Lifestyle
Celebrate International Beer Day with a home-made draught
Making your own draught takes a bit of time, patience, and a few careful steps, but the result is well worth the effort.
1 August is International Beer Day and the perfect excuse to raise a glass to crafting your own draught. Making beer at home isn’t just for bearded hipsters or science geeks. With a little patience, you can whip up your own brew right in your kitchen.
Equipment
- A large pot (at least 5 litres, but bigger is better)
- Fermenter (a plastic or glass bucket with a lid and airlock)
- Sanitiser
- Thermometer
- Siphon tube
- Bottles (clean ones with caps or swing-tops)
- Bottle capper (if using caps)
- Hydrometer (optional, but helps measure alcohol content)
Ingredients
- Malt extract (liquid or dry)
- Hops
- Yeast (ale yeast is easiest to work with)
- Water
- Sugar (for carbonation later)
Method
- Sanitise all your equipment. Anything that touches your beer (from spoons to buckets) must be spotless, or bacteria could ruin the batch.
- Fill a large pot with water and bring it to a gentle boil. Stir in the malt extract until dissolved.
- Add hops according to your recipe. Some go in early for bitterness, others later for aroma.
- Boil for 30–60 minutes, then cool the mixture as quickly as possible. An ice bath in the sink works well.
- Pour the cooled wort into your fermenter. Add water if needed to reach your batch size (usually around 20 litres).
- Add the yeast, seal the lid, and fit the airlock. Place the fermenter in a dark, cool spot (18–22°C) and leave it for at least 7 days.
- Watch for bubbles in the airlock after a day or two – that’s the yeast turning sugar into alcohol and CO₂.
- Once fermentation is complete (no bubbles and beer looks clear), boil a small amount of sugar in water and stir it into the beer to help it carbonate.
- Use a siphon to transfer the beer into clean bottles, avoiding the sediment at the bottom.
- Cap the bottles and store at room temperature for 1–2 weeks.
- Chill a bottle, pour gently, and enjoy.
Tips:
- You can also buy pre-measured beer kits that contain everything, which is a great option for beginners.
- Ensure you add the correct amount of sugar. Too little will result in flat beer, while too much can cause bottles to explode.
- Make sure the yeast isn’t expired, and don’t add it to hot water as it can kill the yeast and stop fermentation.
