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hi everyone. I put a batch of this down and it's about ready to bottle. Just a quick question when I normally bottle I use the tap at the bottom. Will this get blocked should I syphon it from the top . Should I stir all the ginger to get it in the bottles. Thanks
 
This is straight from the original post for those wanting the recipe:

Because this recipe is a highly modified kit recipe, the details are as follows:

- 1 x Morgans Ginger Beer Kit
- 1 x 500g Fresh ginger
- 1 x 250g DARK Brown Sugar
- 1 x 1kg dextrose
- 1 x 750ml Buderum Ginger Refresher Cordial
- 1 x fresh chilli (sliced thinly with the seeds in)
- ~600ml Sweet Vermouth
- ~600ml Sweet Sherry
- ~30ml Lochan Ora

Grate the ginger and soaked in a bowl with the Sweet Sherry, Sweet Vermouth and Lochan Ora for 24 hours. Combined the GB kit, brown sugar, dex and refresher cordial in 3L boiling water in the fermenter and stirred, then added the grated ginger soak (liquid and all), added the sliced chilli and topped up to 23L. Leave for approx. 3 weeks (keeping at a moderate temp of ~20 degrees Celsius) - FG – 0.996 Alc/Vol : 7.0% (Based on an OG of 1.048)

Use the kit yeast and dry enzyme, or alternatively us US-05
 
Sounds great.
I have just brewed a 20 litre batch which has turned out poorly & I am not really sure why.
Based on Coopers 1.7Kg tin light amber malt extract with matodextrin, dextrose & brown sugar (50% dark brown, 50% crystal brown(stuff you use in coffee).
I kegged & back sweetened with Bunderim Ginger Refresher. Also a 1.5 litre can of pear juice.
I used about 800 grams of fresh ginger which was vitamised ina blendr & boiled gently for 10 mins.
Although the sweetness is now to my wife's taste I don't think its near gingery enough.
Surprisingly the colour from the keg is more akin to a brown ale.
There is no infection.it just tastes somewhat inferior to the commercial product I hoped to beat.
ABV is about 4 -4.5%.
I am really disappointed but will try again based on the powderkeg recipe.
Does anyone else have failure experience?
 

Powderkeg GB

Specialty - Bière de Garde
Kit & Kilo
* * * * * 3 Votes

Brewer's Notes

Because this recipe is a highly modified kit recipe, the details are as follows:

- 1 x Morgans Ginger Beer Kit
- 1 x 500g Fresh ginger
- 1 x 250g DARK Brown Sugar
- 1 x 1kg dextrose
- 1 x 750ml Buderum Ginger Refresher Cordial
- 1 x fresh chilli (sliced thinly with the seeds in)
- ~600ml Sweet Vermouth
- ~600ml Sweet Sherry
- ~30ml Lochan Ora

Grate the ginger and soaked in a bowl with the Sweet Sherry, Sweet Vermouth and Lochan Ora for 24 hours. Combined the GB kit, brown sugar, dex and refresher cordial in 3L boiling water in the fermenter and stirred, then added the grated ginger soak (liquid and all), added the sliced chilli and topped up to 23L. Leave for approx. 3 weeks (keeping at a moderate temp of ~20 degrees Celsius) - FG – 0.996 Alc/Vol : 7.0% (Based on an OG of 1.048)

Use the kit yeast and dry enzyme, or alternatively us US-05.
23L Batch Size

Brew Details

  • Original Gravity 0 (calc)
  • Final Gravity 0 (calc)
  • Bitterness 0 IBU
  • Efficiency 0%
  • Alcohol 0%
  • Colour 0 EBC

Fermentation

  • Primary 21 days
  • Conditioning 6 days
Do you add the grated ginger into the fermenter ? As I see. Someone commenting that they did and regretting as it blocked up tap?
 
Put this recipe down last night, but my O.G. ended up being 1.034 not the 1.048 as predicted.

Used the 1kg of Dextrose and 250g of Dark Brown Sugar with 600ml of Sweet Vermouth and 600ml of Tawny Port as I didn't have any sherry.
All other ingredients were as per the recipe.

I used a gravity adjust calculator to work out what would be required to bring it up to the predicted OG, (https://www.thebrewlist.com/calculator/gravity-adjust ) and I got 1.89kg of Brown Sugar as the additional fermentable to add.
Does this sound right?
Needless to say I didn't mess about with the recipe and left it as is which if it ferments out to the predicted F.G. will give me a 5% ABV.

Any advice would be great!
 
Could there have been stratification of the liquid giving you a lower SG reading then the lower portion of the must?
 
Could there have been stratification of the liquid giving you a lower SG reading then the lower portion of the must?
It's possible I suppose. I did give it a damn good stir as I added the ingredients, but I did take the refract sample from the top of the must a couple of hours later when I went to pitch the yeast once it had cooled sufficiently.

Would it have separated so quickly?
 
Yeah it's possible. I had some epic stratification of an all grain brew I did on the weekend. Put it in the ferm fridge, 2 hours later it was like 2 distinct layers.
 
Weird. Oh well its fermenting it's guts out now.

Too late to take another accurate reading I suppose. Looks like the ABV will be a best guess. :rolleyes:
 
Weird. Oh well its fermenting it's guts out now.

Too late to take another accurate reading I suppose. Looks like the ABV will be a best guess. :rolleyes:
i followed the recipe exactly.
OG was 1030
i didn't know what to do as the recipe says 1048.
i thought the addition of the vermouth & sherry might bugger the OG reading, so i just let it run.
fermented out to 998.
so the abv will be about 4.7% (bottled) and not the 7%, so thats good.
took forever to stop fermenting, no airlock action to speak of in the last few days.
just crept down from 1005 very slowly.
maybe should have taken OG before throwing the ginger/vermouth/sherry mixture in.
did you use a refractor? probably wouldn't work correctly with the alcohol in there already?
anyway, bottled it 7 days ago, can't wait to try it.
had a little taste before bottling :)
 
i followed the recipe exactly.
OG was 1030
i didn't know what to do as the recipe says 1048.
i thought the addition of the vermouth & sherry might bugger the OG reading, so i just let it run.
fermented out to 998.
so the abv will be about 4.7% (bottled) and not the 7%, so thats good.
took forever to stop fermenting, no airlock action to speak of in the last few days.
just crept down from 1005 very slowly.
maybe should have taken OG before throwing the ginger/vermouth/sherry mixture in.
did you use a refractor? probably wouldn't work correctly with the alcohol in there already?
anyway, bottled it 7 days ago, can't wait to try it.
had a little taste before bottling :)
Mate I'm not a good reader. Didn't even clue that alcohol was added pre fermentation. Yes, alcohol will mess the reading if its via a refractometer. Hydrometer shouldn't affect it though.
 
did you use a refractor? probably wouldn't work correctly with the alcohol in there already?
anyway, bottled it 7 days ago, can't wait to try it.
had a little taste before bottling :)
I did use a refractometer, totally forgot that the readings would be influenced by the alcohol.

In 23L of water the 1200ml of 14% ABV fortified would have been pretty diluted though?

By the time I pitched the yeast it was about 10.30pm and using the refrac was easier than fiddling with a hydrometer.

Thwarted by my own laziness!
 
I don't use a hydrometer hahaha.
They are a ******* to read sometimes.
Not sure how I'd compensate for the alcohol in my original refrac reading since I'd need another pre alcohol addition for the calculator?
 
it wouldn't be the first (or last) thing to be affluenced by incohol ;)
isn't there some brix calculator stuff you can use?
anyway, the hydro was the only way i could tell it was still going, very very slowly.
i don't really like taking the lid off too much, but the only way was to plonk the hydro in.
i might get a tilt for xmas. oh, just seen the price
 
Yes, alcohol will mess the reading if its via a refractometer. Hydrometer shouldn't affect it though.

Alcohol in fact messes FG refractometer AND hydrometer readings - but not by enough to worry about !
 
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