If you’re too young to remember the Famous Five, the catchphrase “lashings of ginger beer” might mean very little.
But if you grew up on Enid Blyton’s beloved books, or were read them by someone who did, the phrase probably conjures up images of windswept picnics, knapsack lunches, mysterious islands, and heroic children solving crimes by tea-time. Feeling the need for a little holiday adventure myself, I decided to make a batch of my own.
For those unfamiliar, the Famous Five were a spirited group of young sleuths: Julian, Dick, Anne, and Georgina (who insisted on being called George), along with their loyal dog, Timmy. Together, they roamed the English countryside during school holidays, solving mysteries, uncovering smuggling rings, rescuing kidnapped scientists, and having what can only be described as the most exciting breaks from school ever imagined. Their adventures were always powered by enormous homemade picnics, plenty of sandwiches, boiled eggs, slabs of cake, and of course, lashings of ginger beer.
That phrase stuck with me so finding an old handwritten recipe clipped from a New Zealand Woman’s Weekly, I knew it was time to revive the tradition. And so, the ginger beer adventure began.
Now, I should say upfront that making your own ginger beer isn’t the kind of quick kitchen project you knock out on a rainy afternoon. There’s no instant gratification here. It’s a process. A small commitment. A slow brew that rewards patience and consistency. But if you enjoy watching something come to life on your windowsill, or the quiet magic of fermentation, this might just be your kind of project.
The first step is to make the ginger beer bug. This curious little creation is a living, bubbling mix of fresh ginger, sugar, and water that ferments over several days and acts as both the flavour base and the natural carbonation for your drink. It’s not much to look at at first, just a jar of pale, cloudy liquid, but by day two or three it begins to fizz, and by day seven it’s full of life.
The bug becomes a bit like a houseplant with attitude. It needs daily feeding: a teaspoon each of grated ginger and sugar, stirred in with care and a little conversation (not compulsory, but I like to think it helps). You start to look forward to checking on it each morning. Did it bubble more today? Is that a stronger ginger scent? Has it formed a bit of a foamy layer on top?
Once your bug is ready, the real fun begins with bottling day. This is when you mix the strained bug liquid with a larger batch of sugar syrup, lemon juice, and water, then bottle it up and wait again. Over the next few days, the drink continues to ferment inside the bottles, developing fizz and flavour. The result is a cloudy, sharp, and refreshing drink that’s light years beyond anything you’ll find on a supermarket shelf.
If you’ve never made ginger beer before, I say give it a try. Set aside a corner of the kitchen bench, find an old jar, and make space for a new habit. The result might just become a summer favourite. And if not, at the very least you’ll have had a week of watching a little bubbling miracle happen in your own kitchen.
Beer Bug Starter Kit
Ingredients
- 3/4 preserving jar of warm water
- 2 tsp active dried yeast
- 2 tsp raw sugar
- 2 tsp ground ginger
Method
- Fill your glass jar 3/4 with warm water. Add the dry ingredients.
- Loosely cover the top of the jar with a lid or tea towel. I used a sprout growing jar which has a fine mesh lid. Reason? This concoction will need to ferment and breathe! Keep in a warm place such as the windowsill.
- Each day, feed your bug a further 1 teaspoon of raw sugar and 1 teaspoon of ground ginger. Repeat daily for 7 days.
- You’ll see this murky substance bubble and brew. After your 7 days the beer bug is ready for the next stage.
Making Ginger Beer
Ingredients
- jar of prepared ‘beer bug’ (see above)
- 3 cups raw sugar
- 2 tsp cream of tartar
- 1L boiling water
- 5L cold water
- juice of 2 lemons, strained
Method
- In a large bowl (I used a small plastic laundry tub) measure the sugar and cream of tartar and add boiling water. Stir together until dissolved.
- Add cold water and mix. Pour in your ‘beer bug’ contents except for the brown sludge at the bottom of jar which you can discard, then add the lemon juice (strained to remove pips).
- Stir generously then pour into clean plastic bottles and screw lid on tightly. It will make around 6 litres.
- Store in a dark place for two weeks. You may want to open it outside on the grass, gingerly (mind the pun), as the pressure will have built up nicely for you!
