Best beer brewing ingredients according to redditors
We found 127 Reddit comments discussing the best beer brewing ingredients. We ranked the 75 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
15. Citra Pellet Hops 1 oz.
2 mentions
10-12 percent Alpha acid1 oz packageUsed in Brewing great beers
You can buy turbo yeast, bred to survive in up to 20% alcohol. Turbo yeast + bags of refined sugar + distilled water will be 20% in about 2 days. Then if you accidentally distill it you can get what is essentially vodka at ~85-90% alcohol by volume. Without a way to test it you can only really check by trying to light a teaspoon on fire. That will tell you that its at least ~150 proof.
https://www.amazon.com/Alcotec-24-hour-Turbo-Yeast-grams/dp/B0064O78HE
You can distill it several times to remove as much of the contaminants as possible. You can drink it as is, or dilute it down to ~50% with water and fruit, or add spices to make gin, or age it in a barrel to make a not as good version of whisky/bourbon.
The cost of materials and time makes it more practical to just buy cheap vodka and distill that, but it can be a fun project! Check the laws in your area.
Christ man, paragraph breaks.
>LALLEMAND products, but not LALVIN
Same company.
>Do I need to pasteurize the honey to 77-78°C before mixing it with water?
Fuck no.
>Or pasteurization is completely useless?
It's bad for the aromatics of the honey.
>I mean, honey density is “random”,
Only if you use bootleg honey. EU has a LOT of regs on honey water content.
>how do I reach it with precision?
Double check with a hydrometer. Tweak if needed. I usually start a little low on water and fill to a precise gravity.
https://www.amazon.it/Toogoo-idrometro-Kombucha-custodia-specifico/dp/B0776S4L3P/
> Asked in facebook groups and they said
fuck 99% of the hacks on facebook making prison hooch. I love 1118 (champagne yeast) but there is a time and place for it and it's not "all traditionals"
>I’m scared to make errors
So read the wiki.
>seems to be prohibited to introduce living yeasts from other countries
It's not. Homebrewing in italy is in it's infancy though.
https://www.amazon.it/LALVIN-Lievito-del-vino-k1-v1116/dp/B07QD5QZSD/
https://www.amazon.it/Lievito-nutriente-226-8-g/dp/B0064H0MVK
And boiled bakers yeast gets you a good, hearty yeast to learn with, nutrients from the dap and boiling bread yeast is poor mans fermaid O.
> Bentonite is fine with traditional meads, but I read that for melomels there are pectolytic enzymes, otherwise bentonite won’t work. Is it correct?
Not even remotely.
>are the bottles with screw cap fine for the purpose?
Never, they don't hold a seal for shit when recapped. I am assuming you don't have a refoiling device or whatever that kind of capper is called.
Can't you just use glucose? It's like $5/lb on Amazon as either syrup or powder. Or you can get 50 lb for $60.
Edit: There are also options at $3/lb and $2/lb if you know where to look.
Gin + glucose + citric acid + lime oil + mint = southside
Tequila + Fresca + citric acid + grapefruit oil + salt = paloma
Rum (light) + glucose + citric acid + mint + club soda = mojito
Citric acid can be found at the grocery store (or online). Citrus oils can be found in the peel.
Amazon friend. Pre poured trays ready to use. Even with shipping they're under a buck a piece. For starting out its worth it can help to consolidate steps as it leaves less room for error. Then again some people nail first try.
https://www.amazon.com/Malt-Extract-Agar-MEA-grams/dp/B008W7XHSU/ref=pd_aw_fbt_328_img_2/140-1355592-1355928?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B008W7XHSU&pd_rd_r=0df17d51-af99-4e06-b575-b464b444e42a&pd_rd_w=gpaEC&pd_rd_wg=LCD1a&pf_rd_p=6e6afc8a-fbbd-4649-97cf-4e08f5113612&pf_rd_r=8CM4G0TX37C3AZEJT2NG&psc=1&refRID=8CM4G0TX37C3AZEJT2NG
https://www.amazon.com/EZ-Bioresearch-Sterile-Petri-vented/dp/B01ARAZQM4/ref=asc_df_B01ARAZQM4/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=241986316970&hvpos=1o4&hvnetw=g&hvrand=892502642786041879&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9002272&hvtargid=pla-607290418314&psc=1
Here you go! It's potent https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B015RTMJ0M/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1
People have talked about this book/recipe enough that I’m surprised I don’t know more about it: can you give more details here? How much honey? How many gallons? Any other fruits or spices?
I like this dry ale yeast for lower gravity stuff, but most folks around here prefer dry wine yeast to ale in general. Depending on the recipe, I might stick with the ale this time (especially if it’s a quick mead).
Edited: clarity
Not sure if these links will work for you but these are what I use
Yeast Nutrient: https://amzn.com/B0064H0MVK
Yeast Energizer: https://amzn.com/B0064H0LUW
They work great for me, and my mead always ferments dry in less than a week by staggering. In fact I just hit a new record on my current 5 gallon batch SG 1.100 to 1.000 in 4 days.
do not use turbo yeast, take it from someone who has a friend, that has a dog that has made a few drops of alcoholic beverages... Turbo yeast will make it taste like you are drinking from that old guy at the gyms dirty racquetball socks. Use either a ale yeast us-05 or if you want to go cheap use something like ec-1118 and make sure there us no preservatives in whatever you are fermenting
> Bavarian Wheat extract
FYI, This DME I think is better for making hefeweizen and I did not like WB 06 at all. As for yeast I would use wyeast0368 (w68) or
Lallemand Munich Classic Wheat Beer Yeast and ferment near 68°
Random. So someone unverified that I can't find anywhere else. Bonus the image for the product just looked like a pile of sand XD.
I found Fermaid O for £10/100g in one place and considering I got 100g of DAP for like £1.80 yesterday, that's kind of steep. Although tbf I don't know what it retails at normally. Other places were mostly out of stock. But again I think its mostly an american product and you don't know how long a seller has had it. Could be all earwiggy and damp. Maybe I'm just a diva.
T'ej is made with gesho (either entchet or kitel). This is my third time making t'ej (the first two were with blackberry) and I get my gesho from here. I use about a pound of it for 5 gallons. I have a recipe for blache sitting here (haven't made), it seems you need the bark of the Lilac tree, but no promises on whether that is in fact it or whether that is blache or some regional variant.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004NXSK20/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_.A1JBbJXB1B9R
These are the ones I used, but from what I understand you can get it cheaper from a home brewing store.
The yeast you get from walmart will not make a good wine/hard cider/beer. You need yeast specific to wine/cider/beer for that. If you can order from Amazon, this yeast with a couple gallons of preservative-free apple juice will make a nice hard cider.
I've been tossing a bit of lemon or lime in pretty much all of my batches lately. If I used lemon juice for something else in the kitchen, I'll just toss the squeezed lemon in my next batch of hooch to get some nice citrus notes.
Reading up on wine-making and making some side-by-side test batches gave me a lot of respect for the role of acidity and non-fermentable sugars in the overall taste of the finished product. Adding a pinch of cheap acid blend and a bit of corn sugar/dextrose to the hooch can make quite a difference!
Agreed. This stuff works wonders, I use it all the time.
https://www.amazon.com/Liquor-Quik-Super-Kleer-2-Part-Finings/dp/B01J0LJ1IG
A little counter-intuitively, spending money(for a grain mill) is probably the best cost saving move I made. getting 2row at $30/50lbs is pretty incomparable in the long term. That's ~$4 in savings per batch, on just the two row. probably a dollar or so on the specialty grains per batch also. A Cereal Killer/Barley Crusher pays for itself after 125 gallons brewed on the two row alone.
Yeast harvesting on the other hand, i felt wasn't worth the savings. Though i'd love for someone to show me the light, but here's my math.
Makes enough for 9 overbuilt starters(151g of DME per starter, using the default values on http://www.brewunited.com/yeast_calculator.php with an overbuild value of 100billion cells)
Personally, I generally use SNBCs yeast for almost all my brews. So WLP001 or US-05. $10/3pk on Prime. So, $30 vs $21 for the same 9 batches, so you save $1 per batch, again assuming you're not using any other yeast nutrients. But I can brew at a moments notice, not needing to plan an extra 30 minutes a day or two in advance of when i'm going to brew. And the dry packs take up hardly any space in comparison.
Again, I'd love for someone to convince me going with overbuilt starters again(i can always have an extra pack of dry around for the spontaneous brew session) but the math just didn't seem worth it.
To piggy back on u/stormbeforedawn's comment.
This is the equipment I used that I've had good luck with so far. It's what he recommended, I'm just providing links to the specific product I used.
My favorite yeast is this
1 Packet is good for 5 Gallons, so you could use a fifth. You could also put the whole thing in.
For this batch I used beer yeast. Saizon yeast to be exact. Although I just inoculated it with the muck that came out of a batch of saizon beer. You can buy yeast packets at your local beer brewing supply or order them. Technically you can use bread yeast from the grocery store, but a lot of people don't like the flavor. If you like dry wines you might not care though.
I personally don't give a rats ass what kind of yeast it is, I use whatever I can get easiest :-D
Once you have everything ready, activate your yeast beast. Mix up some sugar water, get it to about 110f or so. I just use like a cereal bowl and a tablespoon of sugar or so. Mix the yeast in and let it sit for awhile. If you leave it for a long time (like over night) cover it but realistically half hour is fine in my experience.
Alright, so get like 1lb of black raspberry. Mash it up, add some water and strain it through a cheesecloth or old tshirt or whatever.
Mix that with water so you have about 1 gallon of liquid. Add 3lbs of sugar, mix till all or most of the sugar is dissolved.
Have this in whatever container you're gonna ferment it in. Make sure it has like 3+ inches of room at the top. It will foam and stuff and it can shoot out the top if you don't leave room.
Inoculate with your activated yeast. Create some sort of air-lock system that let's it breath but doesn't let shit fall in.
How long it needs to ferment depends on various factors like how the yeast does, the room temperature, roll the dice etc.
The yeast will keep going until it either runs out of sugar, it gets cold (like 35f-ish) or the alcohol content gets high enough to stop it, which it won't with this recipe, although it will slow down a lot after 15% abv.
If you wanna do a big batch just get a brewing bucket from your local beer brewing supply store. Like $15-20 and you'll be set. Bucket, lid and air lock. 2 liter bottles work fine, basically anything with a screw on lid works fine.
My recommendation is to brew in clear 2 liter bottles. Rinse them out with hot water right before using. I don't bother with soap or whatever just hot water.
Keep the bottle somewhere you can see it, like kitchen counter. You'll see it start to bubble, that's c02 produced as the yeast eats the sugar. Feel free to sample it now and then. Both the alcohol content and flavor will drastically change over time. I drink that shit soon as it's not too sweet sometimes. Some people won't touch it till it's been re-bottled and aged for a few months. It does change flavor a lot but i don't care much.
Oh, don't use chlorinated water. If you only have it, just fill up a container, make sure it doesn't have a lid and let it air out for like 2-3 days, till the bleachy smell is gone. Or use a water filter, or buy filter watered I guess.
Once the bubbles stop or you feel ready to bottle it in the fridge. The yeast will go dormant overnight and then sink to the bottom. Then you pour off the top, leaving the yeast at the bottom. Some anal people will re-do this several times to make it super clear. Again, I don't give a fuck. Sometimes I don't even bottle it. I have one of these things. The idea is you brew beer in a regular bucket, then pour off the top leaving most of the yeasty shit behind, then let it settle in that bucket and the tap sits up an inch or so, so what ended up in that bucket sits below so it doesn't go in your bottles.
I however, just fill up my wine glass right out of the tap, no fucks given. I will end up bottling it so i can make room to brew more though, but for now it's convenient.
Looks like amazon has it: https://www.amazon.com/Liquor-Quik-Super-Kleer-2-Part-Finings/dp/B01J0LJ1IG/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1540490527&sr=8-1&keywords=super+kleer
This is the (L)DME I use. I use stovetop for my agar/LC mixing (but I don't use premixed solutions).
When mixing, I bring it barely to a simmer and stir everything in there, then pour it before throwing it in the PC. You can use stovetop instead of microwave, it's just to melt the agar. You can use a double boiler.
I feel like if you're going through the process of buying malt extract, buying agar powder wouldn't really by removing a step, but changing that step. Now you'd be reversing the agar part when you had to add DME.
Ohhh okay cool
Is this it? https://www.amazon.com/Wyeast-Activator-1388-Belgian-Strong/dp/B003P5S1CG
Or perhaps this? Maybe the same thing: https://www.midwestsupplies.com/belgian-strong-ale-yeast-activator-wyeast-1388-4-25-oz
I did notice that they're for 5 gallon batches. Do you use the whole thing for a 1 gallon?
Came across this a little late, but Nottingham was recommended to me and had good results. But us-05 should be good too.
Brewer's Best makes a Peanut Butter extract (among many other flavors). I used it in a peanut butter stout last year and was quite happy with the results. Some may say it's "cheating" to use extracts like this, but it's a fair bit cheaper than the dehydrated PB powders and probably easier to use (I used 4 Tbsp in a 5.4gal batch, added w/ the priming sugar solution to my bottling bucket).
Check this stuff out
http://www.amazon.com/Alcotec-24-hour-Turbo-Yeast-grams/dp/B0064O78HE
To get even cheaper you can take yeast off the finished product and pitch it into a new batch of sugar water.
Look, YUMMY! Awesome contest, thanks!
Like the guy below said, the fermented juice sounds better for your plants. This yeast is super reselient. You can just use sugar water. That way you won't have to worry about the fermentation temps for your beer/wine/mead. I would hate to lose a batch of beer because the room was too hot and the yeast died or made the beer taste nasty.
IMHO It's one of the easier parts of mycology work. tek: https://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/21922023 and a solid premade recipe: https://www.amazon.com/Malt-Extract-Agar-MEA-grams/dp/B008W7XHSU/
Interesting, would be curious to see how it comes out with standard brewing fruit puree.
https://www.amazon.com/Vintners-Harvest-Fruit-Puree-Raspberry/dp/B0064OLWJ4/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1502148397&sr=8-2&keywords=Oregon+fruit+puree
Its already puree'd has all the seeds removed, and is sterilized without cooking so you dont have to worry about infections if your not adding it in the boil. Half a can is a pretty potent fruit flavor for 5 gallons.
I found adding fruit into the boil just kills the flavor.
here or I guess you could use hops
If you want way too much information for a beginner, I'd suggest reading the white paper by /u/balathustrius. I use the LD carlson energizer and LD carlson nutrient, these are the exact ones I ordered from amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0064H0LUW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0064H0MVK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
those quantities are enough for 50+ gallons of mead or so, though.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003P5S1CG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It's a pretty large pack, and it says it's for 5 gallons. The recipe I linked above begins with creating a starter and letting it sit for a couple of days.
This is all I use also white sugar,brown sugar,turbinado sugar and Corn Sugar all provide a different taste so have a try.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007O2PEIK
3pks for 9.95 shipped
Lallemand Nottingham Ale Yeast(11 grams)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000MI70GW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It doesn't give a tolerance from what I can see.
Hmmm. All good suggestions. I'm about to throw up an update, I decided to do a little more independent research (which I should've just done in the first place) and I think I might go with one of the Lavlin strains, either the D-47 or the EC-1118. I know I'm breaking the first rule of homebrewing, but I'm definitely stressing on this because I would really like for this to be a decent batch for Christmas with my family.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00ET4H5SS/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1483155205&sr=8-1&keywords=ginger+beer+plant
There is a person on amazon selling ginger beer plant. Maybe that would work for you?
Not the most doable things because Amazon has terrible prices but I gave it a shot based on this recipe. https://www.reddit.com/r/Homebrewing/comments/5u86ht/neipa_recipe_help_extract/
Fermentables: 4lb Extra Light DME 1lb Wheat DME (late addition - 15min) 3lb Extra Light DME (late addition - 15min)
Steeping Grains (155F for 30min): 1lb Carapils 1lb Maris Otter
Hop Schedule: 2oz Columbus - 30min 1oz Amarillo - Flameout (for 10min) 1oz Citra - Flameout (for 10min) 1oz Amarillo - Dry Hop day 5 in primary for 5 days 3oz Citra - Dry Hop day 5 in primary for 5 days
Yeast Dry Safale S-04 English Ale
i just purchased the 16 dollar fermaid o https://www.amazon.com/CellarScience-AD332B-Fermaid-O-120/dp/B074D9HQJD/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519787713&sr=8-1&keywords=fermaid+o
ill let you know
If I wanted to make a bourbon barrel beer, would I take some oak cubes, soak them in bourbon, then put the cubes in secondary?
I know amounts vary based on how oaky/bourbony I want the beer, but about how much wood and bourbon should I use to really make a noticeable difference in a 5 gallon batch? How long does the wood soak for? Do I pour bourbon straight into secondary as well?
Would these cubes be close to what I would want?
Thanks
My basement is always below 70 in the winter. I've checked out TOSNA but im not quite sure about the terminology, is this the "goferm" being referenced and this the fermaid-o? Will I also need "yeast nutrients" if I use those two compounds?
fruit was pasteurized at 170 for 10 minutes. i placed into the 2ndary and then racked the beer on top. it sat for about 10-12 days. then bottled w/ 1oz priming sugar per gallon. do you have a link to the puree? would this work? http://www.amazon.com/Vintners-Harvest-Fruit-Puree-Raspberry/dp/B0064OLWJ4/ref=pd_sim_indust_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1EFKJ8KHC86MT9921PTK
Generally, some Go-Ferm when I hydrate the yeast, and some Fermaid-O after fermentation starts.
I'm running some experiments right now to see if I can replace Fermaid-O with boiled baker's yeast, but I don't have results from that experiment yet.
Post #2:
Preparation:
getting the supplies
Agar agar powder. [US](https://www.amazon.com/Telephone-Product-Thailand-Powder-Ounce/dp/B01KMHY2OU/) [Europe](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Special-Ingredients-Premium-Gelatine-European/dp/B00EZMPMNE)
Always start with agar! And don't throw old fully colonized plates out. Some contaminants (e.g. mycogone, AKA wet bubble disease will only show up after full colonization (white blobs oozing yellow/orange fluid). and that one (mycogone) will fck up your grow hard, been there done that...
Light malt extract. [US](https://www.amazon.com/Organic-Light-Dried-Malt-Extract/dp/B007XYGBXQ/) [Europe](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Balliihoo-Light-Spraymalt-1Kg-Bag/dp/B0153BASSY/)
Containers for no pour agar (Pasty Plates). [US](https://www.amazon.com/Glad-Food-Storage-Containers-Round/dp/B000WGBMMM/) [Europe](https://www.flaschenbauer.de/einmachglaeser/sturzglaeser/sturzglas-225-ml-to-82) (maybe use Google translate on that site). Also if you are in North America there are Glad mini rounds, they are used in the original Pasty Plate tek. They also have [430ml jars](https://www.flaschenbauer.de/einmachglaeser/sturzglaeser/sturzglas-430-ml-to-82) suitable as substrate containers
A pressure cooker. Good ones are a b**ch to find in Europe. I wouldn't buy [that one](https://www.ebay.de/itm/Pressure-cooker-17L-Stainless-steel-Made-In-Turkey-Largest-Size/133128864948) or similar constructed ones, they are complete s**t, build up next to no pressure and need ungodly amounts of water. I have two of them, but had to do some haphazard MacGyveresqe hacking to get them to sterilize properly, I'll bring that up later.
I also have a Fagor Alu 22 (22 liters, fits eleven quart bottles), but I think that model went out of production in 2017 without a replacement. IMHO the only sane option in Europe right now, would be to order a Presto from the US, they're ~80€ + 40€ shipping, so not that bad. [Presto 23 quart PC](https://www.amazon.com/Presto-Aluminum-23-Quart-Pressure-Canner/dp/B073NCFL2L/)
Also on US websites like shroomery, you'll always read something like "sterilize 90min @ 15 psi". Pressure cookers in Europe usually have no gauges and only go to 50-70 kPa (~7-10 psi). It isn't as bad as it sounds, since sterilization time isn't linear with pressure/temperature. I've found I can get away with 120 min sterilization time for grains, 75 min for PF sub and 30 min for agar.
Scalpel handle and blades. [US](https://www.amazon.com/100-Scalpel-Blades-One-Handle/dp/B01MPX3JTI/) [Europe](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Swann-Morton-Handle-5-10-Blades/dp/B004OIAVJY/)
(optional) inoculation loop. [US](https://www.amazon.com/OESS-Reusable-Inoculating-Inoculation-Bacterial/dp/B071DCS7TW) [Europe1](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Akozon-Inoculation-Inoculating-Microbiology-Laboratory/dp/B07KM7F8VH) [Europe2](https://www.amazon.co.uk/sourcingmap%C2%AE-Inoculating-Microbiology-Tissue-Culture/dp/B071X44DS4/)
Tyvek (for filtered lids). [US](https://www.amazon.com/Dupont-Tyvek-105gm-A5-Sheets/dp/B07418F31G/) [Europe](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tyvek-75gm-Bumper-pack-sheets/dp/B004EXTKSW/)
(optional) oster blender attachments used for PF slurry or LI. [China](https://www.ebay.com/itm/4-Head-Ice-Crushing-Crusher-Blade-Replacement-Part-For-Oster-Osterizer-Blender/182451440105)
3M Micropore tape (for filtered lids and monotub holes). [US](https://www.amazon.com/3M-1530-1-Micropore-Tape-Pack/dp/B0082A9FEM/) [Europe](https://www.amazon.co.uk/3M-Micropore-Surgical-First-Medical/dp/B01KYK2666/)
A spray bottle for soapy water. [US](https://www.amazon.com/Tolco-Bottle-Frosted-Assorted-Colors/dp/B000H88PCU/) [Europe](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Leifheit-72416-Laundry-Sprayer/dp/B0049PB11Y/)
Isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol), 70%. [US](https://www.amazon.com/Amazon-Brand-Isopropyl-Antiseptic-Technical/dp/B07NFSFBXQ/) (dilute down to 70%, that percentage is best for sanitization [EU](https://www.amazon.co.uk/We-Can-Source-Ltd-Fingerprints/dp/B07PGB5X6Y/)
A rack to elevate your agar dishes while you do transfers, like these that come with microwave ovens (contaminants tend to collect on the SABs bottom).
A slightly wet towel to put the SAB on. Some people disagree on this, I use the towel to absorb the sprayed soap/water mix and not having that run off the table.
A clear box that's modified as a SAB. I use this one as a SAB, maybe they ship outside Germany. Anyway the manufacturer is kis.it (builds the monotub too), so I think they might be available elsewhere in Europe: https://www.obi.de/aufbewahrungsboxen/obi-allzweckbox-santos-transparent-oversize-140-l/p/3333341?template=PDP&box=box4
More clear boxes used to fruit bottles (basically a monotub, just with individual substrate containers). I use these as unmodded monos (no holes, no flipped lid, lids not latched): https://www.obi.de/aufbewahrungsboxen/obi-allzweckbox-cadiz-l-mit-4-rollen-transparent/p/1930387.
Butane torch [US](https://www.amazon.com/Multipurpose-MDee-Culinary-Refillable-Adjustable/dp/B07MNN2B43) [Europe](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kollea-Adjustable-Refillable-Blowtorch-Soldering/dp/B07QC1T6H5)
Bottles (can be wide mouth pint mason jars (US), quart Ziplock PP5 containers (US) or [these (which I use)](https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Round-Food-Containers-Plastic-Clear-Storage-Tubs-with-Lids-Deli-Pots-2oz-to-32oz/232308091965)
You can use bread yeast, but from my googling, the end result will likely taste like bread. Maybe that could be a good thing, but I've never tried it. And you don't want to close the lid really tight!!! The fermentation will produce CO2 gases which will increase the pressure inside the container. I'd guess your friend just got/gets lucky that it never exploded? You need to make an airlock - something that will let the extra CO2 gases out, but will not let nasty air bacteria come in and ruin your tasty juice. I did it by getting a large regular balloon, poking a tiny hole in it with a thumb tack, then fitting the opening of the balloon over the bottle top and duct taping it secure.
Two weeks is usually enough if you don't add any sugar, three should be good if you do. The sugar doesn't really make it sweeter, it just also gets fermented so that the product becomes more alcoholic ( = more drunk!).
The yeast I used was Lalvin EC-1118, which is really, really cheap for what you can make. It's been over a year, but I believe one gram is sufficient for one gallon of juice, so that link would be for 50 gallons! You can also buy a single pack if you don't want to get all of them now.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002LQBSIO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
^ I used this stuff.
There's this thing called Google.
https://www.amazon.com/Gesho-Entchet-Ethiopian-Aroma-Stems/dp/B00ACO7UT8