For some reason many people enjoy brewing home made root beer, but face some difficulty in finding the right ingredients that yield the flavor they are looking for. For the most part, root beer is flavored with sassafras, but since the root contains safrole, a known carcinogen, the Food and Drug Administration has banned its sales in the United States, and other parts of the plant are used.

However, most people trying to make home made root beer simply go to the store and buy root beer flavoring, found in the spice aisle in most grocery stores. The root beer can be carbonated either naturally or mechanically by injecting carbon dioxide into the drink before it is bottled. The trouble some have with using the mechanical means is the cost of the unit and the fact that it can only carbonate one bottle at a time. When making home made root beer, dry yeast can be used for natural carbonation, which can cause explosive problems if not done right.

When sugar and yeast is mixed with water, the yeast will grow causing the carbonation in the drink. It will not stop growing until the sugar is gone, which is why many times even when placed in cold surroundings, bottles have been known to explode due to too much carbonation.

Using Recipe, Follow Instructions Closely

If you are using a recipe, especially one from a spice mix, follow all directions closely, especially concerning timing of certain steps. Starting with a quart of warm water and mixing in two cups of sugar, one teaspoon of yeast and two tablespoons of root beer extract calls for the home made root beer to sit covered, not capped, for six hours before tightening the lid and putting it in the refrigerator.

Putting the lid on too tight too soon can make the bottle explode due to excess carbonation from the yeast’s action with the sugar. Another recipe for home made root beer calls for basically the same ingredients, except it uses two and a half cups of sugar and after six hours of sitting uncovered, goes into the refrigerator overnight. Some people have found that the mess from potentially bursting bottles can be minimized by putting the bottles in a covered tub. If they do explode, the mess is contained.

Some concern exists that allowing the home made root beer to ferment alcohol will permeate the beverage, and while there may be some alcohol, it will not typically be anymore that shows up in fresh squeezed citrus juice.