls to watch out for? Im thinking of giving small bottles as part of crimbo gifts this year ;D
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Home made ginger beer is brilliant, and dead easy! You can keep it going forever. I used to make it as a teenager. Might even have another go now you've put it in my mind! ;D
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Yes, I've done the river cottage ginger beer - the one made directly in 2 litre plastic bottles - ready in 2 days! It's fab and very easy.
The only thing was that I would prefer to be able to strain it and not lose the bubbles - it gets very fizzy!
After 2 days pop it in the fridge to stop it then pour through a tea strainer into a glass - yum yum!
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I used to make lots of ginger beer, but it does get explosive. I remember when I lived at home it was in the garage and one bottle exploded and broke my Dad's car headlight!
Saw the HFW one it looked a bit feisty too. like the idea of making it straight into the bottle though. I used to "feed" a ginger beer "plant" for a week with sugar and dried ginger before making then divide the plant into two and give it away to someone else to make another one.
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Im going to give it a go this weekend and see how explosive it is...!!! liked the tip on putting it in the fridge for awhile,
I was searching through the internet and some sites seem to be charging a HUGE amount for ginger beer "Plants". If it turns out a success I will have a go starting (not purchasing) and keeping a a GBP for ongoing drinks ;D
Also cracked open some home made strawberry rum (to keep the chill out obviously ) and I was well impressed, very moreish so I think I will be bottling a few "taster" bottles for crimbo pressi's as well.
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I used to make it, I can remember feeding the 'plant' with ginger and sugar and keeping it going all summer. I used 2ltr plastic pop bottles. No chance of them giving you shrapnel injuries. One other thing, you can offer some of the 'plant' to friends......most of them will think you're weird though ;D ;D
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Does anybody remember sugarally plants as well? ???
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This is how to make the 'plant' I copied it from another site but it's the same as I used to do.
1/2 oz dried yeast
1/2 pint water
sugar
ground ginger
juice of 2 lemons
Put the yeast into a jar, add the water, 2 teaspoons sugar and 2 teaspoons ground ginger and mix well. Cover the jar with a lid or clingfilm. Each day for 7 days add 1 teaspoon sugar and 1 teaspoon ground ginger. Finally, strain the mixture, add the lemon juice to the liquid and reserve the sediment. The liquid is now ready to use. For future use, keep the sediment and divide equally between 2 jars. To each jar add 1/2 pint water, 2 teaspoons sugar and 2 teaspoons ginger and proceed the process all over again, as previously.
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Thanks, I'll give it a go. We also used to make 'sugarally' - liquorice in water.
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OK now I am REALLY interested in sugarally. Never heard of it before. I have looked it up and somewhere it says, buy liquorice from chemist! What? please let me know how you made it - sounds right up my street!
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I love ginger beer, anything ginger is a hit with me!!!!!
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OK now I am REALLY interested in sugarally. Never heard of it before. I have looked it up and somewhere it says, buy liquorice from chemist! What? please let me know how you made it - sounds right up my street!
That's the problem I can't remember. All I remember is we used long strings of liquorice and hot water, and left it for a time, but more than that is lost in the mists of time I'm afraid. Sorry. :-[
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This is how to make the 'plant' I copied it from another site but it's the same as I used to do.
1/2 oz dried yeast
1/2 pint water
sugar
ground ginger
juice of 2 lemons
Put the yeast into a jar, add the water, 2 teaspoons sugar and 2 teaspoons ground ginger and mix well. Cover the jar with a lid or clingfilm. Each day for 7 days add 1 teaspoon sugar and 1 teaspoon ground ginger. Finally, strain the mixture, add the lemon juice to the liquid and reserve the sediment. The liquid is now ready to use. For future use, keep the sediment and divide equally between 2 jars. To each jar add 1/2 pint water, 2 teaspoons sugar and 2 teaspoons ginger and proceed the process all over again, as previously.
That's interesting! Not how I made my ginger beer at all! What do you do with the liquid from the plant to make it into actual drinkable ginger beer? ???
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my recipe looks the same so I think I can answer!
dissolve a pound of sugar in a pint of boiling water then add 5 pints cold water and juice of two lemons. add strained "plant" and stir together. Put into strong swing top glass or PET bottles and leave for one week before drinking.
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If you've ever read Just William you'll know sugar-ally water! I made it as a nipper (water, black liquorice, sugar - leave for ages under yer bed, shaking bottles occasionally) and it was vile!! Mind you I don't like liquorice so perhaps it wasn't going to be a happy thang anyway! ;)
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thought i would upate u on my ginger beer attempts......... not very good is the ansa, followed all the instructions but just didnt taste palitable, so tried another batch, after leaving it for the advised wk i put it in a demijohn all topped up and it is sitting fermenting away, now im thinking ginger wine in the making ;)
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Well, a big thankyou for giving me the idea! Since I didn't have any yeast available in any case, I bought a 'starter' from ebay. Just tried the first bottling tonight (this version takes 2 weeks in total). In short, perfect! We even did a side-by-side comparison with one from Tescos. Not a unanimous verdict, but personally I far preferred the homemade stuff...... and then I liked it even more once again after checking the ingredients list for the commercial version :o.
So, 8/10 from me, and a possible 10/10 if I can figure out how to make it alcoholic! ;D
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Womble, i may just have a go one day as I love ginger beer, mind you, I keep on saying that but one day!!!! :yum:
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Well, a big thankyou for giving me the idea! Since I didn't have any yeast available in any case, I bought a 'starter' from ebay. Just tried the first bottling tonight (this version takes 2 weeks in total). In short, perfect! We even did a side-by-side comparison with one from Tescos. Not a unanimous verdict, but personally I far preferred the homemade stuff...... and then I liked it even more once again after checking the ingredients list for the commercial version :o.
So, 8/10 from me, and a possible 10/10 if I can figure out how to make it alcoholic! ;D
Easy, three quarters of a glass of home made Ginger beer, quarter of a glass of gin ;D ;D ;D ;D
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I bet the same would work for WHiskey 11 :-* :yum:
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Yup, and Vodka! ;) ;D
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Hmmm, time for an update!
The first batch was superb, but unfortunately the second lot has turned out rather flat, and just tastes like sweet gingery water. So, I guess I killed the yeast somehow - maybe got it too hot or cold, or perhaps there was chlorine in the water I used :-[.
The first lot was so good though, I'm going to have to give it another go. Does anybody know what kind of yeast is best to use for the starter? I've seen all sorts mentioned online, but that could either mean it doesn't really matter what you use, or it could mean nobody really has a clue!! ;D
P.S. Sandy & Annie - your comments remind me of the old advert for Bells Whisky: "Great with haggis....... even better without!" ;D
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::) ;D ;D ;D ;D, mind you, I do love haggis ;)
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Womble are you saying that your first batch was not alcoholic?
If thats the case then your yeast wasn't working then either.
There could be many reasons for the yeast not taking off, the must could have been too hot or too cold, ideally about room temp.
If the must has too much sugar it will kill the yeast before it takes off, not enough and it wont start. These are the most common.
Without having to use a hydrometer to measure the specific gravity bubbles mean booze, the by product of the yeast eating the sugar is carbon dioxide and alcohol.
I brew most beers the same in a bucket till fermentation stops and then syphoned in to bottles with some sugar added to start a secondary fermentation to give it the fizz (Krausening sp.)
I usually use a general yeast such as the ones from Youngs home brew unless it is for lager, I have also used Muntons with good results. :yum: :yum: :yum:
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Sorry, should have been clearer. The first batch was very fizzy (i.e. 10 minutes depressurizing slowly before you could open a bottle without spillage). However, the second batch never really took off at all. I'll make another starter and try again.
What I meant by making it alcoholic was well, MORE alcoholic!! ;D