OVHA Chat

Some good friends of my parents passed this recipe to me that their father used to make in his big crock.

1 Corn Malt
1 Cake Yeast
5-7 lbs sugar
2 teaspoons salt
8-9 gal water
2 potatoes peeled

Enjoy!

WOW!!!! Looks like something we should consider for Big Brew. I'll bring the potatoes. (I bet with all that sugar and a cake of bread yeast the fermentation was fast)

From Post:

1 Corn Malt ? (i wonder if that's 1 lb?)
1 Cake Yeast
5-7 lbs sugar
2 teaspoons salt (regular salt?**see comment below)
8-9 gal water
2 potatoes peeled

I have some questions an comments and would love to help with any projects that may develop.Really sounds interesting.I love crazy brewing ideas.

** An old friend,now deceased,once told me that he added a pinch of salt to each bottle at priming to take the 'wang' out of it.
He brewed only one recipe which called for several pounds of sugar.I believe the 'wang' he was referring to must have been the tartness or cidery flavor associated with cane sugar brewing.I never tasted his brew as he was no longer brewing at the time.I also thing he did some form of open fermentation with no secondary phase,just a towel or sompm' over a crock.Wish he would have taught me his technique before he croaked.

This sounds like my uncles dad's setup. My uncle said he would put a cheese cloth over the crock an keep it under the basement stairs. Many times bottles would explode in the basement. Speaking of the old school ... Here is a George Washington recipe you might like:
Take a large Sifter full of Bran Hops to your taste- Boil these 3 hours then strain out 30 gallons. Into a cooler put in 3 Gallons Molasses while the beer is scalding hot or rather drain the molasses into the cooler. Strain the beer on it while boiling hot let this stand til it is a little more than Blood warm. Then put in a quart of yeast if the weather is very cold cover it with a blanket - & Let it work in the cooler 24 hours then put it into the cask- leave the bung open til it is almost done working- bottle it that day week it was brewed.
I am not sure what a cooler is in 1777 but then again what is a sifter full? Rock on yall.