Ginger Beer

Needed to brew, throwing a quick one together:

25 OZS peeled and chopped ginger root
15 ozs chopped golden raisins
6 fresh lemons, pulped
6lbs table sugar
300ml of wyeast 1056

expected og of 1.055 (not counting raisins)

boil 30 mins, cool, pitch

Have you made this one before ?

Yea, I made in 2006 but adding the raisins to the bottle was a baaaaad idea .

Almost all the bottles ended up blowing, but the bit I tasted was really good. Here are the notes from that batch:

3/7/2006

poured 4cups hot water over 4 cups sugar
added 3 quarts cold water
added 3/4 cup cut up ginger
juice of 4 lemons
1/2 cut up raisins

og was 1.072
added 3/4 quart pilsner yeast, think it was yeast from billy goat bock brew.


3/20/2006

primed with 1/4 cup sugar and added 4 raisins to each bottle.
racked off trub and bottled up 12 12oz bottles.
fg was 1.010 (7.8% abv)

4/05 or so
2 bottles blew up, I cracked each cap a little and let some gush out. moved to cooler area.
They continued to blow.

ps, my OG on this one was 1.062. So I've got that going for me....

sounds cool, and pretty simple too! I've never brewed with ginger, I've had some ginger beers that were WAY over the top and had a real harsh bite to it, so I kinda steered away. Love to try it though, as long as it doesnt explode in my hands

LOL, if I hand it to you and run you may want to find another sucker to open for you! I'll bring some around when its done, pretty sure I am going to keg this one (and skip the raisin finish )

I assume you'd never want to use peel of the lemon, only the zest and/or the flesh? I'm wondering out loud because this sounds like a really good summer batch.

I think it would be just too bitter to use. I treat it like cooking and only use the zest and/or pulp. I should have some ready for the next meeting, I'll bring some in.

Soooo, I just kegged this guy up and must admit that I was pleasantly surprised! I didn't expect it to be bad but I didn't think it would be that good, even though it was warm and uncarbed. I was shocked to see the FG finished like a wine at .995. That means the ABV is 8.2%. The ginger is there but not overpowering by any means and the lemon is very much in the background. I can't detect any raisin, probably just fermented out.

That shit, is dangerous! I just tried the sample you left us, and my god, I didn't know it was 8 ish % until I took a nap and woke up! The taste is great, and highly too drinkable, I almost did a 7 hour boil again! Next time I have a fermenter open I'm giving this a shot, it was damn delicious sir. The Ginger had a great bite, and the lemon was subtle but still noticeable. Good work

LOL, Thanks! I still haven't tried a carbed sample yet cause I just got my c02 filled. I thought the hydro sample when I kegged tasted good, glad it tasted OK when carbed!