Ginger Ale advice required please..

[finnbarr70]

Hello all,

I'm in the planning stages of making my first alcoholic ginger ale.

I plan to base the ale loosely on Exmoor Gold from GW's book, with the addition of fresh ginger.

I plan to make a 23 ltr brew length, and have approximately 500g of ginger to add.

My main question is when do people recommend adding the grated ginger? At what point during the boil?

I've heard that it is better to freeze the ginger first as it then grates easier, does anybody have any experience of this?

I have the fresh ginger now, but won't be having a brew day for another 3 or 4 weeks, could I peel and freeze the ginger now? I've no previous experience of freezing ginger or how long it will keep for unfrozen.

Any other tips would also be greatly appreciated, thanks in advance.

Neil

[Matt12398]

Are you really talking ginger ale here or are you actually talking about ale flavoured with ginger?

[Dunk]

I'm interested I doing a bit of this too. There was an interesting pod cast on the brewing network but I can't seem to re-listen to it. I wouldn't boil it for long, I think you would want the punchy spice of fresh ginger. Maybe right at the end to sterilise for a minute or two?

Are you planning to hop the beer or go ginger only?

Peel and freeze a little bit of the ginger and see how it looks in week or so maybe? unpeeled it should keep well for that long and if the freezing goes well you can do the rest later

[finnbarr70]

Thanks for the replies!

Answering both replies..

I'm planning to make an ale flavoured with ginger.

My thoughts were a simple recipe, just using pale malt, bittering and aroma hops, similar to the Exmoor Gold recipe in Graham Wheelers book, dependent on what hops I have in at the time.
I may pass on the post boil hops, and just use the ginger instead.

I was just seeing if anyone out there had actually had a crack at a similar ale, and could pass on some advice.

Thanks

Neil

[TC2642]

I made a ginger ale quite a while back, 500gms of ginger is quite a lot though. I bittered to around 20-30IBU then added 30gms of ginger to the boil, 30gms at 60mins and 30gms at 10mins for 25ltrs. Also added 150gms of crystal and the same for wheat to add colour and head retention. Came up with a nice 4% ginger ale, It was best drunk within a month since the ginger faded quite quickly.

[Maltmaniac]

Here is a Ginger flavoured ale I did last year, not too bad and it's not too gingery and the longer it's aged the better it seems to have become.

Ginger Beer (46L)

Date:

Gyle Number:

Fermentable Colour lb: oz Grams Ratio
Pale Malt 5 EBC 8 lbs. 13.0 oz 4000 grams 49.4%
Lager Malt 2.5 EBC 8 lbs. 13.0 oz 4000 grams 49.4%
Crystal Malt 130 EBC 0 lbs. 3.5 oz 100 grams 1.2%


Hop Variety Type Alpha Time lb: oz grams Ratio
Golding Whole 5 % 90 mins 0 lbs. 3.5 oz 100 grams 12.5%
Root Ginger Whole 0 % 10 mins 1 lbs. 8.6 oz 700 grams 87.5%


Final Volume: 46 Litres
Original Gravity: 1.040
Final Gravity: 1.009
Alcohol Content: 4% ABV
Total Liquor: 61.7 Litres
Mash Liquor: 20.3 Litres
Mash Efficiency: 75 %
Bitterness: 29 EBU
Colour: 7 EBC

It really is a matter of taste with the ginger, but this one has went down really well with a lot of tasters. There are suggestions on the forums for this type of brew. If I do it again I'm going to up the ginger to see if it adds anything long term.

[TC2642]

Fair bit of ginger there! What was the taste like at three weeks with that brew, overpowering or ok?

[Maltmaniac]

It was fine, it's surprising just how much ginger is needed to give it a hit. Three weeks in it was nice but improved with age. Still refreshing and ginger tasting a year down the line although I might mash at a higher temp next time to give it a bit more body.

[floydmeddler]

I've used ginger quite a few times now. In fact I'm drinking this at the min: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=58267&hilit=+ginger+spice

So my advice is to add a jar of stem ginger to fermenter after primary ferment is over. Whizz it up and boil for 5 mins then add. One jar will give you a fantastic ginger hit.

[Maltmaniac]

Yup those jars pack quite a wallop and I wish I'd had on hand when doing mine. Seems potent compared to the fresh root ginger and has real potential to liven it up. It's just so nice and refreshing and sharp when chilled.

[Maltmaniac]

Having looked at that recipe I think I'll try that for my next ginger excursion. Got my taste buds tingling just by reading about it.

[finnbarr70]

Again,

Thanks for the replies in response to my original post.

I am now finalising my recipe, taking on board the comments and advice given.

Cheers, and happy brewing!

Neil

[Rick_UK]

I would recommed doing a basic light wit but adding ginger instead of orange peel at t-10. I personally think this style lends itself to fruit and spice additions better than an English ale recipe. Mash higher if you want it sweeter.

Rick

[Addled Jim]

I cook a lot, I buy a kg of ginger at a time and keep in the freezer for months. I've found if you run it under a tap for 10 seconds prior to grating it thaws it slightly and grating is much easier
Wouldn't have thought peeling is necessary, I don't bother, by the time its grated it disappears into the pile - apparently there is more concentration of flavour in the skin anyway

[finnbarr70]

Hi again,

Just as a follow up I thought I'd share my final recipe...

GINGER 497

Pale Malt 4600 g
Fresh Grated Ginger 497 g (Added last 10 mins of boil)

Bittering Hop Challenger 7.5% Alpha 90 mins 38 g
Aroma Hop Golding 6.0% Alpha 10 mins 16 g
Post Boil Styrian Golding 3.3% Alpha 9 g

36 EBU , 8 EBC, 23 Litres Brew Length, Strike Temp 76 deg C, Mash Temp was 66.5 deg C

Yeast: Gervin English Ale Yeast

Predicted: OG 1.045, FG 1.010, 4.5% ABV
Actual: OG 1.044, FG 1.008, 4.7% ABV

I put half into bottles to see whether the ginger increases or fades over time, and had the other half from the cask.

Conclusion: Yes, it turned out alright! There was a nice level of 'gingeryness' to it, but not over powering, and it smelt gorgeous. I'd definitely make another batch in the future.

Thanks to those that gave me advice when I originally requested it, Happy Brewing!