When apples are in season make this naturally fermented apple ginger beer. It’s made with a ginger bug and is super fizzy and delicious!
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Fermenting Apples and Ginger
Fall is the season for apples, and apples and ginger go together spectacularly!
Ever since I first made a ginger bug, I knew that I wanted to make ginger beer with it, as that’s its traditional use. But then I got the great idea to make fermented apple ginger beer, and I knew that was it. I had to make it!
This is probably one of the tastiest naturally fermented drinks that I’ve made, and I will for sure be making it again and again!
First Step: Make the Ginger Bug
The first step in making this apple ginger beer is to make a ginger bug, which is a fermented starter made up of grated ginger, sugar, and water.
Learn how to make a ginger bug here
It will take a few days to get it going, but once it’s bubbling nicely then you can proceed with the recipe.
Make the Fermented Apple Ginger Beer
This is actually a very simple recipe to make and doesn’t require much as long as you have the ginger bug made up already.
You will need to get a gallon of apple cider (juice, not hard cider) that doesn’t have any preservatives in it, as they will hinder fermentation.
You can always make your own apple cider with a DIY press if apples are in season!
Pour most of the apple cider (juice) into a wide mouth gallon jar, leaving several inches of head space (you will have a few cups of unused cider left over).
Add the ginger slices, sugar, and ginger bug to the cider and stir well to dissolve the sugar.
Cover the jar with a cheesecloth and rubberband, and put in a cool and dark place to ferment, stirring vigorously daily with a wooden spoon.
Ferment and Bottle the Apple Ginger Beer
After a day or two you should start to see some active fermentation. Let it ferment for 5-7 days, then strain with a fine mesh strainer and transfer to flip top bottles using a small funnel.
Let the bottles sit at room temperature for a day or two to build up carbonation, then refrigerate.
Be extra careful not to bottle too soon so that you don’t get exploding bottles. If fermentation hasn’t died down after a week I would wait a little bit longer before you transfer to bottles.
This apple ginger beer is a new favorite. It was super fizzy and delicious! You can see a video of of the fizzy bubbles in action here!
This apple ginger beer does have some amount of alcohol, probably equivalent to a beer. If you want it a little stronger or sweeter, add a little bit more sugar.
What I love about fermenting is that many times it is so much easier than expected, and that is definitely true for this apple ginger beer. Plus it’s tasty and refreshing!
Homemade Fermented Beverages
Here are a few more naturally fermented drink recipes:
- Fermented Elderberry Soda
- Strawberry Rhubarb Soda
- Fermented Root Beer
- Hard Cider with Wild Yeast
- Mugwort Lemon Beer
Fermented Apple Ginger Beer
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 gallon apple cider juice, not hard cider (without preservatives)
- 1 inch piece of fresh ginger cut into slices
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup ginger bug
Instructions
- Pour most of the apple cider (juice) into a wide mouth gallon jar, leaving several inches of head space (you will have a few cups of unused cider left over).
- Add the ginger slices, sugar, and ginger bug to the cider and stir well to dissolve the sugar.
- Cover the jar with a cheesecloth and rubberband, and put in a cool and dark place to ferment, stirring vigorously daily with a wooden spoon.
- After a day or two you should start to see some active fermentation. Let it ferment for 5-7 days, then strain with a fine mesh strainer and transfer to flip top bottles using a small funnel.
- Let the bottles sit at room temperature for a day or two to build up carbonation, then refrigerate.
Notes
- Learn how to make a ginger bug here.
- Be extra careful not to bottle too soon so that you don’t get exploding bottles. If fermentation hasn’t died down after a week I would wait a little bit longer before you transfer to bottles.
- Apple ginger beer does contain alcohol, about equivalent to a normal beer. If you want it a little stronger or sweeter, add a little bit more sugar.
I have made a ton of ferments and this one by far was my favourite (other than my hotsauce!). after a couple weeks bottled in the fridge it tasted even better and was super fizzy. I had to open it in the sink LOL good sign. the only thing I did different was use an airlock! I”m so addicted I just harvested one of my grapevines and did almost 5 gallons of juiced concords….It’s bottled up right now and I can’t wait to see how it compares to the apple….I noticed my neighbour hasn’t harvested their pears….I can’t stop…won’t stop. LOL I’m going to see how long they last unopened in the fridge. I may have to burp them once in a while i’m thinking. seems they age well in the fridge so far. whoop! try this recipe! oh! and if you see some scum on the top, let the ferment continue….it will disappear as the good bacteria and yeasts fight like jedi against the dark sith.
I am so glad you liked this recipe! Let me know how a variation with your neighbor’s pears turns out!!
Seeing this is an old post. I hope someone will reply. I am wanting to make this for a Christmas gift. How long will this keep once refrigerated? I would like to tell the recipient how quickly she will need to use it. TIA! (I am a total newbie here – this will be my second fermenting project!)
It’ll last for several months refrigerated!
i swear my second bottle tasted better than the first bottle and the only difference is the second bottle waited in the fridge a couple more weeks.
Hi! I finally got around to making the ginger bug! I originally saw you on your fb live class, which was great btw! I cant find the video of it though. I just want to make the ginger beer first. Then I will try the apple cider one. Can you point me to the video of the ginger beer?
Hi Jen. I’m a little confused because I haven’t done a FB live class, so that may be why you can’t find the video. I don’t have a video for making ginger beer, only this recipe for fermented apple ginger beer.
Hi! Do we still sanitize all equipment and bottle according to your cider/mead instructions? Or would that negatively impact the fermentation? Super excited to try this, and elderberry soda with the ginger bug!
Hi Jenny, Yes, you can sanitize everything.
Absolutely delicious. I’ve enjoyed making the bug, then making the apple ginger beer. I took some to a party this evening and it was widely received as very tasty.
I’m so glad to hear that, Tracey! Thanks for sharing!
Are you able to use apple cider (juice, not hard) that has been refrigerated, or best to only use cider that has not been cooled in the fridge.
Hi David. As long your cider isn’t fermented (hard cider) and doesn’t contain preservatives, it’ll work in this recipe.
Yum! So excited for this. Question: I accidentally added 1 cup of ginger bug rather than 1/2 cup. Should I add another gallon of cider to make the proportions right? Worried about busting those bottles…. Thank you!
Hi Anna. Yes, I would probably just double the recipe otherwise your apple ginger beer may be overpoweringly gingery.
I’m a big fan of your fermenting recipes! I’ve made the mead and hard cider, but making “beer” with the ginger bug has to be my favorite! I’m planning to try this out with other juices like pear and peach. Other than ensuring they have no preservatives in them, do you advise anything else?
Hi Isabella! I’m so happy you’re enjoying my fermentation recipes! Besides using fruit juices that have no preservatives, I like them to also be organic!
I live in the inner city, cars literally slowed to see what the hell I was doing in the bushes when I was picking apples yesterday. I wasn’t prepared for how dark, thick, and foamy fresh apple juice would be. I let it sit for a while. It sort of separated. I scooped off the foamy saucy bits from the top of my jar. Then I strained, which helped removed more of the solids.
Not going to lie. The juice is NOTHING like the bottled stuff I’ve had my whole life. I feel cheated. Fresh apple juice is AMAZING! This discovery doesn’t bode well for the ignored wild apple trees in my area. Today is only the second day of fermentation. I tasted a bit and it’s already so good and its only going to get better from here! I can’t wait! Super excited
That is so wonderful to hear, Cia! Enjoy!
I’m not quite sure how it should taste. First sip was boozy and yeasty. Has a dry finish.
Could I make this without added sugar? Apple juice is sooooo sweet already.
Hi Christina, yes you could, but it will end up being very low in alcohol and more like soda. So it just depends on what you are aiming for. The sugar acts as food for the natural yeast in the ginger bug, and there isn’t much left after the fermentation.
So, if I wanted to make this nonalcoholic for my kids to drink, at which step would I not add (or add less) sugar? Thanks!
You would either omit all or some of the sugar in step 2 where the sugar is added.
Should I strain the ginger pieces from my ginger bug when adding it in?
Hi, Reb! Yes, you can do that.
Did everything down to the letter – sanitized everything, and even bottled in the bottle the juice came in – and had mold build up on top overnight after 3 days. Had to dump the entire batch. I can’t rate the recipe because I don’t know how it would have turned out, but it definitely wasn’t what the picture showed. Can anyone tell me what I did wrong or how I could have prevented that from happening?
There’s no way for me to tell you what you did wrong or if what you dumped out was mold without a picture. Unless it was black mold, typically, brewers will rack from beneath the layer of anything questionable as the beer itself is just fine.
Ouuuuuffff i feel so bad for you. I had the same looking thing but after a few more days it was completely gone and the fermentation of good stuff took over. it was the most delicious freaking thing I have ever tasted in my whole life. when you have fermenation….the good bacteria and yeasts take over the bad ones….you threw up perfectly good ginger beer!
It look so good, I really want to try this recipe! What would be the quantity of each ingredient to make only a liter of cider? I plan on using a Mason jar to do so. Thanks!
Hi there, has anyone heard of using ginger bug to make wine? It seems to be popular for beer/soda but haven’t been able to find anything about it in wine.
Loved this drink! I’m defrosting cider right now to make more for this spring. So many uses for the ginger bug as well.
Can this recipe be made with juniper berry starter instead?
I haven’t tried it, but I think it could work.
Do you have any idea what the shelf life might be.
When you say Apple cider juice – is this just cider I’d buy from the liquor store? Thanks
I don’t think so. It’s specifically says “not hard cider” so it would be stuff from the grocery store without any alcohol.
I just made 8 gallons and it fermented for 7 days and it’s bottled. In 2 days will check the carbonation. Was wondering instead of refrigerating to stop the fermentation can I pasteurize it by letting it sit in a pot of hot water to kill the yeast? Or will it ruin the carbonation?
Is it possible to substitute honey for sugar in both the ginger bug process and apple ginger beer recipe?
Thanks!
Hi Ally, I’ve heard of people doing that with mixed results. I’ve never tried it myself, so I can’t say for sure.
Have you tried letting the drink ferment dry?
This recipe actually ends up being pretty dry! I love it :)
Does your nutrition facts include all of the sugar added at the beginning or do you think there may be less due to the yeast?
Hi! if I don’t have a wide mouth gallon jar can I use a carboy instead or would it be better to use smaller canning jars and just split up?
Thanks!
A carboy wouldn’t work so well because it needs to be stirred daily. You can split it up into smaller wide mouth jars if you prefer, but honestly it would be easiest to just get a wide mouth gallon jar!
I made 8 gallons. I bottled them and will leave out for 2 days to let carbonation buildup. Can I pasteurize the bottles in a pot of hot water to kill the fermentation since I won’t have room in my refrigerator to store all the bottles? Will this affect the carbonation?
Heat definitely affects carbonation. CO2 dissolves best in cold liquids. The higher the temp, the less soluble the CO2 is. So it you hear it, you’ll ruin the carbonation like when you let a soda get warm and it goes flat.
My mixture has been brewing a couple of days now, I always freak out cause the film on the top. My film is white,maybe a little fuzzy. Should it be like this?
A while film is ok, probably just yeast. Anything fuzzy or mold-like is not good and I would toss.
Thinking of trying this with a natural cola recipe basically lemon, lime, oranges, cinnamon, vanilla, coriander seeds, nutmeg. Think this could work?
I made this after a failed attempt to make rhubarb only based on your strawberry-rhubarb recipe (I think I let it sit too long — super yeasty, not very tasty).
I watched this batch more closely, and only 3 days after being on the counter, it was bubbling away, so I bottled, then 2 days later, popped them bottles to make sure they weren’t about to explode, and they were already SUPER carbonated! I tasted, and it is amazing! Bottles safely tucked into fridge now, and looking forward to trying other recipes!
Thank you for your knowledge sharing!
Great stuff. I do a lot of meads myself and love to use local nature flavors. ITs amazing what you can get out of great honey and fruits, berries and flavors locally .. :)
I understand there is no scoby (the mushroom to start Kombucha for those reading this and arent familiar with the term,), but how close is the taste of Ginger beer to a ginger Kombucha? I am wanting to expand my fermenting choices
This ginger beer tastes similar to hard cider with a kick of ginger. It definitely has a higher alcohol content than kombucha.
Sue—a scobi isn’t a mushroom.
I’ll have to try this! Last year, I tried fermenting honey-water with a ginger bug into a ginger mead, but it didn’t work too well. Apples probably are easier for the ginger bug to eat! Great idea. :)
Your recipe looks awesome, and it just happens that apple cider is on sale at a local grocery store. I keep a ginger bug (and a turmeric bug, too) going all the time and really enjoy experimenting with unusual combinations. Thanks for posting this one.
Where to buy this kind of apple ginger beer? I’m interested with this. Looks like delicious.
Looks delicious, I’ve only made plain ginger beer and a tumeric ale.