Ginger beer has its roots in the Victorian ear, originating in Yorkshire, England, mid-18th century. Ginger beer is a delicious and spicy alcoholic beverage that can easily be prepared at home.
Ingredients:
Fresh grated ginger root
2 fresh lemons (juiced)
Sugar (to taste)
2½ cups of warm, filtered / mineral water (not too hot, it may kill the yeast)
1½ tsp. champagne yeast
Instructions:
1. Stir the yeast into the warm water until it fully dissolves.
2. Add a tablespoon of fresh, grated ginger, a tablespoon of sugar, the
lemon juice, and stir it all.
3. Pour into a clean glass jar (leave some room at the top) and cover it
with a clean, dry towel, then secure it over the jar with a rubber
band.
3. Place the jar in the warmest place in your house.
4. Add a tablespoon of grated ginger and a tablespoon of sugar every day
for about a week. Don’t forget to return the towel when you’re done.
After a week you should see small bubbles forming on the surface. You
can keep adding ginger at this stage if you want a stronger flavor.
5. You can now bottle the concoction. Make sure you are using clean,
plastic bottles, as glass bottles may explode from the fermentation
pressure. Boil enough water to fill each bottle ¾ of the way, then
dissolve sugar into the water until it’s very sweet, let it cool down
until it’s lukewarm.
6. Strain the ginger jar with a cheesecloth into a container and add
about a cup of the liquid into each clean bottle, then add the sugar
water until each bottle is ¾ full and stir. Remember, the yeast will
consume much of the sugar, so the result will not be as sweet as the
water.
Seal the bottles tightly and place back in the warmest spot in your
house. Squeeze the bottles once a day to see the compression rate. Once
the bottles are hard, unscrew the cap just enough to release small
amounts of pressure, but do not release all the pressure.
After about a week and a half, open up a bottle and taste it, if it’s
not fizzy enough for you, wait for 3-4 more days with the rest. You can
now add more lemon or sugar if you feel like it needs it, but be sure to
consume the bottle within 24 hours. Enjoy!