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Author Topic: Newer brewer looking for input on process  (Read 625 times)

Offline Lyam

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Newer brewer looking for input on process
« on: September 12, 2022, 04:02:18 pm »
Hi, I am new to home brewing, thought Id try my hand at a old school fermented ginger beer. Im about halfway through the process and was looking for some tips or guidance on how I plan to proceed.

So far, I made my ginger bug (like a scoby for kombucha, or starter for bread) earlier last week, and this Saturday I boiled ginger, spices, lemon juice and common white sugar with purified water, let cool to about 90F, and then mixed in my bug. My hydrometer showed 12% potential ABV (@60F). I have batch now fermenting to two glass 1gal jars with screw tops and air locks.

Going forward I want to bottle half as is, and boil the other half to remove alcohol so my pregnant wife and nephews can enjoy. Obviously I will have to inject CO2 in the non alchohol batch, but I would like to bottle ferment the normal batch to create natural carbonation.
I also want the finished product to be fairly sweet, not like soda mind you, but more like a dessert wine, so I was planning on dosing with sugar again before bottling to get the right balance.
What I am fuzzy on is how to dose the normal batch in a way that it recarbonates without blowing up or converting all the sugar into more alcohol, and retains the sweetness.
Thanks in advance


Offline tommymorris

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Re: Newer brewer looking for input on process
« Reply #1 on: September 12, 2022, 04:58:56 pm »
Backsweetening with anything that yeast eat before bottling will be a problem. The yeast will consume that sugar and over carb your Ginger Beer. It also would not be sweet afterwards.

Could you backsweeten with an artificial sweetener? Erythritol? Stevia?

Offline Drewch

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Re: Newer brewer looking for input on process
« Reply #2 on: September 13, 2022, 06:30:04 am »
If you want the alcoholic batch to be fairly sweet, your best bet may be to stabilize (with sulfite / sorbate) and force carb it, too.

Controlling residual sweetness with bottle conditioning is going to be challenging.
The Other Drew

Home fermentations since 2019.

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