Right, FINALLY got my first ginger beer on the go. I've read through the whole thread and this post is for any other newbies who might have skimmed.
The recipe I used was:
2 kg root ginger (grated, bit of a chore but not too punishing)
Zest and fruit of 3 oranges (bitter pith removed, this is optional)
1 tsp cream of tartar
4 tsps glycerine 4 tsps yeast nutrient
4 tsps Youngs wine yeast
3kg white household sugar (recipe says 2.5 kg biut I'm hoping for a potent brew)
That's it, real simple. Didn't use limes or lemons as some people have reported sharp or bitter flavours and everyone agrees that this brew is dry enough without any extra. Can always add a wedge of lime at the drinking stage.
I used a potato peeler to peel the zest from the oranges - works surprisingly well. I was then able to easily remove the thick layer of pith. Last year I made an orange and almond cake with whole pulped oranges and the cake had an unpleasant bitter, 'soapy' twang.
I used wine yeast because I have a tub of it but only one sachet of champagne yeast. Didn't want to waste that if I made a mistake (nearly did!) and I'll use it in the next batch if this one goes ok.
I hydrated it first. Well, partly. After 20 minutes half the granules were still on the bottom of the glass and I need to get finished so I gently swirled the contents and poured into the fv. Should be fine, most of the lads have dry-pitched.
The Young's instructions call for 1 heaped tsp per gallon which seems a lot; could it be that they just want us to buy more? :hmm:
The mistake was that I pitched at too high a temperature. Ideally the wort (or 'must' should be somewhere between 20 - 25 degrees,. I had topped up to 23 litres with cold tap, but hadn't taken into account the extent to whivch this was warmed by the boiled ginger mixture and then the boiled sugar water. Only after I'd pitched did I realize. The temperature was just over 30 - that's 90 Fahrenheit!
But after some googling it seems that I should be ok. Apparently that temperature will accelerate the fermentation process and may, if I'm unlucky, produce some 'off' flavours, but won't kill the yeast. Phew!
The OG was 1050 which disappointed me at first, but then I remembered that the fermentables is just pure suagr which, unlike the malt used to brew beer,should ferment out almost totally, so the FG should be low enough to give me what I'm after. Fingers crossed..
The fv is chock full of ginger and orange bits and does indeed look like it might stop the brew from coming through the tap - just have to cross that bridge when I get to it. Will update when the time comes.
Good luck with yours...
