Which glass is ideal for bottling?

Use only high-quality glass bottles or plastic bottles (PET). The carbonation that develops, especially when more sugar is used, can lead to strong carbonation that may cause the glass to explode. Always refrigerate the drink before consumption. Treat your Ginger Beer like champagne and only shake it if you want to christen a ship.

My Ginger Bug is not active?

With the amount of ginger and sugar specified in the recipe, your bug should develop sufficient carbonation and activity. If this is not the case, check the following:

• Use unpeeled, organic ginger.

• The Ginger Bug has never been exposed to a temperature above 40 degrees.

• Sufficient sugar has been added.

If you have followed these rules, success should be on the way.

My finished Ginger Beer is not fizzy?

For carbonation to develop in your Ginger Beer, the following conditions are necessary:

• Ginger Beer has been bottled in a tightly sealed glass (gas should not escape).

• There is sufficient sugar present (the drink tastes sweet).

• It has never been exposed to a temperature above 40 degrees.

Have some patience with your Ginger Beer. Let it sit at room temperature for a few days. Open the closure slightly every day; once you hear a hiss, you are close to the goal. It doesn't make sense, as with vegetable ferments, to "burp" the bottles - release the gas. While new gas may form, it will be at the expense of the quality of your drink. Therefore, opening a bottle is only to determine if your Ginger Beer is ready.

My Ginger Beer tastes yeasty?

Unfortunately, a very common problem that arises as a byproduct of successful fermentation.

Two tips:

• Sufficient use of lemon juice masks the yeasty taste.

• Filtering: when bottling Ginger Beer, first remove all solid parts of the ginger; then let your mixture sit in the refrigerator overnight. The next day, carefully pour your Ginger Beer into bottles. The yeasts collect at the bottom of the vessel - the less of it that enters the bottle, the less yeasty your Ginger Beer. That is, never use the sediment at the bottom in your bottling.

Do I need to add yeast for the fermentation to succeed?

Only if you have problems with your complexion (at least that used to be said, eat yeast) or enjoy sucking on a yeast cube. Otherwise, I advise against it. I don't like the yeasty taste, and there are sufficient yeasts on good organic ginger.

My Ginger Beer tastes bland!

Four possible causes:

• Too little ginger.

• Too little sugar.

• Too little lemon juice.

• Ginger Beer is too old.

Should finished Ginger Beer be refrigerated?

Like all ferments, once Ginger Beer reaches a satisfactory state, it goes into the refrigerator. On one hand, because chilled Ginger Beer tastes much better than room temperature, but primarily to minimize fermentation.

I don't want to use so much sugar!

Many people try to limit their sugar intake, and so do we, which is why we drink fermented beverages.

During fermentation, natural yeasts consume the sugar we add and transform it into flavor and carbonation. That is, for fermentation to succeed, there ALWAYS needs to be sugar, just like in sauerkraut. There is no fermentation without sugar, BUT fermentation always reduces the sugar content.

Our Ginger Beer recipe starts with an initial sugar content of 8 degrees Brix, meaning 8g of sugar per 100ml of water. At the end of fermentation, the product typically has 4-5 degrees Brix, meaning 4-5g of sugar per 100ml of water. That is half of a Coca-Cola and a third of a fruit juice.

Does Ginger Beer contain alcohol?

The name Ginger Beer or Ginger Ale suggests alcohol. In reality, it is a non-alcoholic beverage that can develop up to 1.5% alcohol through fermentation.

It's called Ginger Beer because it was used for a long time as an alcoholic beverage, as seen here. Today, Ginger Beer always refers to the non-alcoholic variant.

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