Origin: British Period: Traditional
Spruce beer was once a very popular beer and was brewed in large quantities by the British army. The following recipe is derived from the Journal of General Jeffrey Amherst (1717-1797), Governor-General of British North America.
Original Recipe
Take 7 Pounds of good spruce & boil it well till the bark peels off, then take the spruce out & put three Gallons of Molasses to the Liquor & and boil it again, scum it well as it boils, then take it out the kettle & put it into a cooler, boil the remained of the water sufficient for a Barrel of thirty Gallons, if the kettle is not large enough to boil it together, when milkwarm in the Cooler put a pint of Yest into it and mix well. Then put it into a Barrel and let it work for two or three days, keep filling it up as it works out. When done working, bung it up with a Tent Peg in the Barrel to give it vent every now and then. It may be used in up to two or three days after. If wanted to be bottled it should stand a fortnight in the Cask. It will keep a great while.
Modern Redaction:
Ingredients:
10l of unchlorinated water
25g hops
40g dried, bruised, ginger root
200g fresh, young, spruce tips
1.5l black treacle (molasses)
30g brewer's yeast
Method:
Preparation
Bruise the ginger and spruce tips in a mortar then place in a pot along with the hops, cover with the water and gradually bring to a boil. Continue boiling until the hops sink to the bottom of the pan. Strain into a larger pot then add the molasses and allow to cool to lukewarm.
When the mixture has cooled to about 40°C add the yeast and stir to combine. Cover the pot with a cloth and place in a warm draft-free spot to prove for 48 hours. After this time pour the mixture into clean bottles to about 1.5 cm of the top. Cap the bottles and place these on their sides in a warm and draft-free spot.
The spruce beer will be ready to drink in about 10 days, but will keep quite well for an entire summer. As a variant, you can omit the hops and double the quantity of spruce tips.
