Brewing with Chaga

A spot to talk general homebrew
Post Reply
JSD
Registered User
Registered User
Posts: 2
Joined: Wed Mar 22, 2017 2:21 pm

Brewing with Chaga

Post by JSD » Sun Apr 09, 2017 9:03 am

Just curious if anyone has brewed with chaga or chaga tea before. I have heard numerous methods and ratios for making the tea, and whether or not to add it in the boil, secondary fermentation, etc. Does anyone have any experience or info on this? Thanks

User avatar
joe_r_harvie
Registered User
Registered User
Posts: 90
Joined: Fri Mar 27, 2015 8:10 pm
Name: Joe Harvie
Location: Middle River, Cape Breton

Re: Brewing with Chaga

Post by joe_r_harvie » Mon Apr 10, 2017 7:20 pm

I have never done it but I have looked into it a bit. The flavour is very subtle not noticeable from what I have read from those who have done it. I plan to use it as a colour adjustment in one of my bitters. I would add it during secondary fermentation. Lots of antioxidants. Good luck.
Primary -
Secondary -
On tap - Golden Ale, Standard Bitter, Best Bitter, Blonde, Best Bitter, Premium Bitter, IPA

Kevin James
Verified User
Verified User
Posts: 9
Joined: Wed Mar 08, 2017 6:49 pm
Name: Kevin McFarlane
Location: Greenwood
Contact:

Re: Brewing with Chaga

Post by Kevin James » Wed Apr 26, 2017 11:29 pm

I've never brewed with it, but I did try some brewed by a friend. I have never had chaga tea before, so I couldn't pick it out.

Roger from Big Axe Brewery in New Brunswick makes a Chaga beer, maybe you could send him an email.

User avatar
oceanic_brew
Verified User
Verified User
Posts: 625
Joined: Wed Aug 26, 2015 6:14 pm
Name: Glen O'Keefe

Re: Brewing with Chaga

Post by oceanic_brew » Mon May 01, 2017 3:22 pm

I spent 5 hrs in Spider lake trails near waverly in NS on Saturday in search of chaga for this very reason.

Looked up and down nearly ever birch tree within a hundred feet or so of the trail and nothing.

User avatar
joe_r_harvie
Registered User
Registered User
Posts: 90
Joined: Fri Mar 27, 2015 8:10 pm
Name: Joe Harvie
Location: Middle River, Cape Breton

Re: Brewing with Chaga

Post by joe_r_harvie » Sun May 07, 2017 8:42 am

I see it quite often in Cape Breton (I work in the woods). Large yellow birch trees are where you want to look. It can be anywhere on the tree and looks like a burned cyst. They usually range from baseball to football size. Sometimes it grows on white birch too. I am making my next bitter with Chaga just for the health benefit. Rather than adding my regular black malt for colour adjustment I plan to steep the chaga directly in the secondary. Will let you know how it turns out.
Primary -
Secondary -
On tap - Golden Ale, Standard Bitter, Best Bitter, Blonde, Best Bitter, Premium Bitter, IPA

User avatar
oceanic_brew
Verified User
Verified User
Posts: 625
Joined: Wed Aug 26, 2015 6:14 pm
Name: Glen O'Keefe

Re: Brewing with Chaga

Post by oceanic_brew » Sun May 07, 2017 10:38 am

If I can get enough I'm gonna make it a habit to put chaga in any dark brew I make.

A friend and some online searches told me that you need to steep it for hours to get everything out of it. I used a slow cooker on some a while back and it worked great.

I'll probably slow cook it starting early in the morning before brewing and add it to the kettle after boil.

Post Reply

Return to “General Homebrew Discussion”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 19 guests