Aussiedistiller, Home Distilling, Moonshine, Home Brew

TasSpirits wrote:Dark and stormy worked :happy-partydance: not quite as fizzy as I would have liked, but still worked. Going to try again tonight, more of the bug juice to try get a few more bubbles. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

I got my bug in a 1L jar and use the lot for every brew. Second batch is less yeasty (haven't replaced the sprinkle of bakers yeast I added to get it going) but would like more Ginger taste (not so much the burn)... any ideas anyone?

EziTasting wrote:

TasSpirits wrote:Dark and stormy worked :happy-partydance: not quite as fizzy as I would have liked, but still worked. Going to try again tonight, more of the bug juice to try get a few more bubbles. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

I got my bug in a 1L jar and use the lot for every brew. Second batch is less yeasty (haven't replaced the sprinkle of bakers yeast I added to get it going) but would like more Ginger taste (not so much the burn)... any ideas anyone?

I used 2 bugs this time, wild yeast only, maybe don't feed you bug as much. I think the burn comes from the bug not the tea, could be wrong though :think:

Will have to give this a go. I have a can of Morgan's ginger beer to make first - with some fresh ginger added - was thinking of doing a keg of dark and stormy to put on tap

So I had to leave the country in a hurry, said to the Mrs check the GB, if its ready chuck it in the fridge. I now have the driest ginger ale I've ever tasted :crying-blue:

Well, I always knew I was a slo learner...

2 things I learned:
1.) 2 days is enough to let the G-Beer sit to carbonate... a week is definitely TOO long! you'll spend the next 30 minutes trying to de-carbonate it so you can have a drink :laughing-rolling: ; and
2.) following the recipe closely improves the chances of making a great tasting G-Beer! :violence-smack: :teasing-neener:

Darn it, 3 rounds and finally I get a batch that tastes flamin great!!

I let mine sit for a week opened it and very little carbonation...on round 2..

I have to say i am really enjoying this. It has a nice ginger burn to it. Also have made a nice lemon and lime soda using the bug.

Just had to clean up a bit of a mess. A few coke bottles decided they didn't want there lids on anymore.

Made a drink on the weekend. Ginger beer, Lemon and lime soda and neutral. Very good feeling knowing you made everything in it. .

So I'm in trouble... This bad boy went off at 5pm today. It was sitting on the kitchen bench, Misses gave me a quick video call at work to enlighten me :naughty: Apparently she was standing near it when it blew the ass out and went off like a rocket :laughing-rolling: - 1 week in bottle. Its a standard coopers pet bottle


Needless to say I'm no longer allowed to have these in the house...

Sheesh never thought they would blow like that :scared-eek: i have mine sitting right next to my pc chair. How much sugar you use in the batch?

Followed the recipe exactly, Strangely the other 4 bottles are a little soft to squeeze.
They were all filled from 1 big batch mixed well before bottling, This is my first ever bottle bomb & the reason I don't use glass.

Don't know how long this bug has been going, but noticed that it wasn't bubbling much of late, so brought it inside to give it a feed. Once I opened it and stirred the sugar in it bubbled fiercely and it smelled so good, tasting the spoon, it's awesome!

I can't wait to get some more G-root to make a new batch! Been nearly a fortnight... :dance:

My second lot didnt carbonate properly bottles are rock hard but no fizz maybe to hot for the yeast.. hope to get my third lot on soon :handgestures-thumbupleft:

bluc wrote:My second lot didnt carbonate properly bottles are rock hard but no fizz maybe to hot for the yeast.. hope to get my third lot on soon :handgestures-thumbupleft:

wow, with me, its been the other way around. First lot, soft as... second lot wasn't much better (added bakers yeast and tasted off), third run left in the pantry for a week and it nearly blew the 1.25L coke bottles to bits... but, man it tasted good! With the recent feeding of the G-bug, I got that yummy taste so want to make some more ... perhaps a little too soon of the bug(?!), but I've given it nearly 4 hours - it should have gotten its 'A' into 'G'! Darn it...

Last one had a strong Ginger burn, so I'm upping the water for the tea, 2.5L instead of the 1.5L and last one was very sweet, as well so cut back to just over 1 cup of sugar... pot is on the stove... can't wait... :dance:

So started my bug yesterday and it is fizzing already. Should I keep going for a few days before i make it??

I went 3 days last time but i think i should have gone longer. Theres some bubbles in it but would not call it carbonated. I reakon either bug not strong enough or it was to hot..

I'd keep feeding it for a few days , build up your yeasties n flavour .

When you make it just save a couple of spoon fulls of bug to kick the next one off .

prawnz wrote:I'd keep feeding it for a few days , build up your yeasties n flavour .

When you make it just save a couple of spoon fulls of bug to kick the next one off .

Yer for sure feed it for around a week (depending on your patience - I did 5 days), then I add the lot to the tea (as per vid posted) adn scoop back around a cup worth of the tea and G-Bug to put back into my 'Bug growing jar'... and top up with good water to around a litre and then repeat the cycle. I find now, tho I don't need to feed it as often... may be every second or third day... its loving the Pilbara heat!

Starting a bug today see how it goes :handgestures-thumbupleft:

I followed a very similar recipe to this a few years ago on my quest to replicate bunderberg ginger beer. I don't want to be opening a plastic bottles like a nobody! Mine went into glass, and alas, 2 weeks later, the missus and I woke up about 3 o'clock in the morning and sounded like there were grenades going off in the garage! Anyway I changed the recipe, used wild and controlled strains of yeast. Up and down the sugar content. Anyway I came up with, either I need to kill the yeast and force carbonate it, or add a non fermentable sugar for sweetness. Otherwise the yeast just eats the sugar and blows bottles.
The product does taste bloody good though! Am I onto it, or not? Anyone help?

My bug is very sour and is showing little activity - well, first time thats happened!

scooped off the ginger that was floating as it is basically the peel of the ginger and the rest with some fresh clean water went into the blender! Been reusing the boiled ginger as well as the peeled skin ... hope that isn't a bad habit! So this time is the first time Im removing a lot of the ginger from the bug...

Build the water and blended ginger and waiting for it to cool. Then I'll add the bug (minus the fresh peel) into the Tea and allow that to infuse (or whatever). Then I'll scoop out some of the fresh Tea/Bug mix liquid to put back into the bug and then start to feed it up again.

See how this batch turns out.