bacchus
Active Member
BUT DON'T GIVE UP!
After 32 years on this planet I've learnt that, and thanks to the Interweb you can find places like this and hopefully get some help in achieving what was in your head when you first struck upon the idea.
I'm in North Lincolnshire, am a big fan of food cooking and eating, I really wanted to brew as well, I'm currently living somewhere with 5 fruit trees (3 apple (2 cooking 1 desert), 1 plum and 1 pear) all mature and fruitful. After years of wasting the fruit each and every year I thought this year I'd put it to good use and brew the little devils.
No experience what so ever, no idea, my wife's done some pack brewing in the past, but nothing serious. I thought before I wasted the whole crop by inexperience this year, I'd try a few practice batches, which is where the Ginger Beer came from.
I bought from biggerjugs.co.uk, bungs, buckets, airlocks, my neighbour has about 80 demijohns which he leant me 4. I made up a recipe of 2 gallons of ginger beer (ginger root, sugar, cream of tartar, lemon rind and juice) with a 5g pack of Young's Ale Yeast I bought from eBay.
1st observation - no bubbling. I was using a 33lt fermenting bin with airlock, so I thought maybe as I was only making 2 Gallons of liquid, perhaps there wasn't enough pressure build up. It was in a back room where sunlight doesn't ever touch bar first thing, the temp would of been a steady 17-20 degrees C
After 8-10 days I decanted the bin brew into 2 demijohns for a further week, still no bubbles.
I put the demijohn brew into 2 lt pop bottles with a small spoon of sugar to hopefully fizz it up. Although there was some firmness to the bottles for the 48hrs I left them, when I opened them - no fizz.
I did worry that there was no fermentation which had taken place, but after a pint and a half, I did notice a certain alcoholic buzz, so there's something there.
I want to try to make something again, just to try and iron out some of my mistakes and make something more palatable. I can try the Ginger Beer again, or I thought about some Dandelion and Burdock. I found a recipe on Channel 4 - River Cottage, but it just says "yeast".
Can someone advise some next steps. Should I make the ginger beer again, more volume than 2 Gallons, different yeast/ingredients. Should I try the D&B - which yeast should I use?
At this early stage, I don't mind what I make, it's all in preparation for this Autumn and the apples and pears, so this is all a learning curve for me now - any advice would be MUCH appreciated.
Thanks!
After 32 years on this planet I've learnt that, and thanks to the Interweb you can find places like this and hopefully get some help in achieving what was in your head when you first struck upon the idea.
I'm in North Lincolnshire, am a big fan of food cooking and eating, I really wanted to brew as well, I'm currently living somewhere with 5 fruit trees (3 apple (2 cooking 1 desert), 1 plum and 1 pear) all mature and fruitful. After years of wasting the fruit each and every year I thought this year I'd put it to good use and brew the little devils.
No experience what so ever, no idea, my wife's done some pack brewing in the past, but nothing serious. I thought before I wasted the whole crop by inexperience this year, I'd try a few practice batches, which is where the Ginger Beer came from.
I bought from biggerjugs.co.uk, bungs, buckets, airlocks, my neighbour has about 80 demijohns which he leant me 4. I made up a recipe of 2 gallons of ginger beer (ginger root, sugar, cream of tartar, lemon rind and juice) with a 5g pack of Young's Ale Yeast I bought from eBay.
1st observation - no bubbling. I was using a 33lt fermenting bin with airlock, so I thought maybe as I was only making 2 Gallons of liquid, perhaps there wasn't enough pressure build up. It was in a back room where sunlight doesn't ever touch bar first thing, the temp would of been a steady 17-20 degrees C
After 8-10 days I decanted the bin brew into 2 demijohns for a further week, still no bubbles.
I put the demijohn brew into 2 lt pop bottles with a small spoon of sugar to hopefully fizz it up. Although there was some firmness to the bottles for the 48hrs I left them, when I opened them - no fizz.
I did worry that there was no fermentation which had taken place, but after a pint and a half, I did notice a certain alcoholic buzz, so there's something there.
I want to try to make something again, just to try and iron out some of my mistakes and make something more palatable. I can try the Ginger Beer again, or I thought about some Dandelion and Burdock. I found a recipe on Channel 4 - River Cottage, but it just says "yeast".
Can someone advise some next steps. Should I make the ginger beer again, more volume than 2 Gallons, different yeast/ingredients. Should I try the D&B - which yeast should I use?
At this early stage, I don't mind what I make, it's all in preparation for this Autumn and the apples and pears, so this is all a learning curve for me now - any advice would be MUCH appreciated.
Thanks!
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hey, I'm on holiday!
