Making the Brew

We decided to make two batches of root beer with two very different methods of brewing.  

First we measured out all the ingredients and put them in a bowl.  The smell wasn't strong as most of the ingredients are dry.

Next we brought two quarts of water to a boil and then added in the ingredients.  Instant Root Beer smell!  We then simmered it for 20 minutes let the temperature fall to about 75 degrees, strained it, and yeasted it.  Lastly we bottled it.

We were left with quite a bit of ingredients at the end which we put into an open air container and let the root beer aroma fill our apartment.  It makes for a great potpourri! 

Our second method used a lot less ingredients and some very different ingredients.  We had star of anise and vanilla bean in this recipe.  

This recipe called for putting the ingredients into the pot before bringing it to a boil.  Then we simmered with a closed lid for 10 minutes and then removed it from the heat.  We then let it steep for 2 hours with the lid on before straining it.  We added two more quarts of water, waited a few minutes for the temperature to fall to 75 degrees and then added yeast.  We mixed it up and then bottled it.

Yeast is used to make the carbonation.  So the process takes 2-3 days for the yeast to carbonate the root beer and then it must be stuck in the fridge to kill off the yeast and stop the carbonation process.  In total it takes about 5 days from brewing for the beverage to be ready for consumption.  We did this all on Sunday so tonight or tomorrow night will be our first taste test of our homemade brews.