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Bit of a cliche just now but I thought I'd give it a go, I get a problems with my guts so maybe it'll help.

I've got a ginger beer culture started, that's 2 days old and bubbling away already, and I'm starting some water kefir when the grains arrive.

 

Anyone done all this stuff? Any hints or tips? Is it just a bollocks fad?

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I've got a milk kefir on the go, drink it strained every morning, then add milk to what's left in the strainer.

 

Wonderful stuff, would recommend it to anyone, certainly does the trick. Although it doesn't taste great, kind of like a slightly fizzy yoghurt.

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28 minutes ago, Craig_ said:

I've got a milk kefir on the go, drink it strained every morning, then add milk to what's left in the strainer.

 

Wonderful stuff, would recommend it to anyone, certainly does the trick. Although it doesn't taste great, kind of like a slightly fizzy yoghurt.

I wanted to try that too, but the thought of fizzy milk didn't really turn me on. If it's going to help the guts I'll probably give it a shot next though, then maybe a sourdough.

It seems pretty easy all this stuff, even from my limited experience it's obvious these things want to live

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Auld Reekin'
2 hours ago, Smithee said:

I wanted to try that too, but the thought of fizzy milk didn't really turn me on. If it's going to help the guts I'll probably give it a shot next though, then maybe a sourdough.

It seems pretty easy all this stuff, even from my limited experience it's obvious these things want to live

 

If you're talking about a sourdough culture for making bread with, they're fairly easy to start-up and keep going. Personally, I wouldn't say that sourdough bread is the easiest to make or become proficient in - loaves made with instant or fresh yeast tend to be more predictable and reliable - but they are certainly the most satisfying to make and eat once you get into the swing of them. They're the tastiest, tangiest, and probably the healthiest too.   :icon14:

 

I'm no expert and have made my fair share of barely-edible housebricks or frisbees, but get reasonably consistent results now and am happy to pass on any tips or advice I can if needed.

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2 hours ago, Normthebarman said:

I'm fermenting some beer but I get the feeling this is something different. 

 

Yeah and no, my ginger beer will probably end up around 6%, not much difference really except I'm trying to fix my guts not get hammered.

 

1 hour ago, Auld Reekin' said:

 

If you're talking about a sourdough culture for making bread with, they're fairly easy to start-up and keep going. Personally, I wouldn't say that sourdough bread is the easiest to make or become proficient in - loaves made with instant or fresh yeast tend to be more predictable and reliable - but they are certainly the most satisfying to make and eat once you get into the swing of them. They're the tastiest, tangiest, and probably the healthiest too.   :icon14:

 

I'm no expert and have made my fair share of barely-edible housebricks or frisbees, but get reasonably consistent results now and am happy to pass on any tips or advice I can if needed.

 

I'll probably ask one day, cheers 👍

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  • 2 weeks later...
Unknown user
On 20/05/2020 at 23:58, Auld Reekin' said:

 

If you're talking about a sourdough culture for making bread with, they're fairly easy to start-up and keep going. Personally, I wouldn't say that sourdough bread is the easiest to make or become proficient in - loaves made with instant or fresh yeast tend to be more predictable and reliable - but they are certainly the most satisfying to make and eat once you get into the swing of them. They're the tastiest, tangiest, and probably the healthiest too.   :icon14:

 

I'm no expert and have made my fair share of barely-edible housebricks or frisbees, but get reasonably consistent results now and am happy to pass on any tips or advice I can if needed.

 

I've been enjoying my sourdough starter but I think I've made a mistake, it got very acidic. I think I haven't been discarding enough so relatively it's not getting fed enough and it's built up acid as a result. 

Am I right in thinking that 2 or 3 feeds a day will bring it back? I read that you should use a 1:1:1 ratio of starter, flour and water when feeding, does that sound about right?

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Auld Reekin'
1 hour ago, Smithee said:

 

I've been enjoying my sourdough starter but I think I've made a mistake, it got very acidic. I think I haven't been discarding enough so relatively it's not getting fed enough and it's built up acid as a result. 

Am I right in thinking that 2 or 3 feeds a day will bring it back? I read that you should use a 1:1:1 ratio of starter, flour and water when feeding, does that sound about right?

 

How long has it been going for and have you actually tried making bread from it? If you've had it going for a couple of weeks and it's nice and active (i.e. bubbling away), I'd try making a loaf using it if you haven't already, reserving a little to feed and use as your next starter. I don't tend to discard any of my starter now, although I did when I was first making and feeding it, and just use most of it each time I make a loaf and then feed it again ready for next time.

 

If you're not at that stage yet but feel you want to reduce the acidity then it won't do any harm to discard a bit more than you've been doing and feed it more regularly. Unless you're in a big hurry for it to be ready to make bread with, I'd say that 2-3 times a day is probably more than is needed however. Once a day, or every couple of days maybe? 

 

Whatever ratio you use, you want it to be the consistency of a thick pancake batter once you've fed it. 1:1:1 might make it a bit runny - if so, you could just add a bit more flour however.

 

That's just my tuppence-worth though, and just what has worked for me. There's plenty of sourdough expertise available on the net, so you might be better looking there for the most reliable advice - good luck!

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12 minutes ago, Auld Reekin' said:

 

How long has it been going for and have you actually tried making bread from it? If you've had it going for a couple of weeks and it's nice and active (i.e. bubbling away), I'd try making a loaf using it if you haven't already, reserving a little to feed and use as your next starter. I don't tend to discard any of my starter now, although I did when I was first making and feeding it, and just use most of it each time I make a loaf and then feed it again ready for next time.

 

If you're not at that stage yet but feel you want to reduce the acidity then it won't do any harm to discard a bit more than you've been doing and feed it more regularly. Unless you're in a big hurry for it to be ready to make bread with, I'd say that 2-3 times a day is probably more than is needed however. Once a day, or every couple of days maybe? 

 

Whatever ratio you use, you want it to be the consistency of a thick pancake batter once you've fed it. 1:1:1 might make it a bit runny - if so, you could just add a bit more flour however.

 

That's just my tuppence-worth though, and just what has worked for me. There's plenty of sourdough expertise available on the net, so you might be better looking there for the most reliable advice - good luck!

Its 2 weeks old and very active. My bread making went basically well except I used too much starter so it collapsed a bit, and it was way too sour.

1:1:1 seems good, it doubles in size, acidity is dropping and it makes a batter that holds shape when you pour it out.

 

As it's been so acidic I've been frying my discard in olive oil with garlic and salt, finishing in the oven, it makes a smashing garlic bread type thing without needing to add lemon juice 

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Auld Reekin'
12 hours ago, Smithee said:

Its 2 weeks old and very active. My bread making went basically well except I used too much starter so it collapsed a bit, and it was way too sour.

1:1:1 seems good, it doubles in size, acidity is dropping and it makes a batter that holds shape when you pour it out.

 

As it's been so acidic I've been frying my discard in olive oil with garlic and salt, finishing in the oven, it makes a smashing garlic bread type thing without needing to add lemon juice 

 

OK. I've never had the problem of the starter being or becoming too sour, so I'm probably not the best person to try and help here. By the sounds of things, though, what you're doing is working and so you're best carrying-on doing it until the acidity level is as desired. Glad you're enjoying the bread-making anyway - it took me many months of trial and error and numerous failures to get to the level where almost all of the bread I make is of a reasonable and consistent quality, so you're doing well if you're getting good results already. (Maybe I should read recipes and guidance more carefully myself, and stick to the advice given more closely...?   :huh:   )

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Unknown user
3 hours ago, Auld Reekin' said:

 

OK. I've never had the problem of the starter being or becoming too sour, so I'm probably not the best person to try and help here. By the sounds of things, though, what you're doing is working and so you're best carrying-on doing it until the acidity level is as desired. Glad you're enjoying the bread-making anyway - it took me many months of trial and error and numerous failures to get to the level where almost all of the bread I make is of a reasonable and consistent quality, so you're doing well if you're getting good results already. (Maybe I should read recipes and guidance more carefully myself, and stick to the advice given more closely...?   :huh:   )

Experience is king mate, I'm well aware of being at the bottom of the learning curve!

 

I got lucky with the bread, I almost hit the bakers ratio by accident, just put too much starter in.

What would your normal recipe be?

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Auld Reekin'
3 hours ago, Smithee said:

Experience is king mate, I'm well aware of being at the bottom of the learning curve!

 

I got lucky with the bread, I almost hit the bakers ratio by accident, just put too much starter in.

What would your normal recipe be?

 

"Recipe" would be flattering it... :)  I keep around 60-70cl of sourdough starter (made from wholemeal rye flour and water) and use almost all of it each time I'm making a loaf, leaving a couple of tablespoons of it in the container. I then bring it back up to approximately the same volume by adding more wholemeal rye flour and water, until it's the consistency of a thick pancake-batter, and bung it back into the fridge. I only ever really "feed" it when I'm making another loaf.

 

I then put it in a bowl and stir in enough strong-white flour and water to approximately double the volume of the starter. Cover with a damp tea-towel or clingfilm and put somewhere warmish to activate (often overnight). When activated, I add enough flour 

(typically, I'll use mostly strong white, with smaller amounts of white rye, white spelt, malted granary flour, depending on what I have in the cupboard and how I feel - I find the dough much easier to work with if it has a high percentage of strong white flour in it) to form a dough - I do this by eye, I'm afraid - with a teaspoonful of salt.

 

I don't usually add any water at this stage, but sometimes do later if the dough is too dry. Other ingredients I'll use depending on availability and mood are: pinhead oatmeal, caraway / dill / aniseed seed, pumpkin and / or sunflower seeds, walnut or hazelnut pieces. 

 

Then I knead the dough for around 10-15 minutes, adding a bit more flour or water if I've got the initial amounts slightly wrong, then shape it and form it and put it in a floured proving-basket to rise. I try to catch it a little bit before it's fully risen as it tends to rise whilst baking more effectively than if you leave it until it's at maximum-rise before baking it. I then bake it in a pre-heated fan oven for 45 minutes, starting at 220c, reducing to 200c after 15 minutes, and finally down to 180c after half an hour.

 

I often suspect I'd be much better finding a really good recipe and following it to the letter, but that's not really my style...   :ermm:

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6 hours ago, Auld Reekin' said:

 

"Recipe" would be flattering it... :)  I keep around 60-70cl of sourdough starter (made from wholemeal rye flour and water) and use almost all of it each time I'm making a loaf, leaving a couple of tablespoons of it in the container. I then bring it back up to approximately the same volume by adding more wholemeal rye flour and water, until it's the consistency of a thick pancake-batter, and bung it back into the fridge. I only ever really "feed" it when I'm making another loaf.

 

I then put it in a bowl and stir in enough strong-white flour and water to approximately double the volume of the starter. Cover with a damp tea-towel or clingfilm and put somewhere warmish to activate (often overnight). When activated, I add enough flour 

(typically, I'll use mostly strong white, with smaller amounts of white rye, white spelt, malted granary flour, depending on what I have in the cupboard and how I feel - I find the dough much easier to work with if it has a high percentage of strong white flour in it) to form a dough - I do this by eye, I'm afraid - with a teaspoonful of salt.

 

I don't usually add any water at this stage, but sometimes do later if the dough is too dry. Other ingredients I'll use depending on availability and mood are: pinhead oatmeal, caraway / dill / aniseed seed, pumpkin and / or sunflower seeds, walnut or hazelnut pieces. 

 

Then I knead the dough for around 10-15 minutes, adding a bit more flour or water if I've got the initial amounts slightly wrong, then shape it and form it and put it in a floured proving-basket to rise. I try to catch it a little bit before it's fully risen as it tends to rise whilst baking more effectively than if you leave it until it's at maximum-rise before baking it. I then bake it in a pre-heated fan oven for 45 minutes, starting at 220c, reducing to 200c after 15 minutes, and finally down to 180c after half an hour.

 

I often suspect I'd be much better finding a really good recipe and following it to the letter, but that's not really my style...   :ermm:

Quality post, cheers.

I think when you have a feel for it the recipes not important, you can see when something's wrong and know how to react.

It's when you're clueless and flailing about in the dark you need more guidance.

 

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Captain Slog

For the ginger beer, have you got a hydrometer?  I know its a bit late now, but after a week and a half if you've got a reading of 0f 1010 ish it should be fermented and ready for bottling for secondary fermenting.  Glad to hear it was bubbling away, that all stops after a few days though.

 

In fact, thats been two weeks, has it just about settled - how did it turn out?  Might give ginger beer a bash myself.

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5 hours ago, Captain Slog said:

For the ginger beer, have you got a hydrometer?  I know its a bit late now, but after a week and a half if you've got a reading of 0f 1010 ish it should be fermented and ready for bottling for secondary fermenting.  Glad to hear it was bubbling away, that all stops after a few days though.

 

In fact, thats been two weeks, has it just about settled - how did it turn out?  Might give ginger beer a bash myself.

I was away to bottle it when I had a thought and put an ad on Facebook, ended up with a top tap pressure keg for 6 quid. It's in there now, 1 week into second fermentation. 

The culture was in fantastic nick, absolutely hoaching with life, but I've over diluted it so it'll probably be a bit subtle. I'll give it another week, draw some off and see how it goes - really looking forward to it though!

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Captain Slog
7 hours ago, Smithee said:

I was away to bottle it when I had a thought and put an ad on Facebook, ended up with a top tap pressure keg for 6 quid. It's in there now, 1 week into second fermentation. 

The culture was in fantastic nick, absolutely hoaching with life, but I've over diluted it so it'll probably be a bit subtle. I'll give it another week, draw some off and see how it goes - really looking forward to it though!

You got me looking forward to it now, and this weathers the perfect temperature for fermenting   And if you're a week into secondary, start to think somewhere cool to settle and clear a bit.  What ingredients did you use may I ask?

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1 minute ago, Captain Slog said:

You got me looking forward to it now, and this weathers the perfect temperature for fermenting   And if you're a week into secondary, start to think somewhere cool to settle and clear a bit.  What ingredients did you use may I ask?

I bowed to my Mrs and sweetened it with erythritol, non fermenting sugar, but I really didn't want to mess with the taste at all so it's just water, sugars and wee bubbly Ginge.

 

TBH I regret doing that now, I wish I'd done pineapple and turmeric or something if I had to flavour it. I really wish I hadn't flavoured it at all, but hey ho!

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4 hours ago, Captain Slog said:

You got me looking forward to it now, and this weathers the perfect temperature for fermenting   And if you're a week into secondary, start to think somewhere cool to settle and clear a bit.  What ingredients did you use may I ask?

 

This got me thinking, I know it's got limited life once it hits air, but do you think I could get away with bottling a few at a time to refrigerate and leave the rest in the keg until needed?

 

On a separate note I've been disappointed in my kefir water, it's just left me with slightly tangy sugar water. Until now!

I think they just needed time to settle in, I drew some off yesterday, put it in a bottle with some ginger and today it's gorgeous, lightly fizzy and lovely chilled. 

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hughesie27

I know this isn't the focus of the thread but I'm going to be starting my first beer brew over the next few days. Got all the gear just waiting on the ingredients.

 

Will need to source some bottles too!

 

Should have about 45 pints by the end of it which on the first run costs about £2.40 a pint due to having to buy all the equipment. There on out it should only cost about 60p a pint.

Edited by hughesie27
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6 minutes ago, hughesie27 said:

I know this isn't the focus of the thread but I'm going to be starting my first beer brew over the next few days. Got all the gear just waiting on the ingredients.

 

Will need to source some bottles too!

 

Should have about 45 pints by the end of it which on the first run costs about £2.40 a pint due to having to buy all the equipment. There on out it should only cost about 60p a pint.

Bang on topic if you ask me, I'll be trying that myself sooner or later now I've got the keg. Bottles are pretty cheap on Amazon, there's a brew shop in Edinburgh that looks good too.

 

What are you brewing, what's your plan?

 

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Bull's-eye

Omeprazole is much easier to obtain and will sort out the stomach problems. 

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hughesie27
43 minutes ago, Smithee said:

Bang on topic if you ask me, I'll be trying that myself sooner or later now I've got the keg. Bottles are pretty cheap on Amazon, there's a brew shop in Edinburgh that looks good too.

 

What are you brewing, what's your plan?

 

A few of us have decided to do it over the next couple of months with different flavour mixes. Just sticking to the basic wort mix first time round then I might go into more fancy stuff or even wines after that.

 

https://brew2bottle.co.uk/products/coopers-40-pint-beer-kit-draught-ale?utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google Shopping&gclid=CjwKCAjw2uf2BRBpEiwA31VZj7RVU7uR8XDRAg6RZuTTMQLTt6JIvOkTUz3ZLmhbCYUK6Gg1Wpn2XhoCkjYQAvD_BwE

 

Gone with this one first. Quite likes Coopers when I was in Australia. They also do 3 different types of "beer enhancer" which is a substitute for using sugar in the first fermentation. 

 

Should be ready to drink in 3 or 4 weeks but the longer you keep it in the bottle the better so I'll not finish it off till end of July. Other than the obligatory 2 or 3 bottles to taste the progress. 

 

Plenty other flavours to try on that website.

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34 minutes ago, hughesie27 said:

A few of us have decided to do it over the next couple of months with different flavour mixes. Just sticking to the basic wort mix first time round then I might go into more fancy stuff or even wines after that.

 

https://brew2bottle.co.uk/products/coopers-40-pint-beer-kit-draught-ale?utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google Shopping&gclid=CjwKCAjw2uf2BRBpEiwA31VZj7RVU7uR8XDRAg6RZuTTMQLTt6JIvOkTUz3ZLmhbCYUK6Gg1Wpn2XhoCkjYQAvD_BwE

 

Gone with this one first. Quite likes Coopers when I was in Australia. They also do 3 different types of "beer enhancer" which is a substitute for using sugar in the first fermentation. 

 

Should be ready to drink in 3 or 4 weeks but the longer you keep it in the bottle the better so I'll not finish it off till end of July. Other than the obligatory 2 or 3 bottles to taste the progress. 

 

Plenty other flavours to try on that website.

👍

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1 hour ago, hughesie27 said:

A few of us have decided to do it over the next couple of months with different flavour mixes. Just sticking to the basic wort mix first time round then I might go into more fancy stuff or even wines after that.

 

https://brew2bottle.co.uk/products/coopers-40-pint-beer-kit-draught-ale?utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google Shopping&gclid=CjwKCAjw2uf2BRBpEiwA31VZj7RVU7uR8XDRAg6RZuTTMQLTt6JIvOkTUz3ZLmhbCYUK6Gg1Wpn2XhoCkjYQAvD_BwE

 

Gone with this one first. Quite likes Coopers when I was in Australia. They also do 3 different types of "beer enhancer" which is a substitute for using sugar in the first fermentation. 

 

Should be ready to drink in 3 or 4 weeks but the longer you keep it in the bottle the better so I'll not finish it off till end of July. Other than the obligatory 2 or 3 bottles to taste the progress. 

 

Plenty other flavours to try on that website.

 

Beer enhancer is a world apart from using sugar for your fermentation. Ideally, you're best getting one of the two tin kits, as then you've got all the sugar you need, plus all that lovely flavour too.

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hughesie27
4 minutes ago, Craig_ said:

 

Beer enhancer is a world apart from using sugar for your fermentation. Ideally, you're best getting one of the two tin kits, as then you've got all the sugar you need, plus all that lovely flavour too.

Good to know. I see Coopers do a Canadian Blonde type which I'll maybe try next time if I don't attempt a Wine!

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On 05/06/2020 at 01:13, Captain Slog said:

You got me looking forward to it now, and this weathers the perfect temperature for fermenting   And if you're a week into secondary, start to think somewhere cool to settle and clear a bit.  What ingredients did you use may I ask?

I've tested the keg, it's too weak tasting :sad:

 

So I started a new culture last night.

Theres the 3 approaches that I know of - get Ginger Beer Plant online, ferment from ginger and sugar alone, or the route I went down, which is a recipe i got from a chef friend- this is doubled up for a 20l batch

 

1.2l boiled, filtered water, cooled to about 85f

10g bakers yeast

20g peeled, chopped ginger (peeled in case of pesticides, if organic I wouldn't have peeled)

8 teaspoons sugar

4 tablespoons lemon juice for acidity to help the yeast

20 raisins for the natural yeasts on their skin

 

Within 2 hours it was fizzing like anything, within 3 the raisins are grape sized and floating. I'll feed it with the same amount of sugar and ginger daily, and I plan not to flavour at all this time, we can always add syrups when it's time to drink. 

 

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Captain Slog
On 05/06/2020 at 07:13, hughesie27 said:

I know this isn't the focus of the thread but I'm going to be starting my first beer brew over the next few days. Got all the gear just waiting on the ingredients.

 

Will need to source some bottles too!

 

Should have about 45 pints by the end of it which on the first run costs about £2.40 a pint due to having to buy all the equipment. There on out it should only cost about 60p a pint.

See the ops post above about getting a keg, one with a tap near the bottom.

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16 minutes ago, Captain Slog said:

See the ops post above about getting a keg, one with a tap near the bottom.

The top tap's pretty cool, you can keep it anywhere with one of those without worrying about having to move it, I'd definitely recommend spending the wee bit extra.

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  • 1 month later...
hughesie27

Finally finished my Beer brew. It sat in the bottles for 2 weeks getting carbonated and I opened up the first bottle last Friday. Was surprised at how fizzy it had gotten and that it managed to keep a decent head after the pour. Tasted not too bad as well! Would like to try adding a few kf my own ingredients to it next time for a more unique taste. Also bump up the alcohol content too.

 

 

I've decided to try wine next. Found a 7 day ferment wine which gets decent reviews. 

 

First task will be to get through these 60 bottles of beer I have.

 

SmartSelect_20200708-181358_Gallery.jpg

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Auld Reekin'
4 minutes ago, hughesie27 said:

Finally finished my Beer brew. It sat in the bottles for 2 weeks getting carbonated and I opened up the first bottle last Friday. Was surprised at how fizzy it had gotten and that it managed to keep a decent head after the pour. Tasted not too bad as well! Would like to try adding a few kf my own ingredients to it next time for a more unique taste. Also bump up the alcohol content too.

 

 

I've decided to try wine next. Found a 7 day ferment wine which gets decent reviews. 

 

First task will be to get through these 60 bottles of beer I have.

 

SmartSelect_20200708-181358_Gallery.jpg

 

Looks good!   :icon14:   What beer / beer-style is it?

 

My latest batch of beer ("Geordie" Yorkshire Bitter) has been busy on its secondary fermentation in bottle - hope so anyway - for two and a half weeks so I'm planning to sample it this weekend.

 

I've had mixed results from my last few brews, but I think that's mainly been down to some of the bottles I've been using: some of the half-litre, plastic, mineral-water bottles had been used multiple times and I suspect were no longer able to maintain the pressure properly. 

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hughesie27
26 minutes ago, Auld Reekin' said:

 

Looks good!   :icon14:   What beer / beer-style is it?

 

My latest batch of beer ("Geordie" Yorkshire Bitter) has been busy on its secondary fermentation in bottle - hope so anyway - for two and a half weeks so I'm planning to sample it this weekend.

 

I've had mixed results from my last few brews, but I think that's mainly been down to some of the bottles I've been using: some of the half-litre, plastic, mineral-water bottles had been used multiple times and I suspect were no longer able to maintain the pressure properly. 

Cheers. It's a Cooper's Draught mix/tin. So tha's all I had to go off. They done separate Lager and Ale flavours so this isnsomewhere in between. Taste wise it is effectively a dark lager. Perhaps like a Hophouse. 

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On 05/06/2020 at 07:13, hughesie27 said:

I know this isn't the focus of the thread but I'm going to be starting my first beer brew over the next few days. Got all the gear just waiting on the ingredients.

 

Will need to source some bottles too!

 

Should have about 45 pints by the end of it which on the first run costs about £2.40 a pint due to having to buy all the equipment. There on out it should only cost about 60p a pint.

 

On 05/06/2020 at 07:22, Smithee said:

Bang on topic if you ask me, I'll be trying that myself sooner or later now I've got the keg. Bottles are pretty cheap on Amazon, there's a brew shop in Edinburgh that looks good too.

 

What are you brewing, what's your plan?

 

I used to make my own beer. I had 3 barrels so it would sit for a while before being drunk. 1 tip I would give though, experiment with different types of sugar. If making an ale, use a dark sugar, when making stout, use molasses.

And I never stuck to the 1 mile of sugar as the recipes on the kit said, usually went for 1.5 to 2 kilos. Bit only go that high if you can leave the beer for a couple of months.

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I take a tablespoon of Buckwheat Honey  in my tea before bedtime and have been for a few months now and my gut has never been better its now  part of my daily routine

Google   * Buckwheat honey and the gut *

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Unknown user
23 minutes ago, samgolden said:

I take a tablespoon of Buckwheat Honey  in my tea before bedtime and have been for a few months now and my gut has never been better its now  part of my daily routine

Google   * Buckwheat honey and the gut *

👍

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I find the most important thing during fermentation is to keep the temperature consistent throughout. Aside from that, I would say put more emphasis on racking than filtration and resist the temptation to open whatever container you're using to inspect your precious booze, hygiene is everything. Good luck with your brew!

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