Adjunct
Ginger
Fresh or dried ginger, adding heat and pungency, traditional in some winter and spiced beers.
Fresh ginger and dried ginger are not interchangeable. Fresh carries gingerol, which is bright and hot in the mouth; drying converts much of it to shogaol, which is hotter still and less aromatic. A recipe written for one and brewed with the other lands somewhere else entirely.
The heat builds through a glass rather than arriving at once, so a beer that seems modestly spiced on the first sip can be tiring by the end. It is one of the few adjuncts where the right dose depends on how much of the beer someone is going to drink.
What it is for
Spice. Aromatic, potent by weight, and usually added late so the volatile character survives into the glass.
- Adds warmth and pungency
Whether it ferments
| Fermentable | No — brewing yeast cannot take it, so whatever goes in stays in. It contributes flavour, and where it is a sugar, sweetness and body that survive into the glass. |
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What it contributes
The contribution of the ingredient, not the profile of a finished beer. How much of it reaches the glass depends on quantity, timing and what else is in the recipe.