Charity walk every first term was something i always looked forward to because it was an opportunity to buy Ginger Beer from Goshen (Old Kingsway, or Leventis Supermarket Ibadan).

I went to ISI and charity walk was one of the events that led up to Foundation week. We would walk over 20 kilometres to raise money for charity. We would be given a slip prior to the walk to raise money from family and friends and in exchange, we promise to walk a certain number of meters or kilometres. On the day of the walk we would to solicit funds from passersby, document the said amount and pledge to do a certain number of meters for the money we got from them.

We would arrive gayly dressed in comfortable clothes and shoes. Trust ISI students, it was another chance to come in your hot-from-summer-vacation-abroad clothes.

We had teachers chaperone us during the walk and we had emergency medical vehicles drive in front, behind and with us.

If I recall we had about 3 or 4 stops along the way where we could break for snacks. Goshen was the first, I think Favos or Foodco second, UI staff club third. If my memory serves me right.

Well I looked forward mostly to the ginger beer! That was the only opportunity I got once a year to drink Ginger beer. In my conservative Christian house, i don’t think my folks would have bought any soft drink that had the name beer attached to it. Or maybe because it was foreign import it wasn’t widely available in the market and that was the only place I got to buy it.

So even now, any time I hold a can of ginger beer in my hands, i have the memory of me holding my first can of Ginger beer and taking my first cold sip.

The great thing is you can make your own ginger beer. All you need is Ginger, Sugar, Water Yeast!

Recipe

Serves 5-6

• 5 large Ginger
• 2 tbsp Dry Active Yeast
• 1 Cup sugar
• 8 cups water

Procedure

• Wash and peel Ginger. Using the fine part of you grater, grate ginger. Or blend
• Put a clean pan or pot on heat, add 1 cup water, grated ginger, sugar.
• Simmer till it comes to a boil stir till the sugar is completely dissolved. Turn heat off.
• Strain the ginger out of the water and discard chaff.
• Let Syrup cool
• Get a clean clear airtight bottle preferably glass or plastic.
• Pour in rest of the water and the ginger syrup. Add yeast and shake together until the yeast is dissolved
• Don’t fill the bottle to the brim because you would be fermenting for few days and gas would form.
• Store in a dark area for 2 or 3 days. I prefer 3 days.
• Carefully open when you are ready to consume as there is a chance all that trapped gas may fizz out, like hot soda!
• Serve with ice and refrigerate the rest.

*It’s important to refrigerate the rest to stop the fermentation, because fermentation will continue at room temperature but it will stall in the refrigerator. Consume in 3 days.

Ginger beer is a good source of probiotic. And it’s safe for children too. Its not an alcoholic drink, it’s a fermented beverage, like Ogi (Pap, Akamu)

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