9 replies to this topic

[HerrHiller]

long story short we are having a potluck at work. I asled if I could make homebrew...lol (remember the fired fat cow ale story?) and they said a resounding no...so I thought i'd kinda stick it to them and make a keg of soda.. I know nothing about making soda what-so-ever...other than u can buy some extracts of somesort and its highly carbonated....I don't know what kind of soda to make! it has to be done by friday 24th! some please give me a good easy quick recipe and the carbonation lvls etc. please be as detailed as possible, and again a quick easy recipe....thanx-Herr Hiller

[Eric Kerin]

My current favorite is Ginger Ale. If your grocery store carries whole fresh ginger root (many do), it's pretty easy to make, at least, compared to a batch of beer...For each 2 quarts of final ginger ale: 1/2 cup cold water1.5 oz (by weight) peeled ginger root8 oz (by weight) sugar7 cups cold water2 tablespoons (fresh) lemon juicePeel the ginger root: Easiest method I've found, is to freeze the ginger root, and then run in the edge of a spoon over the skin to remove it. It takes me about 20-30 minutes to peel enough for 3 gallons. Try not to cut into the flesh too much, you just want to remove any of the papery skin. Remove any bad-looking spots with a knife. If you have a fine grater, grate the root. If not, I use a food processor to chop it into tiny bits (minced).1. Take the 1/2 cup water, put in sauce pan with sugar and the (minced|grated) ginger.2. Put the heat to it, medium high, Stir till the sugar completely dissolves (This happens about the time it hits 160-170 degrees F, but the liquid bits should be relatively clear) 3. Take off the heat, cover and let steep for 1 hour.4. Strain the resulting liquid through a sieve , getting the large chunks out. Use a spoon to push any liquid out of the strained stuff, so we don't waste any of the syrup.5. Add the remaining ingredients to a 2 liter bottle, along with the syrup, add yeast to naturally carbonate. If following this method, leave out in a 60 degree area till the bottles are stiff like normal pop bottles. Then refrigerate, warning if left a long time, they can become bottle bombs...5a. Kegging: you should already know what to do here, but: Place the syrup, additional water, and lemon juice to a keg, refrigerate and apply CO2 to about 25-30PSI, depending on your tastes. Drink any time.Optional step: Once you are done with the keg of ginger ale, I take some of the pop, and take the remaining ginger from the steeping:1. Blend it in a blender till puréed 2. Strain through sieve, same as the last time, get all the juice out.3. Add this resulting liquid to the keg/your glass to taste, it will kick up the ginger flavor significantly.

[cbbrown40]

If you buy the extract it's super easy just add sugar water and keg. Force carb and that's it. Only problem is it's really hard to get the taste out of a keg once you do it. Especially root beer

[HerrHiller]

If you buy the extract it's super easy just add sugar water and keg. Force carb and that's it. Only problem is it's really hard to get the taste out of a keg once you do it. Especially root beer

what do do? boil it for like 5 minutes for sanitation, chill down then keg and carbonate? if so...do you guys ever put the water in the keg while its still boiling and let it chill in the keg?

[Eric Kerin]

what do do? boil it for like 5 minutes for sanitation, chill down then keg and carbonate? if so...do you guys ever put the water in the keg while its still boiling and let it chill in the keg?

Call my crazy, but I don't boil it at all, goes right from the tap to the keg...

[cbbrown40]

you don't have to worry about yeast this way. I did the same the few times I made it just tap water sugar and extract. No boiling I think the instructions say 96 to 104 degrees

[HerrHiller]

you don't have to worry about yeast this way. I did the same the few times I made it just tap water sugar and extract. No boiling I think the instructions say 96 to 104 degrees

[HerrHiller]

one last question...does it matter so much if my tap water has a water softner?

[cbbrown40]

one last question...does it matter so much if my tap water has a water softner?

No I wouldn't worry about it. Think of it as making Cool-Aid rather than beer and you will be fine

[HerrHiller]

No I wouldn't worry about it. Think of it as making Cool-Aid rather than beer and you will be fine

lol well if im gonna think about it like kool-aid then I dont even need to sanatize the keg. lol do I? just quick PBW rinse lol