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Reeds Ginger Beer is one of my favorite non-alcoholic fizzy-drinks... just curious if anyone has a recipe for brewing something similar.
Also, what's the brewing process like? Similar to beer, or drastically different? Would a regular homebrew kit (carboy, bottling setup, etc) suffice?
There's a recipe on this page, geared towards someone without brewing experience, so it should be a breeze for a homebrewer. I haven't personally tried it though.
It is a shorter, simpler brewing process that that of beer. You could make it with a homebrew equipment kit.
For carbonation, if you follow their recipe, you run the risk of making bottle bombs. Most recipes I've seen recommend using plastic bottles, transferring to a fridge when the carbonation is right, and drinking the soda within a few weeks before it carbonates further.
A safer, quicker, and more reliable method would be force carbonation with a keg system, but that will obviously have a higher equipment cost.
I've been using this recipe and making about about a liter at a time:
http://www.jeffreymorgenthaler.com/2008/how-to-make-your-own-ginger-beer/
It's pretty good but it's not like Reed's, it's way dryer. Next time I do it I'm going to try adding pineapple juice and lime juice, maybe instead of or in addition to the sugar, because it should be sweeter. Also may let it ferment for 24 instead of 48 hours because after 48 it has been overcarbonated and I feel like you can taste a little alcohol.
I've been using Red Star Champagne yeast and a glass 1-liter flip top bottle, but a plastic bottle would work fine too.
I have made this one and like it http://www.brewuk.co.uk/store/recipes-ginger-beer
