Yesteryear...did your Mum/Grandma make Ginger Beer for you as a child?

[shoeshine]

My mum did! I vaguely remember a glass carboy, with a stopper being placed in the pantry. I think it contained a Ginger "Root"/"Plant"?, water and sugar. The ginger "whatever" looked quite ugly, but what a star it proved to be. I think she bought the ginger "whatever" from a shop. I don't know if it could be used more than once.

 

The contents fermented away quite happily whilst my brothers and I waited days and days and more days for Mum to declare it ready to drink.

 

At this point it was decanted into a glazed stoneware container with a cork in the top, and kept in the cool Pantry. It didn't last long on warm summer days with three thirsty kids.

 

I can't remember any other details except it would have been in the very late 1940's or maybe early 1950's, and it was delicious. I think she stopped making it when a "pop" lorry started delivering weekly to our door.

[JoeP]

I made some at school!

 

The vintage made by our class was a little 'feisty' as at least one bottle exploded during fermentation....

 

Great fun!

[retep]

The old ginger beer plant in a jam jar,

15 grams -half ounce general purpose dried yeast

300ml-half pint water

sugar

ground ginger

jiuce of two lemons

 

1 put yeast into a jar, add water, 2 level teaspoons sugar,2 level teaspoons of ginger and mix together.

2 cover jar with a sheet of polythene kept in place with a rubber band.

3 each day, for seven days, add 1 level teaspoon sugar, 1 level teaspoon ginger

4 now strain the mixture through a piece of fine muslin and add the lemon jiuce to the liquid.

the ginger beer may now be made either as a sweet still drink, or dry and sparkling.

it is important however to follow the instructions carefully, so that there is no risk of exploding bottles.

 

Sweet still ginger beer-

prepared ginger beer plant

450g-1 pound sugar

600ml-1 pint water

1 put all in a saucepan, stir until sugar has dissolved

2 bring to the boil and simmer 5 minutes to ensure the yeast is killed

3 make up to 4.5 litres -1 gallon with cold water

4 bottle and cork tightly keep for a few days before drinking.

 

Dry sparkling ginger beer,

prepared ginger beer plant

50g-2ounce of sugar

water

1 add sugar to ginger beer plant and make up to 4.5 litres-1 gallon with cold water, stirring to disolve the sugar.

2 bottle into screw top bottles (pop bottles will do)

keep for 7-10 days when the ginger beer is sparkling and ready to drink.

 

KEEP the sediment that you strained from the ginger beer plant, divide in two and give one away, then start again with the half pint water and feeding.

Enjoy.

[Plain Talker]

My mum had us making Ginger Beer when I was a kid, it was excellent!

 

I remember the ginger beer "plant" as we called it, a jam jar filled with a sort of sludge with (I thik) yeast, sugar, and the ginger.

 

I remember one occasion, where the mix was not quite right, (to much yeast? too much sugar?) the fermentation went absolutley bananas, and we were woken in the night, with the massive bangs, coming from our cellar head, the bottles (a good Dozen of them) had exploded.

 

The ginger beer plants, IIRC were given away, with alacrity, as you had to keep "feeding" the mixture, which would grow, and grow.

 

 

Oh, shoeshine, you're so cruel, bringing back that memory... ( )

 

I think I might have to search out a shop, now that sells the "light" ginger beer... you've got my mouth watering for a lovely cold glass of GB! MMMMMMMM!

[Plain Talker]

oooh, I did a simulpost with retep!

[algy]

I made some with the kids a few years ago, put it in plastic pop bottles and left it under the stairs and forgot about it. Found it a few months later and the bottles felt rock hard. We took them into the garden and loosened the tops at arms length. We estimated the winner was the top that went up around 20 feet. The drop that was left in the bottle was delicious though!

[Gangan]

We all made ginger beer as described,until one day we heard of a neighbour who had placed the bottles in a cabinet.Yes,the bottles exploded,and the cabinet doors were smashed. Mum stopped us making GB after that:hihi: .

[mikeG]

As kids a lot of us had ginger beer plants. It was good stuff, especially on a hot summer's day. It wasn't however as good as the home brewed ale I knocked up in the 80's. Lethal stuff. Some of it was more like a barley wine. Excellent cure for insomnia.

[SILLY]

Thanks retep for your recipe .I actually made it myself when I was about eleven and thought it was great as you had to split it and give it away everybody at school made it but I would love to try it again.

[shoeshine]

I've just returned to this thread and I am laughing my socks off at your tales....

 

I shall have a go at making some myself now, with a tin helmet on!