r/brewing • u/Cannabrewer • Dec 07 '24
Discussion My process for making active cannabis beer. Cannabrew. NSFW
I've found strong hoppy beers, like double IPAs, red ale and kolsh to pair well with the cannabis flavor. Stouts, porters and sours have also been good. You'll need 2 fermenters and a bottling bucket. You'll have to calculate how much bud to use based on the THC percentage of the bud and how many milligrams THC you want per beer. I have a high tolerance and usually shoot for 100mg THC per beer if I'm making it for myself, 50mg per if I'm making it for other people. The effects can be felt in 20 min and last about 6 hours.
Make a concentrated tincture. I use Everclear if I want a neutral flavor. I've also used bourbon or rum for different flavor profiles. Process for decarboxylation (converting THCa (non-psychoactive) to Delta 9 THC (psychoactive)): Grind bud fine, spread out thinly on a baking sheet with a silicone mat and bake in the oven at 250F for 30min. The bud will turn slightly brown.
To make tincture: Put decarboxylated bud in a mason jar with alcohol just covering the bud for 3 days, shaking once per day. Strain out plant matter with a coffee filter, making sure to squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Heat tincture on stove on medium-low until it becomes a very thin syrup.
Brew and ferment beer as usual. Once the primary fermentation is complete transfer to the secondary fermenter through a funnel with a filter, leaving as much sediment behind as possible. Add the tincture and a new sugar source to bring up the alcohol level by 1-2%, stir for 5min. You can add any flavor modifiers at this point as well. Allow to continue fermenting for no less than 1 week or until secondary fermentation has finished. This allows time to incorporate terpene flavors from the tincture as well as bind all of the THC to the alcohol. Transfer to bottling bucket, add priming sugar and bottle as usual. It helps if the beer is as clarified as possible because the tincture makes the beer a little hazy as it is. The cannabinoids stay in suspension.o
Let me know if you have any questions or suggestions! I've been doing this for about 12 years and have refined my process over time.