I had no idea that Derica was a school teacher. But I can believe it! I’m militant about my science note taking too. I was an intelligence analyst in the military, a process control tech when working in semiconductor manufacturing and a full blown nerd in my intellectual pursuits-like home fermentation. Y’all crack me up and I dig it thoroughly! You’re educators and we’re students and I’m grooving on it big time!
Just wanted to pop on and say that I came to you channel initially from the 2018 Ginger Beer recipe so this video was a sort of homecoming for me. Cheers to the many years of great content and keep up the good work.
Hey Guys! My comment doesnt relate to this video, but I just wanted to thank you for all these videos you guys do, because of these vids I had the confidence try to brew my first apple cider and it was finished about a week ago, I have expereinted with it finishing it 4 differnt ways like you did in a video and the carbonated+sweet was the favorite it my family😊 And I just started my first mead today, I am really excited about that too, so I just wanted to say thank you for introducing me to a new hobby!😀
This is one of the most interesting brews you have put together yet. I think this is the first time Derica has mentioned that she was a school teacher. She must have been one of the coolest teachers ever.
I wonder if she wanted to be called by her first name like many other cool teachers. My art teacher told us to call him Pete. I couldn't do that because my parents are from the South and you must show your elders respect. So Mr. Pete it was.
I use the same fermenter you guys do - I have a backup plan in place in case it stops sealing. I have a silicone baking mat on standby. In the event one of my LBMB's stops sealing, I will, with the aid of a compass and xacto knife, cut a gasket for the lid that can restore the ability to seal. Hope that helps, guys.
You guys are great - I just got a hold of your channel whilst making my first batch of mead and you were a great help! You explain things really well and are fun to watch. ...now I want to make a ginger beer too 😂
Derica and Brian. Have been watching you guys you guys for several years. Enjoy it, learn from it etc. Currently have 5 wines/meads at various stages of fermentation. I am a retired veterinarian with a fair knowledge of microbiology. When you talk about antibacterial properties of various spices it has nothing to do with yeast-- a fungus. These spices when used in connection with wine and mead are antimicrobial. Yeast of course is a microbe. About clarity--- we judge our food and beverages based upon taste, aroma and appearance. To me, clarity cannot be minimized. Keep up the good work. I watch you every day. With respect, Doc.
I recently looked into this and a lot of the spices and herbs that are antimicrobial are also antifungal. Clarity means nothing really. We are only trained to believe clear means better but in reality is is meaningless :)
The best of all hobbies, it's 99% hands off, which gives you time for other hobbies. "Hobbies cost money but interests are quite free." - George Carlin
I make my ginger beer with 1.5lbs of ginger in 3 gallons done almost like you are going. I also add sorghum syrup and a bit of cascade hops instead of the citrus peel. I'll have to try the citrus instead of the hops!!
I love this recipe I have made it like 6 times and I have watched this episode like 8 times … this was my first video I ever saw of you guys and I got hooked… love you guys
I just wanted to say thank you to you both. You demystify and make home brewing so approachable, you cut out the bs and emphasize what's is really important for success. This video got me to start my first ginger beer batch! The only thing I changed from your recipe was adding some blood orange to the party. I am 6 days in on the ferment and it is going strong, I find myself regularly huffing the airlock, it smells amazing!😊 Thanks again for inspiring me to jump in!
I recently made several fruit ciders that would normally need a brew bag, but I agree with you that the ballooning can cause issues. I found this on Amazon and I've used it 5 times with success and no perceptible downside. (Yardwe Stainless Steel Spice Ball, Fine Mesh Tea Strainer, Stainless Steel Tea Infuser with Extended Chain Hook for Loose Leaf Tea Spice Seasonings (4.9 x 5.1 Inch))
if you don't want to use StarSan to sanitize the outside of the ginger because you're worried about absorption, you could just chunk up the ginger into small pieces, boil it in water for a couple minutes to make a ginger tea, and then dump all of it into the fermenter. Don't strain out the ginger chunks.
City Steaders...Love the channel and all of your experimentation. I've seen you discuss the issues with the big mouth small bubblers on several videos, this one being the one with the most trouble. I've used the 6.5 gallon big mouth bubblers for a few years and discovered the universal lid that Northern Brewing sells. It works great....but, in the small big mouth bubbler it was just a "tad" too small. I fixed it by taking the silicone seal off the lid, putting a couple layers of silicone tape (from Amazon,) and then putting the silicone seal back on the lid. Works like a champ and will alleviate the loose lid issues (which I had with the big bubblers as well.) Happy brewing! Cheers!
I have been using a food grade 10 litre bucket with lid. Bakeries get their Pie/tart fruit fillings in them. Usually give them away. Boil proof airtight lid i fit with a grommet and airlock. I do my primary ferment in them
A classic way to make a really great lemonade is to cover shaved lemon rind in sugar for a few hours or days. I imagine doing that, but also covering the macerated ginger in the sugar too could create a strong flavor extraction.
There's is a calculator online that will adjust your abv for temperature. If it was 111° when you took the reading of 1.032 the actual reading is 1.050 calibrated at 60° so that really is a significant amount of abv. You guys are great. I just made my 2nd batch of ginger beer. It's so good.
I LOVE Ginger Beer! I've been making Ginger Mead, and trying to hone my recipes. The last couple batches I have used the for processor to make Ginger juice... Seemed to work good, but is a little tedious...may try this method next time. I like mine very gingery...
For the fermenter problem, run a piece of tape around the threads to take up up bit of space. Try the lid and use another piece of tape if necessary. No biggy.
So in 6 days I've drunk a demijohn right out the fermentation station. The flavor and viscosity on the last glass was so notable I've got to tell someone. Pasterised two weeks ago and 3 months old. It went super sweet that final glass with a BIG BODY. Pear methliGONE hiccup ❤
I don't often use them but when I do, I put glass weights inside my brewing bags to keep them where they belong. It takes a lot of weight though. I find it helps to not leave a lot of slack in the bags when I tie them off. That way they don't have a lot of room for gas to build up.
@CitySteadingBrews Yes, they do, indeed. I seldom use bags for that reason. For Saskatoon berries (our absolute favorite fruit for wine), I want to be able to get all the seeds out after the first week. They tend to give the wine an odd, earthy flavor if even a few of them they stay in for too long. When I do use bags, I make sure they are good and snug around the fruit and tied up securely. I also have a big box of old-fashioned, glass Mason jar lids with no other purpose in life, so I can use lots of them. Now that I think about it, I do my primary fermentation in brewing buckets. That likely has a lot to do with why I have success with weights. There's a lot more space between the airlock and liquid.
Had the same issue with two of my little big mouth bubblers - would get almost perfectly tight then pop off. I added an additional foam sealing ring to each and that fixed it - I think adding the additional height made it so the top never got to the end of the threading, and thus stayed on.
I love ginger lemonade! Same prep for the ginger, including the hot water, then add lemon juice and honey. Let it cool and put it in the fridge. Its awesome! I think I am going to try alcoholic ginger beer now!
You were saying that you disturbed the beer and got whispies, then you let it sit another week before racking. You can try cold crashing in your fridge. In a couple of hours every thing should have drop out of solution and then you can continue racking. I cold crash to 40 deg before my pressure transfers into kegs. Try it out. Great recipe, can't wait to try it. 👍
I made a ginger mead a couple years ago. Used 6.4 ounces of ginger (because that it weighed out to when I cut it up) and 2.7 lbs of honey. I write down the recipe when I make a brew. Final brew was almost 10% alcohol and WOW, did it have a good ginger taste.
@@bretthines6893 put 6.4 ounces of ginger in a pot and blended it to a fine pulp added 2.7 lbs honey and juice of one lemon. Put it all in a Primary fermenter and added water to make one gallon/3.8 liters. Starting specific gravity was 1.110. Don't remember what yeast I used. bottled it after about 25 days. End s.g. was 1.04
New brewer here, like today is day one! I like ginger beer so I thought this would be a good place to start. I have watched several of your videos and I personally want to thank you for the education and entertainment. I ran into a few issues in this first batch that are probably pretty common to the first-time brewer. The wide mouth fermenter I purchased is exactly 1 gallon filled to within an 1/2 inch of the mouth of the jug. So, I had to scale everything down to 87.5%. In my rush to do my first batch, I used the first yeast that arrived from Amazon, Lalvin 71B, since I don't have any Fermaid O yet, I used the whole 5 grams. I added 1 pound and 5.8 oz. of sugar so I am hoping for a ABV around 8.5-10% a little stronger than the batch you made. I'll let you know how it all turns out in a few weeks. Once again, thanks for the motivation to attempt brewing.
Forgot to mention the OG 1.064. I plan on back sweeting to 1.022. I have to admit I am nervous on trying to carbonate the beer, but I have a few weeks before that step.@@CitySteadingBrews
I cracked open my first ginger beer this evening and it is a mixed bag. The lemon and ginger flavors have melded together better than I would have thought considering the sample I drank when I bottled the beer. That was nasty! Total fail on the carbonization. I didn't use the insurance yeast and ended with zero bubbles. Having some friends over this Friday to sample the brew, I may sprinkle some insurance yeast on any bottles that are left over. Again, Thanks for the knowledge and encouragement to give brewing a try.
Hey there! Love your episodes but just wanted to share that I cracked my big mouth bubbler all the way around the base by adding sub-boiling water to it for a brew. The glass isn't tempered, so everyone just be cautious about it and aware it could crack or shatter. Appreciate the recipe, been looking for a way to make a dark and stormy without some of the conventionally available ginger beers 😊
That was interesting 😁👍. I personally don't care for the taste of ginger, but since I've been watching you, I've laert never to say never 😅. I recently decided that I needed more bottles for my next brew so I rounded up All my partially full bottles and started "quantifying" the leftovers. Gotta say, mixing a bunch of old wine, when done right, tastes awesome 👍❤️. Guess I'll have to add ginger wine to my list just to include in the fun of mixing😁. Thanks again for the video 👍❤️.
Super video thanks guys, I’m in the process of making this ginger beer following your instructions, I’m at bottling stage now and want a bit more of a ginger kick to the final taste, do you have any advice on how to add this flavour prior to adding the sweetener and secondary yeast then bottling?
A pH of 6.6 is practically neutral. After some googling, it would appear the ginger neutralized the acids in the lemon peel. The pH scale is logarithmic ( as you likely know ) going from 6.6 to 4 is a more than a 100x change in acidity. My ginger mead stalled: could have been the pH could have been the 15.5 ABV ;). All I know is I'm going to try again ! and I will be using some lemon !
Off topic, I get chronic migraines and atmospheric pressure change is a trigger for me as well… I love my Cefaly! Worth every penny. It’s a good tool to have in the migraine tool box
Well THIS is good timing... I had already planned on making a fresh batch of ginger beer today as it was, and here you are with a new recipe and everything! I've had some issues with ginger beer carbonating in the past so last time I made a batch - and I'll prob do the same thing today as well - I used EC118 for the yeast, even though SO4 is my go-to for anything under 10% and it worked out well... clean flavour and nice and bubbly.
B and D I made this brew on 8/28 its a 1.4 gallon batch. 4 ounces ginger root chopped,2 lemons peeled,1 lemon juiced,4 grams Fermaid O,3\4 packet D47and added sugar to reach a 1.052 SG. It,s now 9/3/23 and SPG is at .990 I think is done is this possible I think it was the perfect storm Thank you, Col
I liked the new format with all parts in one video.... keeps me from having to hunt down the other parts. Also, thanks for showing how you make your Whiskey Ginger. I was hoping you'd share it. Anyway, another great video... keep up the good work!
You should try adding a couple fingers of Galangal. Galangal root, is in the same family as ginger. It has a similar taste to ginger, but it also has a nice sharp citrus flavor as well. It adds a pleasant depth of flavor to the mix.
@@CitySteadingBrews I have a similar issue, with the smell of fermented lemon, The citrus taste of the Galangal, could be used as an alternative to using lemon.
If you want more carbonation to prevent low abv spoiling and also just for taste, there is something called a drinkmate that is like a soda water maker but it can carbonate any beverage. It is kind of expensive, like 150 dollars, but it is consistant to get the right amount of carbonation every time. Maybe worth a try?
I was glad to see you make your whiskey / ginger cocktail at the end of the video. My suggestion is that you make a couple of shorts with some of your custom cocktails you've mentioned. I know there was one mentioned in the coffee mead video as well. Thanks for another great brew lesson.
We don't really do cocktails. Not what the content is intended to attract. Thanks for the suggestion though. We did start a shorts channel that hasn't gotten much love yet :)
Thank you for the recipe. I tried to make it, but when I tasted it, it had an aftertaste of soap. And, the obvious questions would be, "What did you clean your equipment with?" and "Did you rinse everything thoroughly?" To those questions, I'd say that I'm pretty sure that didn't have anything to do with it, but maybe it did. I guess I can be more careful next time. That notwithstanding, I was wondering if there is anything else that could cause the soap aftertaste that I should be aware of. Thanks so much in advance for your response.
I've only ever made rhubarb beer, but as I've experimented, I've not noticed any difference in carbonation relating to head space. My half-bottle carbonates just as much as the full bottles. I usually use my half-bottle as my test bottle to make sure there is enough carbonation. However, I recently heard that the bulb at the top of beer bottles is there to indicate a max fill line. So, with my last couple of batches, I've just used my bottling wand to fill all the way to that fill line. When I pull the wand out, the volume drops to about an inch below the fill line, just like you'd see in a store-bought beer. I don't know if there's any truth to this, but I've not had any issues. Also, when bottle conditioning, I've used the method of fermenting my wort all the way down to dry then adding a teaspoon of sugar to each bottle right before filling it. I don't usually add extra yeast, though I usually only rack it once so I probably have more yeast. I've had great results doing it this way, depending on the temps in my house I usually have full carbonation in 4-5 days.
I've bought cheap ginger and found even adding 1-2 pounds (peeled, chopped fine) does not give much flavour. My latest batch, I've boiled the ginger to see if that works better. I use more sugar though, two pounds. Hoping this next batch comes out better! Will have to try a lower ABV one like this next. I've yet to get really good carbonisation, even when I added way more sugar than seems to be recommended, but I do pasteurize for safety. Everything has gone dry too, and still not been carbonated enough.
Bottle carbonating, just trying to use a coke bottle to check for pressure, then pasturising once I hit that point to avoid bottle bombs. Using the sugar recommendation for beer I was getting almost no carbonation, and even doubling it, it barely improved. I'll be keeping an eye on what else you try for forced carbonation though, as that kit test you did was interesting.@@CitySteadingBrews
Nice one guys. I’ve done the ginger beers a couple of times and the pasteurisation worried me. I’ll go with Allulose next. Greetings from the high peak in Derbyshire, England 🍺
Yep, the "find the right timing for pasteurizing" always sat wrong with me. I know it's doable, as we have done it many times, but for a beginner it's too much.
@@CitySteadingBrews However, you've shared a logical step-by-step method. I'll pair that up with the commenter suggestion, that I saw, to put one open bottle filled with water with a thermometer in it to track the temperature. While I have a bit of trepidation. I am not overly fearful of trying pasteurisation.
Hi Folks! On my third try to get a really tasty Alcoholic GB. Used the boil 20 min method from your original Video, and 1 lb. of ginger+ some spices. Orig SPG=1.032; orig Ph=4.19. After 4 days fermenting SPG=0.992; Ph=3.46. Thinking I will rack, seeten with Alulose to taste, and bottle now. Would you suggest longer Fermentation? Not recalls bubling, but there is positive pressure on the airlock. Taste peppery and slightly carbonated.
It won't ferment any longer as it finished, there's nothing left to ferment. Most of the tweaks come from the ginger "tea" and how much ginger you put in. 1 lb of ginger sounds like a LOT, as we used 2 or 3 ounces, but if it works, it works! If you bottle without adding sugar for carbonation, it's not going to carbonate.
Headspace is one of the most important factor in bottle bombs. Less is better not in as it it will not blow, but it will blow with less force. From experience a 2l plastic bottle with a mugfull of dry ice is quite equivalent to a massive firecracker. Now if you have 40 times less space (as in around a 50ml neck) for expansion it will be literally 40 times less energetic. Then again when carbonating with a calculated amount of sugar/liquid, more headspace means less sugary liquid, thus less gas to fill the headspace, so that half filled bottle would have quite an issue reaching blow-out pressures.
Your previous video on ginger beer is actually what got me to go try to brew a bit. But I’m just doing really basic things right now to learn the process. On an aside. Not sure if you have figured it out/been told or discovered. The reason why you don’t want to seal a partially full bottle of carbonated liquid is not because it has a higher pressure. The pressure will be slightly lower or the same as a full bottle. It’s because you’ll have far more co2 as a gas than a full bottle will. The expansion of the gas , because there is far more gas due to volume available in a partially full bottle , will cause a more energetic explosion if the bottle fails. CO2 dissolved in solution can outgas through nucleation however that process is much slower than gas expansion which is why a full bottle will still be super messy but probably not as energetic of an explosion. How do I know this? I discussed it with a coworker that designs pressure vessels for space vehicles (fuel tanks) that rely on gas pressurization to keep the fuel at intake points. Not sure how yeast behavior under different conditions may affect this but the above is certainly a prime consideration. The full bottle may actually see higher pressures overall because you have less space to put more co2 and since you can dissolve far more co2 by mass into water the difference is likely very very low. Lesson: control your carbonation process, use only bottles designed for carbonation, inspect the bottles before use. any signs of chips, scratches, deformations or bubbles don’t use the bottle for carbonated beverages.
A little wordy above But in short , a partially filled bottle is no more likely to explode than a full bottle but a partially filled bottle will explode with a lot more energy than a full bottle. If you are using good bottles designed for carbonation then a partial bottle will be fine.
Thank you both! I will try to brew my first ginger beer the next week. I have one question, can I use hops for bitterness, flavor and aroma? Thanks again!
I've made this twice, the wife loved it. the 1st time it had an intense ginger taste. It would warm you up. just made it again. My wife informed me a couple weeks ago she was down to her last bottle. This time around the ginger is not as intense. I can only think of a couple possible differences. The 1st time it was on primary ferment almost 4 weeks. I didn't have time to rack and bottle it tight when it was done. This time I was able to get it racked and bottled in 2 weeks time. She likes the more intense ginger better. I'm wondering does the more intense flavor come from being on the primary longer or was it a larger hand of ginger. I didn't weigh either so I'm not sure, any thoughts? Love your videos, Both of you are what got me into homebrewing Thank you.
Have you tried sweetening with sugar and then burping the bottles for a few days? Maybe then you can refrigerate it and have a sweet carbonated beverage.
I've just started my first brew/fermentation ever 2 weeks ago (Hydromel) based on another video and was thinking of starting a Ginger beer one while sanitizing the stuff for the next step with the hydromel.... anyway... all that to say, that video just arrived on time!!!! I'm looking forward to the weekend : D Thanks a lot for teaching and entertaining us at the same time! You guys are awesome!!!
I made a honey maple mead and it came out bone dry nearly undrinkable. I tried to carbonate it but either it wasn't enough sugar or the existing yeast didn't wanna do it. But man after 5 months the fracton of carbonation i got and maybe the added unfermented sugar intended for carbonation made it taste fantastic. I do wish more carbonation stuck.
We are making your new Ginger Beer and am wondering if tannins from the ginger skin is sufficient or if you would ever consider using wine tannin on your next Ginger Beer brew. Not sure if tannins are important in a beer like brew. Thanks.
Thank you for this updated recipe and process. You guys were my first home brewing teachers and your original ginger beer video was the very first brew I've ever created. I will definitely get a big batch of this going soon. Question, as I didn't see it listed in the description and I was just curious. Could you tell me how big your food processor container is. That's large and I would love to have something that big for myself. Thank you again.
I just made this and it turned out pretty well. I did think I had a stuck fermentation for a bit and suspected it was all the acid from the lemon juice. That made me wonder, what if the lemon juice were added during secondary? I know it will throw of gravity, but if I’m willing to accept that do you think there are any other downsides?
Hi, I was wondering, when using teabags for tannin extraction, is there a reason you guys brew the tea, then put in the hot tea? My immediate thought was that you could cut open the tea bag and put those leafy contents directly into the primary fermentation. Is there a reason to not do that?
Lovely video, I usually wait at least 4 weeks for carbonation, so maybe try again after another couple of weeks. I'm going to try this recipe for sure.
With something like ginger that likes to stall would amylase help breaking the ginger down? And help with even more flavor? Like you say chemicals don't know intentions so the lemon would be broken down too. I am admitting that now.
This is more of a question. I made ginger beer and let it go too long after bottling. It is still sweet but the first two I opened had a geyser effect. I lost most of the bottles. When I pasteurize the remaining bottles, how do I keep from losing my ginger beer? I put the second bottle in a bowl, but it still went all over the floor as well as in the bowl. TIA for any hints, either for this brew or the next.
@@CitySteadingBrews Thank you for your instruction. The bottles (yes, more than one now) that I have chilled and opened are still sweet and bubbly. SO Good. I wish I'd written down the exact recipe so I could repeat it.
I use a lot of sugar to carbonate but burp my bottles once a day for 3 days the put in fridge, you also have to leave decent room for the head ( i like to leave the whole neck) doing this way too or it will fizz everywhere lol
First off, you guys are great. thank you for all the videos, they have helped me with with bucket list over the last 2 years. On this video, can you use a soda streak machine to add carbonation instead of adding sugar to form the carbonization?, also, for sweetening, could you just add a tea spoon of sugar to a glass of any of the overly dry beverage and enjoy it without sweetening the entire batch?
If we're worried about the error range for measuring ABV, skip the dunkable hydrometer. What I'm doing is getting a precise (and hopefully accurate) digital scale, and I'll be weighing a 10ml syringe full of the beverage with it. That will give a much more precise density reading than trying to eyeball one of those frustrating glass cylinders. (Mostly it's for my eyesight.) It's much easier to reliably extract a specific volume of liquid, versus reading those darn things.
Not sure that will be any more accurate really. Still an estimate of sugars as other things alter density too. But I haven't really looked into it either tbh.
Doesn't the heat of the boiling water kill the lactobacillus? or is it mainly yeast that does the fermenting? (new to all this, from the chilli sauce ferment world)
Mead is the only alcohol that I know I can have - the sulfites in other beverages mess with me - allergies. Love this content for it helps me make better brews - brews that are few and far between.
Hi. I plan to make a ginger beer and carbonate it in a keg. Do you guys think I could add all the sugar at once and then add a stabilizer to kill the yeast when I reach the right FG? Or is there going to be a problem that there is still plenty of unfermented sugars left in the brew? I plan to add the stabilizer a tad in advance since it might take a day or two for the yeast to die, and the OG will drop during that time? The reason I want to add all the sugar in the start is to further avoid unnecessary oxidation…
Question for Derica. Would you describe the off aroma as a sulfur smell? I made a batch of non alcoholic ginger beer in a 2 liter bottle using bakers yeast, and it took on a sulfur smell. Searching online it seems to be a common problem with ginger beers. There seems to be varying opinions about what causes it, but I couldn't really get a feel for a consensus.
@@CitySteadingBrews thanks for the quick reply! I've never done any home brewing, but I think Ginger beer would make a good first project. Thanks for the informative videos!
I had no idea that Derica was a school teacher. But I can believe it! I’m militant about my science note taking too. I was an intelligence analyst in the military, a process control tech when working in semiconductor manufacturing and a full blown nerd in my intellectual pursuits-like home fermentation. Y’all crack me up and I dig it thoroughly! You’re educators and we’re students and I’m grooving on it big time!
Just wanted to pop on and say that I came to you channel initially from the 2018 Ginger Beer recipe so this video was a sort of homecoming for me. Cheers to the many years of great content and keep up the good work.
This is such a fun wholesome channel that also has amazing information!!
Grate the lemon peel with a zester so you don't get so much of the white part in the mix. The white bits adds bitterness for sure.
Hey Guys! My comment doesnt relate to this video, but I just wanted to thank you for all these videos you guys do, because of these vids I had the confidence try to brew my first apple cider and it was finished about a week ago, I have expereinted with it finishing it 4 differnt ways like you did in a video and the carbonated+sweet was the favorite it my family😊 And I just started my first mead today, I am really excited about that too, so I just wanted to say thank you for introducing me to a new hobby!😀
You are very welcome. Thanks for watching!
🤗🤗
When making lemonade, i like to make an olio sacrum first with the lemon peels and sugar. I might try that in my next batch of ginger beer!
This is one of the most interesting brews you have put together yet. I think this is the first time Derica has mentioned that she was a school teacher. She must have been one of the coolest teachers ever.
Really? I thought she said it many times!
@@CitySteadingBrews maybe it's the first time I heard it
Beautiful as well
I wonder if she wanted to be called by her first name like many other cool teachers. My art teacher told us to call him Pete. I couldn't do that because my parents are from the South and you must show your elders respect. So Mr. Pete it was.
I use the same fermenter you guys do - I have a backup plan in place in case it stops sealing. I have a silicone baking mat on standby. In the event one of my LBMB's stops sealing, I will, with the aid of a compass and xacto knife, cut a gasket for the lid that can restore the ability to seal. Hope that helps, guys.
Yes!!! The old one is one of my most repeated brews! I can't wait for this one!
43:54 For carbonation, I usually add 10g of pure fructose per liter. So, for your batch size, I would have added about 38 g of fructose.
You guys are great - I just got a hold of your channel whilst making my first batch of mead and you were a great help!
You explain things really well and are fun to watch.
...now I want to make a ginger beer too 😂
Awesome! Thank you!
Derica and Brian. Have been watching you guys you guys for several years. Enjoy it, learn from it etc. Currently have 5 wines/meads at various stages of fermentation. I am a retired veterinarian with a fair knowledge of microbiology. When you talk about antibacterial properties of various spices it has nothing to do with yeast-- a fungus. These spices when used in connection with wine and mead are antimicrobial. Yeast of course is a microbe. About clarity--- we judge our food and beverages based upon taste, aroma and appearance. To me, clarity cannot be minimized. Keep up the good work. I watch you every day. With respect, Doc.
I recently looked into this and a lot of the spices and herbs that are antimicrobial are also antifungal. Clarity means nothing really. We are only trained to believe clear means better but in reality is is meaningless :)
Your channel has gotten me into the hobby of brewing! Thankyou for your time and experience sharing!
Glad to hear it!
The best of all hobbies, it's 99% hands off, which gives you time for other hobbies.
"Hobbies cost money but interests are quite free." - George Carlin
I make my ginger beer with 1.5lbs of ginger in 3 gallons done almost like you are going. I also add sorghum syrup and a bit of cascade hops instead of the citrus peel.
I'll have to try the citrus instead of the hops!!
I love this recipe I have made it like 6 times and I have watched this episode like 8 times … this was my first video I ever saw of you guys and I got hooked… love you guys
Aww thanks! Glad you like it!
thanks guys. It is going to be super helpful to have this for a reference when I start my first ginger beer.
I stopped brewing for a few years but starting back up this week. My favorite ginger beer is Raspberry Hibiscus Habanero Ginger Beer.
Welcome back!
I just wanted to say thank you to you both. You demystify and make home brewing so approachable, you cut out the bs and emphasize what's is really important for success. This video got me to start my first ginger beer batch! The only thing I changed from your recipe was adding some blood orange to the party. I am 6 days in on the ferment and it is going strong, I find myself regularly huffing the airlock, it smells amazing!😊 Thanks again for inspiring me to jump in!
Happy to help!
I recently made several fruit ciders that would normally need a brew bag, but I agree with you that the ballooning can cause issues. I found this on Amazon and I've used it 5 times with success and no perceptible downside. (Yardwe Stainless Steel Spice Ball, Fine Mesh Tea Strainer, Stainless Steel Tea Infuser with Extended Chain Hook for Loose Leaf Tea Spice Seasonings (4.9 x 5.1 Inch))
if you don't want to use StarSan to sanitize the outside of the ginger because you're worried about absorption, you could just chunk up the ginger into small pieces, boil it in water for a couple minutes to make a ginger tea, and then dump all of it into the fermenter. Don't strain out the ginger chunks.
City Steaders...Love the channel and all of your experimentation. I've seen you discuss the issues with the big mouth small bubblers on several videos, this one being the one with the most trouble. I've used the 6.5 gallon big mouth bubblers for a few years and discovered the universal lid that Northern Brewing sells. It works great....but, in the small big mouth bubbler it was just a "tad" too small. I fixed it by taking the silicone seal off the lid, putting a couple layers of silicone tape (from Amazon,) and then putting the silicone seal back on the lid. Works like a champ and will alleviate the loose lid issues (which I had with the big bubblers as well.) Happy brewing! Cheers!
We have simply started using North Mountain Supply products 😀
I'm looking forward to taking this brewing journey for the first time, Christmas presents, thank you for the guidance!
I have been using a food grade 10 litre bucket with lid. Bakeries get their Pie/tart fruit fillings in them. Usually give them away. Boil proof airtight lid i fit with a grommet and airlock. I do my primary ferment in them
Sure. That works. I just prefer glass.
A classic way to make a really great lemonade is to cover shaved lemon rind in sugar for a few hours or days. I imagine doing that, but also covering the macerated ginger in the sugar too could create a strong flavor extraction.
There's is a calculator online that will adjust your abv for temperature. If it was 111° when you took the reading of 1.032 the actual reading is 1.050 calibrated at 60° so that really is a significant amount of abv. You guys are great. I just made my 2nd batch of ginger beer. It's so good.
I just looked it up... more like 1.040. I doubt it was still 111 when I did though...
Thanks for doing the PH reading and your related comment. So much to learn but you are helping so much in the process.
Reading through the comments reveals the joy you bring to others. Thank you for your work.
We try. Home brewing and home cooking are everyone’s right. It’s not hard, but everyone should try it at least once.
I LOVE Ginger Beer! I've been making Ginger Mead, and trying to hone my recipes. The last couple batches I have used the for processor to make Ginger juice... Seemed to work good, but is a little tedious...may try this method next time. I like mine very gingery...
Same, Champion Juicer wrings out the juice well but I still use the pulp too in the ferment.
For the fermenter problem, run a piece of tape around the threads to take up up bit of space. Try the lid and use another piece of tape if necessary. No biggy.
Her chuckle at him missing the setup for "It's been one week.." was great
Just started a ginger beer last night I only made a couple modifications to your recipe! It should be great! Now to wait!
So in 6 days I've drunk a demijohn right out the fermentation station. The flavor and viscosity on the last glass was so notable I've got to tell someone. Pasterised two weeks ago and 3 months old. It went super sweet that final glass with a BIG BODY. Pear methliGONE hiccup ❤
Yea I have always doubled to 52 g of sugar for priming. And it has worked well.
That seems like the absolute upper limit yep.
Love the way you guys interact
Thank you!
@ can’t wait to get home for Christmas and give you recipe a go.
I don't often use them but when I do, I put glass weights inside my brewing bags to keep them where they belong. It takes a lot of weight though. I find it helps to not leave a lot of slack in the bags when I tie them off. That way they don't have a lot of room for gas to build up.
I've never had that work. They fill up like balloons and clog the airlocks! :)
@CitySteadingBrews Yes, they do, indeed. I seldom use bags for that reason. For Saskatoon berries (our absolute favorite fruit for wine), I want to be able to get all the seeds out after the first week. They tend to give the wine an odd, earthy flavor if even a few of them they stay in for too long.
When I do use bags, I make sure they are good and snug around the fruit and tied up securely. I also have a big box of old-fashioned, glass Mason jar lids with no other purpose in life, so I can use lots of them.
Now that I think about it, I do my primary fermentation in brewing buckets. That likely has a lot to do with why I have success with weights. There's a lot more space between the airlock and liquid.
Had the same issue with two of my little big mouth bubblers - would get almost perfectly tight then pop off. I added an additional foam sealing ring to each and that fixed it - I think adding the additional height made it so the top never got to the end of the threading, and thus stayed on.
I love ginger lemonade! Same prep for the ginger, including the hot water, then add lemon juice and honey. Let it cool and put it in the fridge. Its awesome! I think I am going to try alcoholic ginger beer now!
Half teaspoon of sugar per bottle to prime beer
You were saying that you disturbed the beer and got whispies, then you let it sit another week before racking. You can try cold crashing in your fridge. In a couple of hours every thing should have drop out of solution and then you can continue racking. I cold crash to 40 deg before my pressure transfers into kegs. Try it out. Great recipe, can't wait to try it. 👍
Cold crashing can help but it takes more than a few hours.
You guys are great! This is just what I was thinking to research and try to make. Perfect timing!
Glad it was helpful!
I made a ginger mead a couple years ago. Used 6.4 ounces of ginger (because that it weighed out to when I cut it up) and 2.7 lbs of honey. I write down the recipe when I make a brew. Final brew was almost 10% alcohol and WOW, did it have a good ginger taste.
Instructions??? Would love to try that!
@@bretthines6893 put 6.4 ounces of ginger in a pot and blended it to a fine pulp added 2.7 lbs honey and juice of one lemon.
Put it all in a Primary fermenter and added water to make one gallon/3.8 liters.
Starting specific gravity was 1.110.
Don't remember what yeast I used.
bottled it after about 25 days. End s.g. was 1.04
Great job guys I love making ginger and lime wine. I have to say that the ginger spice will go down with time
New brewer here, like today is day one! I like ginger beer so I thought this would be a good place to start. I have watched several of your videos and I personally want to thank you for the education and entertainment. I ran into a few issues in this first batch that are probably pretty common to the first-time brewer. The wide mouth fermenter I purchased is exactly 1 gallon filled to within an 1/2 inch of the mouth of the jug. So, I had to scale everything down to 87.5%. In my rush to do my first batch, I used the first yeast that arrived from Amazon, Lalvin 71B, since I don't have any Fermaid O yet, I used the whole 5 grams. I added 1 pound and 5.8 oz. of sugar so I am hoping for a ABV around 8.5-10% a little stronger than the batch you made. I'll let you know how it all turns out in a few weeks. Once again, thanks for the motivation to attempt brewing.
Sounds like you're off to a good start.
Forgot to mention the OG 1.064. I plan on back sweeting to 1.022. I have to admit I am nervous on trying to carbonate the beer, but I have a few weeks before that step.@@CitySteadingBrews
Why 1.022? Best to sweeten to taste.
Agreed, I just figured that's where I'd end up based on your tasting review. I'm in the sweet but not too sweet group. :)@@CitySteadingBrews
I cracked open my first ginger beer this evening and it is a mixed bag. The lemon and ginger flavors have melded together better than I would have thought considering the sample I drank when I bottled the beer. That was nasty! Total fail on the carbonization. I didn't use the insurance yeast and ended with zero bubbles. Having some friends over this Friday to sample the brew, I may sprinkle some insurance yeast on any bottles that are left over. Again, Thanks for the knowledge and encouragement to give brewing a try.
Hey there! Love your episodes but just wanted to share that I cracked my big mouth bubbler all the way around the base by adding sub-boiling water to it for a brew. The glass isn't tempered, so everyone just be cautious about it and aware it could crack or shatter. Appreciate the recipe, been looking for a way to make a dark and stormy without some of the conventionally available ginger beers 😊
Yup, that's why I was careful :) I also tried to soften the blow so to speak, but having it hit the ginger first.
That was interesting 😁👍.
I personally don't care for the taste of ginger, but since I've been watching you, I've laert never to say never 😅.
I recently decided that I needed more bottles for my next brew so I rounded up All my partially full bottles and started "quantifying" the leftovers.
Gotta say, mixing a bunch of old wine, when done right, tastes awesome 👍❤️.
Guess I'll have to add ginger wine to my list just to include in the fun of mixing😁.
Thanks again for the video 👍❤️.
Super video thanks guys, I’m in the process of making this ginger beer following your instructions, I’m at bottling stage now and want a bit more of a ginger kick to the final taste, do you have any advice on how to add this flavour prior to adding the sweetener and secondary yeast then bottling?
Put in more ginger... easiest way. Let that sit a week or so.
I'm right with Derica on the pickled ginger, it's the real treat when I have any sushi or rice bowl!
A pH of 6.6 is practically neutral. After some googling, it would appear the ginger neutralized the acids in the lemon peel.
The pH scale is logarithmic ( as you likely know ) going from 6.6 to 4 is a more than a 100x change in acidity.
My ginger mead stalled: could have been the pH could have been the 15.5 ABV ;).
All I know is I'm going to try again ! and I will be using some lemon !
Off topic, I get chronic migraines and atmospheric pressure change is a trigger for me as well… I love my Cefaly! Worth every penny. It’s a good tool to have in the migraine tool box
Well THIS is good timing... I had already planned on making a fresh batch of ginger beer today as it was, and here you are with a new recipe and everything!
I've had some issues with ginger beer carbonating in the past so last time I made a batch - and I'll prob do the same thing today as well - I used EC118 for the yeast, even though SO4 is my go-to for anything under 10% and it worked out well... clean flavour and nice and bubbly.
B and D
I made this brew on 8/28 its a 1.4 gallon batch. 4 ounces ginger root chopped,2 lemons peeled,1 lemon juiced,4 grams Fermaid O,3\4 packet D47and added sugar to reach a 1.052 SG. It,s now 9/3/23 and SPG is at .990 I think is done is this possible I think it was the perfect storm
Thank you,
Col
It could be done, sure.
Great Video! Hit all the points i was thinking about, don’t peel, no tea, non-fermentable back sweetening. Going to do this one right away!
Glad it was helpful!
@@CitySteadingBrews Already bubbling 🫧🫧🫧
I liked the new format with all parts in one video.... keeps me from having to hunt down the other parts. Also, thanks for showing how you make your Whiskey Ginger. I was hoping you'd share it. Anyway, another great video... keep up the good work!
Glad you liked it!
You should try adding a couple fingers of Galangal. Galangal root, is in the same family as ginger. It has a similar taste to ginger, but it also has a nice sharp citrus flavor as well. It adds a pleasant depth of flavor to the mix.
You can if you like. I have never heard of adding that to ginger beer but it sounds nice.
@@CitySteadingBrews I have a similar issue, with the smell of fermented lemon, The citrus taste of the Galangal, could be used as an alternative to using lemon.
If you want more carbonation to prevent low abv spoiling and also just for taste, there is something called a drinkmate that is like a soda water maker but it can carbonate any beverage. It is kind of expensive, like 150 dollars, but it is consistant to get the right amount of carbonation every time. Maybe worth a try?
There are other ways :). Coming in a video soon.
@@CitySteadingBrews
I look forward to it!
I was glad to see you make your whiskey / ginger cocktail at the end of the video. My suggestion is that you make a couple of shorts with some of your custom cocktails you've mentioned. I know there was one mentioned in the coffee mead video as well. Thanks for another great brew lesson.
We don't really do cocktails. Not what the content is intended to attract. Thanks for the suggestion though. We did start a shorts channel that hasn't gotten much love yet :)
Thank you for the recipe. I tried to make it, but when I tasted it, it had an aftertaste of soap. And, the obvious questions would be, "What did you clean your equipment with?" and "Did you rinse everything thoroughly?" To those questions, I'd say that I'm pretty sure that didn't have anything to do with it, but maybe it did. I guess I can be more careful next time. That notwithstanding, I was wondering if there is anything else that could cause the soap aftertaste that I should be aware of. Thanks so much in advance for your response.
Sorry, nothing I am aware of!
I've only ever made rhubarb beer, but as I've experimented, I've not noticed any difference in carbonation relating to head space. My half-bottle carbonates just as much as the full bottles. I usually use my half-bottle as my test bottle to make sure there is enough carbonation. However, I recently heard that the bulb at the top of beer bottles is there to indicate a max fill line. So, with my last couple of batches, I've just used my bottling wand to fill all the way to that fill line. When I pull the wand out, the volume drops to about an inch below the fill line, just like you'd see in a store-bought beer. I don't know if there's any truth to this, but I've not had any issues.
Also, when bottle conditioning, I've used the method of fermenting my wort all the way down to dry then adding a teaspoon of sugar to each bottle right before filling it. I don't usually add extra yeast, though I usually only rack it once so I probably have more yeast. I've had great results doing it this way, depending on the temps in my house I usually have full carbonation in 4-5 days.
I've bought cheap ginger and found even adding 1-2 pounds (peeled, chopped fine) does not give much flavour. My latest batch, I've boiled the ginger to see if that works better. I use more sugar though, two pounds. Hoping this next batch comes out better! Will have to try a lower ABV one like this next.
I've yet to get really good carbonisation, even when I added way more sugar than seems to be recommended, but I do pasteurize for safety. Everything has gone dry too, and still not been carbonated enough.
If you pasteurize first, you cannot carbonate, not sure when you are doing either :)
Bottle carbonating, just trying to use a coke bottle to check for pressure, then pasturising once I hit that point to avoid bottle bombs. Using the sugar recommendation for beer I was getting almost no carbonation, and even doubling it, it barely improved. I'll be keeping an eye on what else you try for forced carbonation though, as that kit test you did was interesting.@@CitySteadingBrews
I love you for putting real units in the description...the ounces, pounds and cups always give me a headache. Thank you!
I usually make a double batch, ferment half and bottle the ither half stat in the fridge for immediate use.
Nice one guys. I’ve done the ginger beers a couple of times and the pasteurisation worried me. I’ll go with Allulose next. Greetings from the high peak in Derbyshire, England 🍺
Yep, the "find the right timing for pasteurizing" always sat wrong with me. I know it's doable, as we have done it many times, but for a beginner it's too much.
Just ordered my Allulose and am about to subscribe back to the channel - I took a sabbatical from you. Sorry 😜
@KenTudor-sc1pt welcome back.
@@CitySteadingBrews just ordered my Allulose and I am about to re-subscribe. I took a sabbatical for six months, sorry guys 🤪
@@CitySteadingBrews
However, you've shared a logical step-by-step method.
I'll pair that up with the commenter suggestion, that I saw, to put one open bottle filled with water with a thermometer in it to track the temperature.
While I have a bit of trepidation. I am not overly fearful of trying pasteurisation.
Hi Folks! On my third try to get a really tasty Alcoholic GB. Used the boil 20 min method from your original Video, and 1 lb. of ginger+ some spices. Orig SPG=1.032; orig Ph=4.19. After 4 days fermenting SPG=0.992; Ph=3.46. Thinking I will rack, seeten with Alulose to taste, and bottle now. Would you suggest longer Fermentation? Not recalls bubling, but there is positive pressure on the airlock. Taste peppery and slightly carbonated.
It won't ferment any longer as it finished, there's nothing left to ferment. Most of the tweaks come from the ginger "tea" and how much ginger you put in. 1 lb of ginger sounds like a LOT, as we used 2 or 3 ounces, but if it works, it works! If you bottle without adding sugar for carbonation, it's not going to carbonate.
Headspace is one of the most important factor in bottle bombs. Less is better not in as it it will not blow, but it will blow with less force. From experience a 2l plastic bottle with a mugfull of dry ice is quite equivalent to a massive firecracker. Now if you have 40 times less space (as in around a 50ml neck) for expansion it will be literally 40 times less energetic.
Then again when carbonating with a calculated amount of sugar/liquid, more headspace means less sugary liquid, thus less gas to fill the headspace, so that half filled bottle would have quite an issue reaching blow-out pressures.
Derica, I am with you on that. I love pickled ginger.
Your previous video on ginger beer is actually what got me to go try to brew a bit. But I’m just doing really basic things right now to learn the process.
On an aside. Not sure if you have figured it out/been told or discovered. The reason why you don’t want to seal a partially full bottle of carbonated liquid is not because it has a higher pressure. The pressure will be slightly lower or the same as a full bottle. It’s because you’ll have far more co2 as a gas than a full bottle will. The expansion of the gas , because there is far more gas due to volume available in a partially full bottle , will cause a more energetic explosion if the bottle fails. CO2 dissolved in solution can outgas through nucleation however that process is much slower than gas expansion which is why a full bottle will still be super messy but probably not as energetic of an explosion. How do I know this? I discussed it with a coworker that designs pressure vessels for space vehicles (fuel tanks) that rely on gas pressurization to keep the fuel at intake points. Not sure how yeast behavior under different conditions may affect this but the above is certainly a prime consideration. The full bottle may actually see higher pressures overall because you have less space to put more co2 and since you can dissolve far more co2 by mass into water the difference is likely very very low.
Lesson: control your carbonation process, use only bottles designed for carbonation, inspect the bottles before use. any signs of chips, scratches, deformations or bubbles don’t use the bottle for carbonated beverages.
A little wordy above But in short , a partially filled bottle is no more likely to explode than a full bottle but a partially filled bottle will explode with a lot more energy than a full bottle. If you are using good bottles designed for carbonation then a partial bottle will be fine.
@@DavidJones-uh9rg Or even shorter, more trapped gas equals a potentially bigger explosion
Thank you both! I will try to brew my first ginger beer the next week. I have one question, can I use hops for bitterness, flavor and aroma?
Thanks again!
If you like. We have not made one that way
I've made this twice, the wife loved it. the 1st time it had an intense ginger taste. It would warm you up. just made it again. My wife informed me a couple weeks ago she was down to her last bottle. This time around the ginger is not as intense. I can only think of a couple possible differences. The 1st time it was on primary ferment almost 4 weeks. I didn't have time to rack and bottle it tight when it was done. This time I was able to get it racked and bottled in 2 weeks time. She likes the more intense ginger better. I'm wondering does the more intense flavor come from being on the primary longer or was it a larger hand of ginger. I didn't weigh either so I'm not sure, any thoughts? Love your videos, Both of you are what got me into homebrewing Thank you.
Different amounts of ginger will vary the flavor.
I love ginger beer.... always good to see an updated method.
Hope you enjoy
I keep a few small soda bottles around, like 7 or 8 oz ones, and that's where I put whatever product doesn't fit in the larger bottles I'm using.
Have you tried sweetening with sugar and then burping the bottles for a few days? Maybe then you can refrigerate it and have a sweet carbonated beverage.
Dangerous. Skip one day or not let enough and they could explode. The fridge won't stop fermentation either.
Do you have an updated quantity of carbonation sugar for a gallon of liquid? It seems like you needed a lot more fizz.
We started using 42g/gallon recently but that was not why it had less carbonation. It either needed more time or the yeast were just done.
I've just started my first brew/fermentation ever 2 weeks ago (Hydromel) based on another video and was thinking of starting a Ginger beer one while sanitizing the stuff for the next step with the hydromel.... anyway... all that to say, that video just arrived on time!!!! I'm looking forward to the weekend : D Thanks a lot for teaching and entertaining us at the same time! You guys are awesome!!!
Best of luck!
I made a honey maple mead and it came out bone dry nearly undrinkable. I tried to carbonate it but either it wasn't enough sugar or the existing yeast didn't wanna do it. But man after 5 months the fracton of carbonation i got and maybe the added unfermented sugar intended for carbonation made it taste fantastic. I do wish more carbonation stuck.
We are making your new Ginger Beer and am wondering if tannins from the ginger skin is sufficient or if you would ever consider using wine tannin on your next Ginger Beer brew. Not sure if tannins are important in a beer like brew. Thanks.
I don't really add tannins to a ginger beer, but you can if you prefer.
Thank you for this updated recipe and process. You guys were my first home brewing teachers and your original ginger beer video was the very first brew I've ever created. I will definitely get a big batch of this going soon. Question, as I didn't see it listed in the description and I was just curious. Could you tell me how big your food processor container is. That's large and I would love to have something that big for myself. Thank you again.
It's this one: amzn.to/4bFIwBW. It's an attachment for the vitamix.
Thanks for all the great content guys. Been watching for awhile, finally subscribed.
Finally?? Jk, welcome.
I just made this and it turned out pretty well. I did think I had a stuck fermentation for a bit and suspected it was all the acid from the lemon juice. That made me wonder, what if the lemon juice were added during secondary?
I know it will throw of gravity, but if I’m willing to accept that do you think there are any other downsides?
We have had a lot of people try it both ways. I don't think the small amount of lemon juice can cause a stall really.
@@CitySteadingBrews ah, makes sense, thanks for the response!
Hi, I was wondering, when using teabags for tannin extraction, is there a reason you guys brew the tea, then put in the hot tea? My immediate thought was that you could cut open the tea bag and put those leafy contents directly into the primary fermentation. Is there a reason to not do that?
Control of extraction. If left too long it will become bitter.
Lovely video, I usually wait at least 4 weeks for carbonation, so maybe try again after another couple of weeks. I'm going to try this recipe for sure.
Not a bad idea.
Love this remake. Vernors is my favorite ginger soda. I’m wondering what gives it that unique flavor and could it be reproduced in alcoholic form?
Sorry… never had that one.
@@CitySteadingBrews Might be more of a Midwest thing.
Instead of a bag, have you used the Rumble Jar to hold stuff yet? It seems like it would be a good solution that wouldn't rise and block the airlock.
If the amount is small enough yep, totally works.
With something like ginger that likes to stall would amylase help breaking the ginger down? And help with even more flavor?
Like you say chemicals don't know intentions so the lemon would be broken down too. I am admitting that now.
Not sure amylase would do much here. It breaks down starches into sugars.
This is more of a question. I made ginger beer and let it go too long after bottling. It is still sweet but the first two I opened had a geyser effect. I lost most of the bottles. When I pasteurize the remaining bottles, how do I keep from losing my ginger beer? I put the second bottle in a bowl, but it still went all over the floor as well as in the bowl. TIA for any hints, either for this brew or the next.
The best you can do is chill them and consume sooner rather than later.
@@CitySteadingBrews Thank you for your instruction. The bottles (yes, more than one now) that I have chilled and opened are still sweet and bubbly. SO Good. I wish I'd written down the exact recipe so I could repeat it.
I use a lot of sugar to carbonate but burp my bottles once a day for 3 days the put in fridge, you also have to leave decent room for the head ( i like to leave the whole neck) doing this way too or it will fizz everywhere lol
Burping defeats the purpose of carbonating.
Why though?
@@CitySteadingBrews I also start mine with a bug too though so my process is slightly different
First off, you guys are great. thank you for all the videos, they have helped me with with bucket list over the last 2 years. On this video, can you use a soda streak machine to add carbonation instead of adding sugar to form the carbonization?, also, for sweetening, could you just add a tea spoon of sugar to a glass of any of the overly dry beverage and enjoy it without sweetening the entire batch?
I have not used a soda stream but heard some had success. As for sweetening in the glass? Always an option.
Hey Guys! thanks for sharing all these wonderful recipes.
Can i add boiled yeast in place of yeast nutrients? Thanks
Sure. It's not quite as effective but it helps.
As far as priming sugar (corn sugar), I use 3/4 cups for 5 gallons on almost every beer I brew.
That's a bit less than an ounce per gallon. We actually use 1.5 ounces per gallon now.
If we're worried about the error range for measuring ABV, skip the dunkable hydrometer. What I'm doing is getting a precise (and hopefully accurate) digital scale, and I'll be weighing a 10ml syringe full of the beverage with it. That will give a much more precise density reading than trying to eyeball one of those frustrating glass cylinders. (Mostly it's for my eyesight.)
It's much easier to reliably extract a specific volume of liquid, versus reading those darn things.
Also, it makes it feel like doing science.
Not sure that will be any more accurate really. Still an estimate of sugars as other things alter density too. But I haven't really looked into it either tbh.
@@CitySteadingBrews Yeah, it's still just measuring density, but it's hopefully removing one error multiplier.
Doesn't the heat of the boiling water kill the lactobacillus? or is it mainly yeast that does the fermenting? (new to all this, from the chilli sauce ferment world)
It's only yeast that does the fermenting in most all alcohol making.
I found the ginger flavor less strong when letting it ferment dry. Have you ever tried to use non-fermentable sugar to make a ginger syrup?
Have not done that, nope.
Mead is the only alcohol that I know I can have - the sulfites in other beverages mess with me - allergies. Love this content for it helps me make better brews - brews that are few and far between.
Anything homemade can eliminate sulfites and allergens!
@@CitySteadingBrews 💪🏼🎉
I have a question. Yes I do, I do.
I have heard that with the addition of brown sugar it will not fully ferment out and will result in a sweeter beer?
Not sure why that would happen. Brown sugar is just white sugar with a little molasses added. Both ferment.
Love what you're doing. Great vids.
Thanks!
For the carbonation fermentation I wonder if using a starter colony for the yeast would allow for healthier production of CO2 across the batch.
A starter colony? Do you mean making a starter of yeast just for carbonation? Might work, but honestly I think we just need to give it more time.
Doesn't poring boiling water on the raw ginger kill the good bacteria and the yeast? Please correct if I am wrong.
Yes, it does. Fermenting it does too. You actually only want the yeast to ferment it, not bacteria.
Hi. I plan to make a ginger beer and carbonate it in a keg. Do you guys think I could add all the sugar at once and then add a stabilizer to kill the yeast when I reach the right FG? Or is there going to be a problem that there is still plenty of unfermented sugars left in the brew? I plan to add the stabilizer a tad in advance since it might take a day or two for the yeast to die, and the OG will drop during that time?
The reason I want to add all the sugar in the start is to further avoid unnecessary oxidation…
We never use stabilizers. Oxidation is almost a non issue in reality. It just about never happens.
I love watching you guys ..great work
Thank you!
Can you just put enough sugar to activate the fermentation...like a tbsp and the rest like with allulose or monk fruit to sweeten?
That's what we did.
Question for Derica. Would you describe the off aroma as a sulfur smell? I made a batch of non alcoholic ginger beer in a 2 liter bottle using bakers yeast, and it took on a sulfur smell. Searching online it seems to be a common problem with ginger beers. There seems to be varying opinions about what causes it, but I couldn't really get a feel for a consensus.
It was not sulfur.
That is often caused by a lack of aeration at the start of the fermentation.
@@CitySteadingBrews thanks for the quick reply! I've never done any home brewing, but I think Ginger beer would make a good first project. Thanks for the informative videos!
U could also heat your container to acclimate it to the hot or cold liquid so it won’t break