Or as I now call it SCHPRUUSSS BAER...
I came across this mid 1700's Canadian Recipe for Spruce Beer and had to give it a brew up to see how it tasted. I tried this Scots Pine Beer from Scotland and did not really get on with it.
That being my only experience I figured that my Spruce Beer was going to be a cross between floor cleaner and Jagermeister but I was pleasantly surprised.
So basically I did a 2 liter test batch and have now moved on to a 3 gallon proof of concept however the test batch was pretty awesome.
So for the 2L batch;
Go collect about 20 spruce tips (fir and pine also work) The soft spring time ones are best. Add those to a pint of water (500ml or so) and boil it down until you have about 3oz of liquid left.
Boil 2 liters of boiling water and dissolve 300-500ml of black molasses into it as well as 500mg of demerera or turbano sugar.
To this add your spruce juice 4 cloves and a 1/3 of a piece of chopped up nutmeg.
Boil the lot for 30 minutes and stir
Start a spoon full of brewers year in some lukewarm water and sugar and wait for the brew to cool.
When the brew is room temperature pitch in the yeast and stick it in a 2l container to ferment.
You may need to release some CO2 on occasion unless you have the special caps or brewing equipment.
Let it set at room temperature for a week and then filter it into a new bottle. I used a cheese cloth filter.
Let it set in the refrigerator for 3 days
Add a spoon full of sugar to your bottles and filter the brew into them. Let them set for 5-7 days at room temperature and then into the refrigerator they go
Once cold drink them...
I did not do the math to test the alcohol content and did not use modern home brew equipment but the results were pretty good. I did however use modern sanitizer which is probably like £5?
Anyhow, a fun little project to try. Mine ended up being dark but very light and sweet. If anything it is close to a root beer or cola with a hint of spruce. Downing a pint quickly you can feel the effects.
For a kid friendly version, ferment 24 hours and filter into bottles. Let it sit 3 days and then refrigerate.
Cheers;
I came across this mid 1700's Canadian Recipe for Spruce Beer and had to give it a brew up to see how it tasted. I tried this Scots Pine Beer from Scotland and did not really get on with it.
That being my only experience I figured that my Spruce Beer was going to be a cross between floor cleaner and Jagermeister but I was pleasantly surprised.
So basically I did a 2 liter test batch and have now moved on to a 3 gallon proof of concept however the test batch was pretty awesome.
So for the 2L batch;
Go collect about 20 spruce tips (fir and pine also work) The soft spring time ones are best. Add those to a pint of water (500ml or so) and boil it down until you have about 3oz of liquid left.
Boil 2 liters of boiling water and dissolve 300-500ml of black molasses into it as well as 500mg of demerera or turbano sugar.
To this add your spruce juice 4 cloves and a 1/3 of a piece of chopped up nutmeg.
Boil the lot for 30 minutes and stir
Start a spoon full of brewers year in some lukewarm water and sugar and wait for the brew to cool.
When the brew is room temperature pitch in the yeast and stick it in a 2l container to ferment.
You may need to release some CO2 on occasion unless you have the special caps or brewing equipment.
Let it set at room temperature for a week and then filter it into a new bottle. I used a cheese cloth filter.
Let it set in the refrigerator for 3 days
Add a spoon full of sugar to your bottles and filter the brew into them. Let them set for 5-7 days at room temperature and then into the refrigerator they go
Once cold drink them...
I did not do the math to test the alcohol content and did not use modern home brew equipment but the results were pretty good. I did however use modern sanitizer which is probably like £5?
Anyhow, a fun little project to try. Mine ended up being dark but very light and sweet. If anything it is close to a root beer or cola with a hint of spruce. Downing a pint quickly you can feel the effects.
For a kid friendly version, ferment 24 hours and filter into bottles. Let it sit 3 days and then refrigerate.
Cheers;
