Nettle ale

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall recipes Nettle ale recipe

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Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

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Date Published:
16/10/2008

Hugh:

"We love nettles at River Cottage, turning them into everything from soup to gnocchi and tagliatelle and, yes, beer."

Ingredients

  • 6l water
  • A small carrier bag of nettle tops, washed
  • Juice of 1 lemon, strained
  • Juice of 1 orange, strained
  • 750g caster sugar
  • 30g cream of tartar
  • 5g yeast

Method: How to make nettle ale

1. Bring the water to the boil in a large pan.

2. Add nettles, stir, then remove the pan from the heat and leave to infuse for at least an hour until it is at blood temperature.

3. Carefully - you might want to enlist a helper at this point - strain the nettle liquid through a colander lined with a large piece of unbleached muslin into a large brewing bucket or pan. Once the liquid has filtered through, squeeze the muslin to get the maximum amount of liquid into the bucket.

4. Gradually add the sugar, stirring constantly to ensure it is thoroughly dissolved, then add the cream of tartar, and lemon and orange juice.

5. Finally, once the mixture is tepid, stir in the yeast. Cover and leave for 2-3 days in a warm place, until it’s obviously fermenting.

6. Remove any scum which has risen to the top in fermentation and siphon the beer into sterilised bottles and seal with corks.

7. Leave for at least a couple more days or up to a month before drinking.



© River Cottage

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  1. Hi Hugh, I would just like to say how much we have appreciated watching your program for the first time here in australia. My wife and I live on 20 Acres in the beautiful Adelaide Hills while working full time in schools. We have very similar interests and beliefs in produce/life style etc that you obviously have as comes through on your show. What a better world it would be if we all tried to be more self sufficient and not so wasteful. I am working with 14 -18 yr olds in a school that has a focus on 'green' and sustainability within the metropolitan area of Adelaide. Part of our aims are to inspire young people to help look after themselves and our planet in a more sustainable manner. I have vegie patches started and also working with 'Aquaponics' I hope that we will see more of your program here in the near future. Thanks again Malcolm Burgan
    Posted by malcolm burgan on 12/11/2009 00:08:41
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  2. I want to try making this beer an am a very keen brewer, but what type of yeast is used ???
    Posted by Craig on 10/11/2009 08:19:52
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  3. have been brewing beer for ages and thought i would give this a go, tasted very good but not sure if i would call it beer. I brewed it using my norml home brew equipment and brewed in the same way which meant i did not bottle it for 14 days, stopped any spill overs and was far less temperamentl. very good brew, have also tried the same recipe with rocket tht has ust gone to seed (also very nice)
    Posted by greg on 15/10/2009 08:27:02
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  4. I've tasted Hughes nettle beer at a pub in Lulworth - it was lovely! so i just had to try making my own, but just been to the shops to but ingredients and have started making the beer. have now realised that i have normal yeast not a ale yeast or anything some previous comments mention :S quite worried what will happen does anyone know?!
    Posted by JENNNA on 14/10/2009 15:56:01
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  5. i've tasted hughes nettle beer at a pub in lulworth - it was lovely! so i just had to try making my own, but just been to the shops to but ingredients and have started making the beer. have now realised that i have normal yeast not a ale yeast or anything some previous comments mention :S quite worried what will happen does anyone know?!
    Posted by Jenna on 14/10/2009 15:52:53
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  6. Will the ale go the same way as my Elderflower Champagne? Which has managed to decant itself all over the utility room on many occations( and yes I did let out some fizz every few days) Well think I will give a go anyway!
    Posted by Pat on 13/10/2009 09:05:20
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  7. Tried this in April and it worked a treat. Had a party and everybody loved it. Yes it is quite explosive but that's half the fun. Hugh bottles it a bit too early I think. I still have 1 bottle in my fridge so it's about 4/5 months old now, will it still be drinkable?
    Posted by Steven on 14/09/2009 12:17:39
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  8. just made some nettle beer and am bottling up tomorrow, but dont hold out much hope for it, it doesnt smell very nice, it is fizzing though. perhaps it was because the nettles used werent spring ones which seems to be important from reading other websites, tried the elderflower champagne and that has worked great, oh well will just have to wait and see on this one.
    Posted by jacob mills on 29/07/2009 00:45:06
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  9. made nettle ale about 3 weeks ago,still in ikea style bottles,still quite cloudy with sediment at bottom of bottle.is this normal?also what alcohol percentage does it average?
    Posted by branwell on 09/07/2009 10:55:33
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  10. is cider yeast the same as wine yeast??????
    Posted by colm finnegan on 18/06/2009 21:38:16
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  11. Hi for the nettle beer how much wine yeast is used please.
    Posted by Barbara on 13/06/2009 00:37:35
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  12. Followed recipe, I was up til 2am mixing - phew! what a smell. At 1.30am wifey came downstairs she thought she had pooed her self in bed only to discover it was the brew! This morning she was much happier as it actually smells like proper beer. Think I'll leave it to stand for an extra day or two judging by earlier comments. Can't wait to try finished product.
    Posted by Terry on 29/05/2009 00:24:51
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  13. I followed this recipe to the letter and bottled after 3 days of fermentation. The beer looked to be still fermenting still but I continued. I bottled and left them in my garage a week later one bottle blew up! I subsequently removed the caps from the remaining bottles as the beer was very lively, emptyed back into the fermentation bin (sterilised). During this process I lost easily a third of my beer and my garden resmbled the podium at the end of a fomular 1 race. I was covered in the liquid, tasted alright mind. Now leaving to clear in a couple of demis and allow to gas off.
    Posted by Graham G on 21/05/2009 07:46:43
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  14. hi, when you say leave covered for 2-3 days do you mean in a demijohn with a fitted air lock or just leave in a container and cover with a cloth?
    Posted by fil on 18/05/2009 20:59:40
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  15. I just tried this - the mixture was SO fizzy, it exploded! Also, it tasted foul!!!
    Posted by Stephen on 26/04/2009 07:23:08
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  16. " Hi,for the ingredients of " Nettle Ale" it says 61 water does this mean 6 litres of water? Thanks, Andrew. Posted by Andrew on 16/01/2009 13:45:33 " It says 6l not 61, and yeah it's 6 liters of water you need. Hope that clears it up a bit. :D
    Posted by Mark on 20/04/2009 11:09:30
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  17. hi hugh ireally like your programmes and get really inspired to do my bit, i'm looking forward to making som nettle ale as i have an abundance of nettles on my door step, i,m hoping to be enjoyning some ale in the next month or so, the only problem i have is that the bottles i'm going to use are full of cider so i'll have to sort that out soon!! cheers hugh.
    Posted by chris reading on 18/03/2009 22:33:46
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  18. Hi,for the ingredients of " Nettle Ale" it says 61 water does this mean 6 litres of water? Thanks Colin
    Posted by teg on 14/02/2009 19:56:42
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  19. I am really looking forward to brewing this beer in my country /Ethiopia/ as soon as i go back.what type of yeast i can use? i don't think i will be able to buy crem of tartar their, what can i use? thanks Bitu
    Posted by Bitu on 05/02/2009 17:56:50
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  20. Hi,for the ingredients of " Nettle Ale" it says 61 water does this mean 6 litres of water? Thanks, Andrew.
    Posted by Andrew on 16/01/2009 13:45:33
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  21. I am really looking farward to brewing this beer in the spring. For practical and economy reasons, from now on I will be saving all cola/lemonade bottles to put my beer in as this aviods extra expence and the odd explosion. Love the programme Hugh and what you are trying to achieve, but some parts I have to look away concerning the animals. I also love free food from the hedge rows. WELL DONE!
    Posted by Hazel Tredgett on 16/01/2009 12:19:40
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  22. Has anyone actually tried the nettle Ale yet? Id like to know if it tastes good. Ive had server attempts at home brew before but using a homebrew kit and ive never had much success. Also what does anyone know what kind of strength it come out at?
    Posted by Matt on 02/12/2008 18:05:13
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  23. i made some nettle ale, and the whole time it was brewing for some reason i thought it wouldn't work but it has and tastes like a cross between lambrini and champagne :-)
    Posted by stuE on 16/11/2008 19:28:07
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  24. I aked what type of yeast on a rivercottage.net forum the people on there have used brewers yeast with sucsess so am going to try that. Hope this helps those of you that were wondering about what type of yeast.
    Posted by alisoncripps on 06/11/2008 16:59:49
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  25. Hello, Made Nettle Ale as per your recipe. Am at day 3. Bit scared... at no pointdo you say it will resemble greyish custard, smells OK though. Policeman next door (who will drink pretty much anything) says he wont drink it. Is it bad, should I wait or do somthing else, or bottle it and damn the consequesces ??? Help please. Sarah.
    Posted by Sarah on 05/11/2008 18:30:04
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  26. I'm looking forward to brewing this stuff! although, is it possible to substitute the nettles for other things e.g strawberries, raspberries, other suggestions welcome...
    Posted by Ross Murdoch on 05/11/2008 11:15:30
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  27. I also would like to make the nettle beer, but am unsure of what type of yeast to use and where to get it!
    Posted by Karen on 05/11/2008 10:17:24
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  28. would like to know what type of yeast is used for the nettle ale, is it brewers yeast?
    Posted by alison cripps on 03/11/2008 14:48:25
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  29. Hi Great programme on Sunday, although I can't watch when the animals are killed and dressed, love to watch the cooking of them and how they look after. Would eat it all as well.... Am making the nettle ale this weekend and wondered if you could let me know where I could get the bottles with the sealed caps like Hugh used... Great prog!!!
    Posted by Vicki on 03/11/2008 12:55:34
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  30. excellent programme, very informative and recipes work and taste great . I love forraging for food in the autumn live near the sea so will be looking for wild parsnips tomorrow . thanks from Ireland
    Posted by sylvia on 02/11/2008 23:14:03
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  31. Hi guys, you havent said which type of yeast you used in the nettle ale. Was it beer yeast?
    Posted by V Beattie on 02/11/2008 08:42:44
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  32. Hi Hugh and team! Thanks for a fantastic fun way to teach our children about food and nature around us. We regularly go berry picking - by the raodside of course, and have taken to growing our own veg. Plums were brill this year!!! My son wants to go squirrel hunting, can anyone do this or do they have to get permission? Maybe you could start a cyulling of greys and then we could reintroduce the red squirrels - my son says. We live in Scotland and have plenty near us. we look forward to many more inspiring episodes of information to get us out there enjoying free food. Thanks The Ross family
    Posted by ROSSIES on 01/11/2008 14:21:28
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  33. I'd love to visit the Bristol gang to see how they have put the whole thing together, is this possible?
    Posted by judy on 30/10/2008 20:23:01
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