This document provides instructions for brewing ginger beer in a school science classroom. It discusses considerations for safety, cultural sensitivities, allergies and legal issues. Key steps include washing hands and equipment, adding grated ginger, lemon juice and peel, baking soda, sugar and water to a sterilized bucket, then adding yeast. With careful monitoring and limiting consumption, the experiment can provide a fun way for students to link fermentation to biology while gaining experience with biotechnology techniques.
This document provides instructions for brewing ginger beer in a school science classroom. It discusses considerations for safety, cultural sensitivities, allergies and legal issues. Key steps include washing hands and equipment, adding grated ginger, lemon juice and peel, baking soda, sugar and water to a sterilized bucket, then adding yeast. With careful monitoring and limiting consumption, the experiment can provide a fun way for students to link fermentation to biology while gaining experience with biotechnology techniques.
This document provides instructions for brewing ginger beer in a school science classroom. It discusses considerations for safety, cultural sensitivities, allergies and legal issues. Key steps include washing hands and equipment, adding grated ginger, lemon juice and peel, baking soda, sugar and water to a sterilized bucket, then adding yeast. With careful monitoring and limiting consumption, the experiment can provide a fun way for students to link fermentation to biology while gaining experience with biotechnology techniques.
This document provides instructions for brewing ginger beer in a school science classroom. It discusses considerations for safety, cultural sensitivities, allergies and legal issues. Key steps include washing hands and equipment, adding grated ginger, lemon juice and peel, baking soda, sugar and water to a sterilized bucket, then adding yeast. With careful monitoring and limiting consumption, the experiment can provide a fun way for students to link fermentation to biology while gaining experience with biotechnology techniques.
Science notes Brewing ginger beer Stephen Rowcliffe 1
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Brewing ginger beer
Stephen Rowcliffe Having finished a module on respiration with time to trawled the Internet and found many ginger beer spare before half term, I decided I would like to try recipes but nothing pertaining to a school-based brewing a batch of ginger beer for a party with my brewing activity. I thus resolved to write my own grade 12 (17–18 year-olds) IB HL biology class. The worksheet and risk assessment based on what I could idea was to link fermentation (anaerobic respiration), find. elements of aseptic technique and biotechnology The NZASE (New Zealand Association for with a bit of old-fashioned fun and a party. Aside Science Education) has a useful guide to fermenting from the curricular relevance of the activity, it also and distilling in schools (see Websites), which links biology to potential future careers in brewing informed much of what is written below. and helps connect biology with ‘real life’ situations, Important considerations/risks boosting the perceived authenticity of the subject. The opportunity to discuss the societal implications I wanted my students to produce something they of binge drinking in youth culture also presents could safely consume within a week, but was very itself. Biology teachers could consider this as the concerned about the possible implications. The basis for a potential internal assessment activity at following all need to be considered: ages 16–18. l If necessary, parental consent should be sought I could find no practical worksheet on brewing before the beverage is consumed. Seek advice in the biology department archives, nor any member from an experienced senior colleague if in of staff who had ever tried it. In fact, many teachers doubt. expressed doubts as to the wisdom of the idea. I
School Science Review, June 2008, 89(329)
Science notes
l Cultural issues must be carefully considered; Ginger beer and the law Muslim students must not participate in the Fentiman’s produces an award-winning ginger consumption of ginger beer as it contains alcohol, beer that is botanically brewed. This ginger beer albeit at low levels (see Websites). l may be purchased by persons of any age from the Food allergies or sensitivities must be taken into supermarket as it has an alcohol content of less consideration. (To find out more about yeast than 0.5% ABV. This means it is classed as a ‘soft allergy and alcohol intolerance see Websites.) l drink’ under UK law (see IAS website). Hence, if Due to the high sugar content, diabetic students your ginger beer is below 0.5%, you can supply it should be warned of potential hyperglycaemia if legally to those under the age of 18 without fear of they are planning to drink the ginger beer. l prosecution. To check the alcohol content of your Only food-grade glass, plastic or metal containers ginger beer, use a hydrometer (available from some and utensils that are exclusively for brewing use chemists, wine shops and brewing outlets). must be employed – science department beakers or stirrers must not be used for obvious reasons. Notes for teachers l All equipment must be sterilised before use. I Ensure the students understand why they must used ‘Feeding Bottle Steriliser Tablets’ for the wash their hands with antiseptic soap before the purpose, but boiling is another option. experiment. They must not use thermometers, l Only commercially available yeasts should be glassware, etc., which have been used in other used. You can find brewer’s yeast at the chemist, experiments. If you cannot find fresh ginger or but baker’s yeast also works (not recommended lemons, substitute a teaspoon of powdered ginger in terms of taste by connoisseurs of fine beers, and a tablespoon of concentrated bottled lemon juice. but I doubt this is a major consideration). Watch carefully for students who want to elevate the l A food technology room would be the best venue alcohol concentration of the ginger beer by adding although an ordinary classroom would suffice. excessive quantities of sugar, and be careful not to All work surfaces must be cleaned and sterilised let the fermentation continue for longer than a few before the experiment begins. days. The students must bring, wash and sterilise l You must be aware that ginger beer will contain strong plastic pop bottles – mineral water bottles ethyl alcohol. However, the concentration will must not be used as the plastic is too thin and there not be high if the method I describe is followed is a danger of explosion. If in doubt – try it out. I ran carefully. When Dr Fankhauser of Clermont the experiment myself first, using smaller quantities College measured the alcoholic content of his root to ensure I knew the procedure well before the beer (see Websites) it was found to be no higher students had a go. than 0.5% after four days of fermentation. This is My students were thrilled to have the opportunity not sufficient to cause any degree of intoxication to carry out this investigation and, with a little care if a small volume is consumed. A standard drink and effort it is possible to do so safely. of ethanol is 10 g, and a student would have to Websites drink three litres of ginger beer at 0.5% ABV to Alcohol intolerance: http://www.foodreactions.org/ ingest this dose – and would still be safe to drive intolerance/alcohol/index.html (if not intoxicated by the sugar itself). Details Fankhauser’s root beer: http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/ of the symptoms of alcohol intoxication can be Cheese/ROOTBEER_Jn0.htm found on the eMedicineHealth website. Institute of Alcohol Studies factsheet on Alcohol and the law l The NZASE state that tasting is permitted but (UK): http://www.ias.org.uk/resources/factsheets/law.pdf Muslim students and alcohol: http://www.islamonline.net/ shall be limited to a minimum volume. This gives English/News/2004-08/03/article04.shtml a fair degree of scope for interpretation. I suggest NZASE (New Zealand Association for Science Education) that teachers have the good sense to determine guide to fermenting and distilling in schools: www.nzase. what a sensible ‘minimum’ volume might be. org.nz/safety/Fermenting.pdf l Once the experiment is over, the ginger beer Symptoms of alcohol intoxication: http://www. should be disposed of safely or passed directly emedicinehealth.com/alcohol_intoxication/article_em.htm into the hands of the parents if it is to be taken Yeast allergy: http://www.allergy-details.com/yeast home.
Stephen Rowcliffe teaches biology at the United World College of South East Asia, Singapore. Email: stephenrowcliffe@hotmail.com
board 35 g root ginger 1 ive litre (5 dm3) bucket 20 g baking soda
Method
1 Wash your hands thoroughly with antiseptic soap and hot water.
2 Wash and sterilise all equipment using the chemical tablets provided.
3 Peel and grate the ginger, and then put the grated ginger into the bucket.
4 Finely peel or grate the lemon, keeping the dark yellow rind aside. Squeeze the juice into the bucket, using a sieve to prevent pips entering the pre-beer.
5 Place the lemon rind and baking soda into the bucket.
6 Pour dm3 (litre) of freshly boiled water into the bucket, add the sugar and stir well until all the sugar crystals have dissolved.
7 Top the bucket up with 3 dm3 of cold water and check the temperature is not above 30 °C. Hotter water will kill the yeast and hence you will not produce any beer.
8 Remove a cup of the pre-ginger beer and mix with the yeast powder until the lumps are gone.
9 Stir the yeast solution into the liquid.
10 Cover the bucket with a clean cloth (make sure the cloth doesn’t dip into the beer) and tie with string. This is to stop things falling into the ginger beer and to let the carbon dioxide escape.
11 Leave at room temperature for 24 hours.
Stage 2 – the next day
12 Being careful not to disturb the sediment of yeast at the bottom of the bucket, siphon the ginger beer (with a freshly sterilised rubber hose) into strong polycarbonate bottles. Leave a gap of 1/8 of the bottle to allow room for the carbon dioxide that will be produced.
13 Add half a teaspoon of sugar per dm3 of ginger beer and screw on the cap tightly.
14 Store the bottles in a cool dark place for two days.
15 Refrigerate for several hours to deactivate the yeast. If it is to be tasted, decant carefully into a glass. Yeast sediment will be present at the bottom of the bottle and has an unpleasant taste.
Warning! this beverage will be alcoholic. you may taste only a bare minimum of the ginger beer and with caution.
