Best home brewing & winemaking according to redditors

You raise some good points, but your attitude sucks. Anyway, here are the answers you are looking for:

• Champagne and wine yeasts are often bought my amateur brewers by the packet, similar to baker's yeast. "1 package" is the measurement, it's usually equal to 5 grams, which is a bit less convenient to measure because you need a very sensitive scale and it doesn't fill measuring spoons roundly.
  
  
• During fermentation, the yeast will turn the sugar into ethanol and carbon dioxide (that's why beer and champagne are fizzy, yeast at work). If the carbon dioxide builds up too much, the bottle it is fermenting in would pop its cork or explode. In order to prevent this, the CO2 needs to escape. Because we can't simply leave the bottle uncapped (bugs love to lay eggs in sweet ferments, and oxygen is detrimental to successful fermentation) we need a way to let the CO2 out without letting anything else get in. That is why you use a fermentation trap, also called a fermentation lock or airlock. It lets CO2 out, and keeps anything else from getting in by way of a water barrier. You can pick them up at brewer supply stores for around $1 each. The one pictured is a 3-piece type, though I prefer the S-types because they allow you to keep track of the fermentation rate by noting how quickly bubbles are escaping more effectively.
  
• Dandelion wine is a country wine, and like most country wine, it's going to have some spices or flavors in it besides the main ingredient. Dandelion wine is traditionally made with citrus to compliment the flavor. Folk-culture food is just like that, you'll have a hard time finding unflavored picked egg recipes for the same reason.
  
  
• Also, I'd like to emphasize that only the petals of dandelions are used. If you go find a dandelion and stare it down for a bit, you'll realize they have very few petals, and they are very light and airy. You need a lot of dandelions to do this, even if you only collect half a gallon of petals, it's a full afternoon activity in a dandelion field with your friends just to collect them.
  
  
  The comic is definitely vague; it ends with "let age", but knowing how to rack and age wine is an art all in itself!
  
  TL;DR: If you know nothing about dandelion wine then this comic is a nice primer to which is actually a fairly simple process. It leaves out some details but you probably shouldn't be making wine from a comic's instructions to begin with.
  
  Source: I make dandelion wine, so I guess you were right.

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.

I'd look into something like this with this with this. So that's $11.50 plus shipping, which at worst would be a total of $20 for 640 ounces of hooch.

If you always keep your hooch at room temperature, you should be able to pour out about 60 oz into another bottle, drink that, then pour new juice on top of the four ounces of remaining old hooch, and the whole process should start over again. Keep on top of it, and you can perpetuate the whole fucking thing.

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.

I really enjoy this rice protein. You can purchase it on Amazon for $10 less than on the brand's website.

It has 24g of protein per scoop. Blend that with some soy milk or regular milk, with 2 tbsp of peanut butter, and you're easily getting 35g+ protein per shake. The taste is also very enjoyable! I always look forward to these shakes every day. 30 servings per tub, so if you have a shake everyday, it should last you about a month. :)

Edit: Whoops. Just realized this has stevia in it. D:

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

I was/am a pescatarian, but I've had to eat meat on occasion while on this diet in social settings because often its just really hard to get food you can eat when you're eating out. A lot of the meat substitute stuff has a lot of ingredients, and black bean burgers are out of the question. If its me and my lifetime of IBS issues vs. some meat every now n then I gotta choose me. I'll go back to being a pescatarian after I figure out what groups I'm not good with.


For Protein I'd suggest this rice protein mix with frozen strawberries, a handful of blueberries, and peanut butter.

You should juice all the apricots, then bring the liquid to 89 degrees celcious, maintain this heat for 45 minutes.

Cool it down, and transfer it to a sterile food grade bucket. Purchase this, and put it into your apricot juice. (dissolve it in some water first).

Leave it for 2 weeks. You have apricot wine. lol

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

It's easy. EASY. It's not like the sweet hornsby's stuff. IT's drier and closer to beer.

If you wanted to experiment I'd buy a gallon or two of apple juice, like tree top. You don't want anything other than ascorbic acid as a preservative, a packet of chapagne yeast. Like this (http://www.amazon.com/Champagne-Yeast-10-Packs-Dried/dp/B00434CB74) You only need one and they're usually about .55 a shot.

Get an air lock like this: http://www.amazon.com/Piece-Plastic-Airlock-Sold-sets/dp/B000E60G2W/ref=pd_bxgy_gro_img_z.

Take your juice and pour yourself a small glass to give it a little airspace.

Take the lid and a drill bit and drill a hole in the juice cap sized right for the air lock to fit into the lid tightly. The plastic is soft so you can force it to get a tight seal. I used a pocket knife. If you want to save the headache, you can spend $2 on a rubber bung to fit the container lid.

Put a couple table spoons of sugar and dissolve it into some warm water. Add, I don't know, maybe a quarter of the packet of yeast. THat little packet is usually for five gallons. Eyeball it.

Let it set and get a little bubbly then add the measuring cup of liquid to your juice jug. Recap it with the air lock and enjoy. YOu can put distilled water or booze into the airlock. It doesn't matter which.

Then you wait.

After a week taste it. If you like it, drink it. If it doesn't taste hard enough wait a few more days. AFter you do the first one, you'll want to do two gallons then five. A gallon goes pretty fast. When it gets to where you like the hardness and sweetness of it, put it in the fridge with the airlock on it. IF you cap it while it's still actively fermenting you could get too much co2 built up in the bottle and have a problem.

Seriously talking about $15 at the MOST to start up and after that, it's the cost of yeast and apple juice.

PM me if you have any questions. I'm not an expert, but I do okay.

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.

Open cover? Don't you lose carbonation? And when you mean packet, do you mean the whole one of these?

I've been trying to make hard booch for awhile without great success.

So you basically need the following:

• Water
  
• Yeast
  
• Something for yeast to eat
  
• Something to keep the water and yeast in
  
  Water from your tap works fine, even if you live in an area that uses chlorine or chloramine.
  
  I like to use champagne yeast since it's cheap and tolerates a high alcohol percentage while not tasting disgusting.
  
  Sugar is yeast food. You can just dissolve regular sugar in water or you can get fancy and use the sugar in juices and fruits.
  
  For a vessel you need something that can withstand a little bit of pressure and have a way to let gas out. This means always plastic and never glass. Soda bottles or plastic milk cartons work well for this if you put a balloon with a pinhole in it over the top. That lets extra pressure out while not letting anything weird in since yeast isn't the only microorganism that eats sugar (you don't want mold or bacteria).
  
  That's about it! You can flavor it before or after to get different tastes. Quick disclaimer:
  
  > Recipes are undertaken at your own risk, and should be consumed only at the legal drinking age for your area. White mold is your friend, green think again. #hoochresponsibly

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.

Background

Based upon my initial question: Is it wine or meed?, I am working on my first Mead/Pyment. I've taken the original recipe I cobbled together from a variety of sources.

Is it mead? Well yes. According to the calculators in the sidebar concord juice is about 8.89% sugar. Honey is roughly 80%. I'm no math wiz, but I fussed with both Google and Wolframalpha and 8.89% of two gallons is roughly 45 Tablespoons or 0.23 pounds of sugars, 1 Gallon of Honey is roughly equivalent to 204 tablespoons of sugars or 7.9 pounds of sugars. yes I know Different types of sugars, etc. etc. But the mixture here is getting much more than 51% of the sugars from honey, so: 'tis a Wine -> Mead -> Melomel -> Pyment.


The following is an expansion of The GotMead format for recipes.

1. Ingredients
   
   • Star-San - not technically an ingredient, but it's for sterilization. I think of it as an anti-ingredient keeping the bad bugs out. (Sprayer use= 1/4 tsp to 650ml water & 60 second exposure)
     
   • 1.5 Gallons of boiled tap water (more or less to make things work out.) NOTE: I have well water, not city water - so no chlorine & plenty of minerals.
     
   • ~2 Gallons of homemade concord grape juice. (SG 1.060)
     Last year I pressed about about six gallons of grape juice from concords of my own. I was going to make jelly in the winter and froze it in the deep freeze.
     
   • 10lbs (now 15lbs) of Pure N Simple Honey.
     
   • ~3 tsp Fermax from Amazon.
     
   • Red Star Premier Blanc [Amazon] (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00434CB74)
     
     
2. Equipment
   
   • Large Stainless stock pot (for initial boil)
     
   • 5 Gallon food grade bucket & Lid sterilized.
     
   • 4 Gallon Sams club water bottle playing the role of carboy.
     
   • Hydrometer
     
   • Transfer hose
     
   • Water lock/ Bubbler
     
     
3. Preparation
   
   • Thaw the grape juice overnight in the fridge in a large container in case of leakage.
     
   • Sterilization/pasteurization.
     Thinking through the volume of Honey (~1 gallon) and aiming for a 4 gallon carboy; bring 1.5 gallon of water to a boil. Turn off heat, add the grape juice in order to pasteurize the juice without setting the pectin, stir in about 10-12 pounds of honey. (remove any scum that forms)
     
   • Sanitize the bucket and lid, and stirring spoon.
     
   • Stir vigorously as you add the ingredients.
     
   • add to the bucket, check the temperature and the SG - calculate remaining honey or water and add as needed. Stir till mixed, or your arm falls off - whichever comes first.
     
   • Check the temperature until it is at least down to about 80 degrees then add the yeast we're off to primary fermentation.
     
     
4. Primary fermentation.
   
   • 5 gallon sterilized bucket & lid with airlock.
     
   • Actual Original Specific Gravity (OG): 1.130 (I thought it was 1.122 but the must was still quite warm.)
     
   • I will plan on testing as fermentation tapers off and make a decision then on adding additional honey and warm water (carefully of course) in order to restart fermentation. (adjust to desired SG as needed).
     
   • Once fermentation has stopped transfer it to the secondary.
     
     
5. Secondary.
   
   • 4 gallon sams club water jug (plastic) with airlock.
     
   • Saved my honey jugs just in case I had any left over that wouldn't fit in the carboy.
     
   • Time. Lots of time.
     
     Notes:
     
     9/13/16 Initial. Retested SG, it was at 1.130.
     
     9/15/16 Sterilized a large spoon and vigerously stirred to aerate. SG at 1.074, fermentation is fast and furious.
     
     9/16/16 Aerated/degassed. 3tsp fermax. SG 1.050
     
     9/16/16 Aerated/degassed. SG 1.026
     
     9/21/16 Racking Day. SG 0.998 (ABV 18%?). Upon racking there was not quite enough in the carboy. After staring at it for twenty minutes I decided to gamble and added one gallon of water, and 5LBS of honey to bring it up to just below the base of the neck. Retesting the SG was 1.030. It is currently sitting inside a 5 gallon bucket in my bathroom, I'll transfer it to the closet as soon as I'm reasonably certain it won't go Mt. St. Helens on my wardrobe.
     
     

> 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°

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

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.

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.

Here you go-

3-Piece Air Locks, 3 Piece... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07M7TN5BY?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Red Star Red Star Premier Blanc... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00434CB74?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

ATP - Vinyl-Flex PVC Food Grade... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PXJDESI?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

HYDROMETER - ALCOHOL, 0-200 PROOF... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013S1VAM4?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

LD Carlson Yeast Nutrient, 2 oz. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0149IY8F6?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

As far as recipes, I’m still working on these first 2. Adding black tea and raisins and b-vitamins seems to have kept things bubbling.

As far as juices, I get most everything from Aldi (or Trader Joe’s if you’re fancy) very few preservatives, dirt cheap prices and unique flavored juices (Harissa Mango Pineapple juice??!?)

Hope that helps! I’ll post updates as the batch progresses. 2 days from now I’ll probably cold crash and do a gelatin clarifier.

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!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiGu6PxcSUQ

Watch this video. I just started making some based on his recipe. I would increase the speed to 1.25 the guy talks way too slow for me. You could order some airlocks and some yeast on amazon and all he would need is any 2 quart juice he wants that does not have preservatives in it.

The Great Value walmart brand is working well for me, also the Aldi brand Apple juice is working well.

https://www.amazon.com/Red-Star-Premier-Blanc-Yeast/dp/B00WFBRV18/

Air lock would be completely optional as the dudes video he shows you just to do it with the lid on.

I do it 5 gallon batches so 5 gallon cheap store apple juice, 2 lbs of corn sugar, 2-3 lbs of peeled shredded ginger, and [champagne yeast] (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00434CB74/ref=od_aui_detailpages01?ie=UTF8&psc=1). Put it all in a Fermenter bucket with an airlock. Wait two weeks and bottle it/put it in a keg.

Agreed. This stuff works wonders, I use it all the time.

https://www.amazon.com/Liquor-Quik-Super-Kleer-2-Part-Finings/dp/B01J0LJ1IG

Champagne yeast is worth it for the 90 cent price! I don't want to by all snotty here but its the one thing imo you gotta spend money on for a decent product.... that having been said I've never tried making hooch with bread yeast. https://www.amazon.com/Pasteur-Champagne-Making-Moonshine-Distilling/dp/B00WFBRV18/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1481124482&sr=8-6&keywords=champagne+yeast

Red Star Premier Blanc Wine Yeast, 5 g, (Pack of 11) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00WFBRV18/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_B4w4DbSMKV9XZ

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).

Not sure of the answer on this, but would it help if you found a tastier protein powder? I used to think I hated protein shakes, too, but I had only tried whey and plant-based. I recently discovered egg protein and it's delicious when mixed with coconut milk after a workout. I even look forward to it! I use this one: Designer Protein Totally Egg Protein Powder, Classic Vanilla, 12.4 Ounce https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BP6M5PT/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_y5QRCbB7EA815. They also have a chocolate flavor.

34172 Are surprises allowed?

Edit: Linked an item.

Red star I think. It comes in a yellow package, and is a dry yeast. I'll double check when I get home from class.

-edit-

On the phone but here it is:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00434CB74/ref=redir_mdp_mobile

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.

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.

• 2 gal primary bucket
  
  
• 1 gal secondary glass
  
  
• Autosiphon
  
  
• racking cane
  
  
• Hydrometer
  
  
• Starsan
  
  
• GoFerm
  
  
• I used Fermaid O, not Fermaid K, because I was following a specific nutrient regimen. It's called TONSA 2.0. Popular, but apparently not cost efficient with larger batches. People better at this than I can answer nutrient schedule questions.
  
  
• Bubbler/Airlock.
  
  
• Bottles and cap method are your preferance. You can get bottles of tons of shapes, colors and styles. Corked, capped, swingtop, etc. Just make sure the bottles are food-safe and not decorative hobby/thrift store stuff. If you use corks, same rule, don't use decorative stuff. You'll want #8 agglomerated cork and a hand corker tool to put the corks on. #9 corks work too, but you'll need heavy tools (like a floor corker) to do that..

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

No problem. I didnt bag the berries, but it would have been cleaner if I did. They were colorless and largely pulp by the time the fermentation was done, but they added a lot of excellent flavor. They were largely filtered out when we bottled from the secondary.

We did a second batch with blueberry, which was not quite as well recieved, but was equally interesting. I could see nectarines or maybe peaches as being pretty nice as well.

This is the yeast I used, this is the honey. I dont have the recipe handy, but Im betting I found it on /r/homebrewing. Search there for ciders/cysers and you should find some interesting ones. Also, dont overlook adding brewing nutrients to ciders/cysers. The juice doesnt have the right agents like barley does, and needs some additional "energizing" nutrients to really work. These are mega cheap though, generally pennys every batch. They should be listed on any recipe you find.

Good luck, and as always, have a homebrew.

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.

• $8 Liquid yeast + $13 3lb DME = $21, without any additional yeast nutrients
  
  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.

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.

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.

Semi-sweet to sweet is what I think I want, maybe 14% Abv. Yes, I did mean sulfites. I want to make one batch with pears and one traditional, here are the yeast nutrients I was looking at using, and my basement in the winter is always below 70f. Ill look into some of the other stuff you are talking about though. Thanks!

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

I would just sneak this on: http://www.amazon.com/Spike-Your-Juice-Kits-Value/dp/B003QVL4SW#customerReviews

Yup as they've said below - Super Kleer is awesome. Though it wont hurt your mead to sit on the lees after you clear, it will eventually add off-flavors. Once you hit it with SC it'll be crystal and you can decanter/siphon/transfer off the lees and age.

https://www.amazon.com/Liquor-Quik-Super-Kleer-KC-Finings/dp/B01KW2H1ZC

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.

here or I guess you could use hops

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.

Since Spikeyourjuice.com seems to either be down or I was banned... http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003QVL4SW

It is not great. Oddly, it isn't good with grape juice. However, I have found juices to use it in that are pretty darned tasty.

I turn a big bottle of juice into a high powered fruity prison-type wine that doesn't taste bad...usually.

And yes, it is frugal. The packet of yeast stuff comes out to less than a dollar per pack (if you just buy the packs and not the kit). And it turns a $3 bottle of juice into 46 ounces of wine. The equivalent of almost 2 bottles of wine. So, about 2 bucks for a bottle of wine.

Pomegranite-Blueberry is pretty tasty.

I use Totally Egg it's a low carb great protein. They have several flavors I enjoy the chocolate.

https://www.amazon.com/Designer-Protein-Totally-Classic-Vanilla/dp/B07BP6M5PT?th=1

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/

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007O2PEIK

3pks for 9.95 shipped

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

>Will you be giving the yeast a proper starter and vitamins?

I don't think I will, unless it's something I can do with household items. I'm trying to challenge myself to do this as frugally as I can. I'm basically just using yeast and this airlock
> Will you be crashing them or running them the entire time?

I'm not too familiar with the terminology, but my plan is to add the yeast to fruit juice, wait until it stops reacting, and then pour it into another container through a cheesecloth to filter out the inactive yeast.
>What is the temperature where they are fermenting?

Room temp, roughly 65-70
>What is the starting gravity?

Not too sure about this. I'm probably going with grape juice or some fruit concentrate. Could I measure this with a scale?
>What is the max ABV of the yeast?

I couldn't find those specifications, but all the reviews suggest it's the ideal product for brewing with juice. Maybe it'll say on the back of the packet?

For a drier cider I’d use Champagne Yeast. You should either get more juice or a smaller bucket/carboy.

This is all I use also white sugar,brown sugar,turbinado sugar and Corn Sugar all provide a different taste so have a try.

Done that: https://www.amazon.com/Spike-Your-Juice-Kits-Value/dp/B003QVL4SW

But I much prefer the professionally produced variety.

I was watching an interview with Berner (popular marijuana producer) who was saying one of their fears of corporatization of the industry is reducing the quality of the product (e.g. not taking the time to properly dry) in order to sell more units cheaper. I think that's bound to happen like every industry, but for me it will still be cheaper to buy from the store now matter what quality I want. Just the electricity costs and odor keep me from doing it, not to mention time.

Cut out the middleman:
10 packets of Champagne yeast: $5.50
2 airlocks: $5.99

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)

Everyone's got time for it! Next time you're at the store, get a gallon or two of apple juice... the one in the glass jug. Get one or two Of these and a few packets Of this and you're good to go. If you want to get to the scientific part, get one of these to measure potential and finished alcohol content.

Dump out 1/3 of the juice, add more sugar for more alcohol if you want, add the yeast, put the air lock on and throw it in a dark place for a few weeks ;)

Heh.

My dad's getting into brewing. I figured he should start small.

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.

There is a person on amazon selling ginger beer plant. Maybe that would work for you?

[Perfect gift idea for otters] (https://www.amazon.com/Spike-Your-Juice-Kits-Value/dp/B003QVL4SW)

What? no dude. This is one of the go toyeast for home brewers. Super resilient and as you can see it likes cooler temps.

I will sometimes filter, or give it time. But I swear by this stuff

https://www.amazon.com/Liquor-Quik-Super-Kleer-KC-Finings/dp/B01KW2H1ZC

It's like magic

Also, as mentioned, pectic enzyme at pitching makes a lot of difference. But only if you care about cider being cloudy. I don't notice any discernible quality difference except one's shinier

Looky here at this.

I've considered buying the e-z caps too. But then I realized it's essentially one of these airlocks with a convenient screw top attachment to fit on a standard 2 liter bottle and some yeast. If you're trying to go cheap, it might be worth putting together the few pieces necessary to DIY, add some rubber stoppers and a gallon jug of juice and you're pretty much good to go.

In fact, I might just buy all that stuff now...

Edit: It'd probably be cheaper at a local homebrew shop, none of these links I put in here actually come from Amazon so you can't get combined or Amazon Prime shipping. :(

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