Stinging nettles beer?

[yopappamon]

Anyone ever made stinging nettles beer?

Basically sounds like boil nettle leave to make a tea, then add sugar and ferment.

I have lots of nettles in the yard, was wondering if it would be worth trying?

[nutnspecial]

Those plants are evil, most especially to active woodland nudists.

I would totally drink one though, what a pleasant idea for the strange plants.

http://www.instructables.com/id/British ... ttle-Beer/

nettles_1726173c.jpg (40.9 KiB) Viewed 1786 times

It's fun to make a $100+ cases of microbrew

[yopappamon]

Those plants are evil

No kidding! I've been harvesting the seeds and have been stung many times.

I might just try to make a batch

[nutnspecial]

I say go for it! The most interesting thing I've heard of to brew with. I'm surprised they don't suggest any hopps though, maybe it'd be better to start with a mix?

Our biggest local distributor is gravitating into the home brew- they have all the stuff now (and of course there's the net).
I've never done it, but helped some dudes in KY once. Just finishing/out of college and they were doing a food club providing fresh organic breads, vegetables and beer. The brews were nothing to sneeze at, well above guiness etc imo.
Only thing I could suggest to them was also to check out growing shitake for another decent addition to the 'menu'.

[Dauntless]

Does this make green beer, like St. Patty's day?

Does it sting while drink it? I mean, does it get your tongue, or your throat?

So I take the stinging nettle when my allergies are going at it, seems I can feel the difference. Yeah, drink it on St. Patty's, just in time for hay fever season.

[yopappamon]

Looks like it turns brown when you boil the leaves . The sting is gone after you boil. It would be very nasty if it didn't

[nutnspecial]

Maybe it can help build up some sort of immunity to them?
I guess any beer would start to do that though

http://www.ehow.com/how_2278523_treat-s ... ettle.html
Very interesting, no wonder the sting is worse as you make contact with greater speed.

[The fingers]

In our local mountains we treat the nettle stings with Wyethia helenioides (Mule's Ear) leaves which usually can be found growing nearby.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wyethia_helenioides
Not sure if it will work in other areas of the West where similar plant varieties grow.
http://www.swcoloradowildflowers.com/Ye ... yethia.htm

[yopappamon]

I got sidetracked by shagbark hickory. I read you can make syrup from hickory bark. I thought if you can make syrup, not a stretch to make beer. Making the tea right now. Seems like it could be a really good flavor for a beer, little smokey, little maple flavor

[nutnspecial]

In that case, maybe it's possible to make 'actual' birch beer too? All that stuff has sugars me thinks.
I wonder if it tastes like birch soda, or birch branches.

Surprisingly, hickory beer has less internet presence than the stinging nettles. I wouldof faild that quiz :-/

Have fun!

Ps, what's your favorite brewer source, or is realcore brewing too grassroots for that?

[yopappamon]

The tea was very interesting and different. Smokey and woody flavor.

Making another batch with some nuts in the mix to add the sweeter, maple flavor.

[yopappamon]

Racking a batch of Hickory beer.

[yopappamon]

I just put up a batch of nettle beer. Smells a lot like spinach. Hope it smells better when it's done.

Added a little baked hickory bark to add a smokey flavor, and a little hyssop for a slight mint flavor.

The OG was a lot lower than when I do a beer kit, not sure if I screwed something up or if that's normal.

[The fingers]

Nettles tea was used to cut the $10 lids of raspy/seedy commercial pot common in the 1960's.

[markz]

I honestly do not like the taste of beer, never did. I will put up with it.
I went to some new bar in Banff a week ago, tried some of their in-house craft beer. What I always say to everyone of those bartenders is,
"Pour me something that tastes like Kokanee, or Kokanee Gold, or Rickards Red"
and I drink it, and its awful.
The only beer close to it, is a french beer, 1664 which I found while in Marsielles France on my World Tour.
Even then I still would prefer a mixed drink. Vodka is my downfall. My health is showing it now.

[yopappamon]

The nettles beer was undrinkable. Foul, bitter, vinegar tasting.

The hickory beer was very good. I liked that a lot.

But now is cider time. Have 15 gallons of cider and 5 gallons of perry fermenting. Another 10 bushels of apples awaiting pressing.

[AussieRider]

Yeth. Nettleth beer ith a good idea if you get it right. I thuppoth I mutht have got it wrong but JaJa Binkth knowth my pain. Theriouthly though, hopth ith a dithtant relative of the nettle family.

AussieRider

[nutnspecial]

Lol, how could I forget about this wonderful plant. . . . found some by accident riding by river thru weeds. 3 hrs later my legs were still tingling lol. Went down today and picked a couple stalks and paid the price with my bare hands, but the payout was priceless when I started handing it out to acquaintences and neighbors - the guy with the boosted board tried to sniff it

http://www.idyllwild.com/needle.html