I tried making an all-malt ginger ale last month. (actually, it has a little sugar in it too) I'm planning to bottle it tomorrow. No idea yet if it's drinkable. As much as anything, this was an experiment in brewing on a weeknight with a 30 minute boil instead of the traditional 60 or 90 minutes.
HOME BREW RECIPE:
Title: Ginger beer
Style Name: Experimental Beer
Boil Time: 30 min
Batch Size: 3 gallons (fermentor volume)
Boil Size: 3.5 gallons
STATS:
Original Gravity: 1.061
Final Gravity: 1.018
ABV (standard): 5.59%
FERMENTABLES:
5 lb - American - Pale Ale (81.6%)
6 oz - German - Caramel Wheat (6.1%)
12 oz - Cane Sugar - (late addition) (12.2%)
MASH GUIDELINES:
1) Infusion, Temp: 154 F, Amount: 4 gal
OTHER INGREDIENTS:
1 tsp - Ground ginger, Time: 15 min, Type: Spice, Use: Boil
5 oz - Fresh ginger, Time: 15 min, Type: Spice, Use: Boil
4 oz - Lemon juice, bottled, Type: Water Agt, Use: Mash
1 each - Small tangerine (clementine), Time: 5 min, Type: Flavor, Use: Boil
YEAST:
Fermentis / Safale - Safbrew - Specialty Ale Yeast T-58
Starter: No
Water Notes:
4 gallons of local hard tapwater, acidified and dechlorinated by adding 1/2 cup of bottled lemon juice and the fresh juice of one tangerine. I did not measure the pH.
NOTES:
This is a first attempt. No idea if I got the amount of ginger right.
After juicing the tangerine, save the skin and pulp. Chop it up fine, and add to last 5 minutes of the boil.
Finely grind the fresh ginger, sugar, and dried ginger in a food processor or blender.
Brewed 12/09/2016. I used about 6 ounces of fresh ginger, unpeeled. It pretty much liquefied in the food processor with the sugar. After chilling to about 78 degrees, I dumped everything into the fermenter, hot break, ginger, tangerine peel, and all, and pitched with one rehydrated packet of T-58. It was bubbling vigorously a few hours later.