Beer SoapA step by step tutorial of how to make beer soap by Elaine Jones of Briallen Traditional Crafts Beer soap is not as strange a concept as you might at first think. Traditionally beer was put into soap to help with dry skin conditions and was found to be excellent for nourishing dry dull hair. So you could use this soap as a shampoo bar. Elaine Jones is a very experienced soap maker who is an expert in the crockpot - hot process method. If you are a total beginner to soap making it might be better for you to start with a simple cold processed beginners soap before progressing to working with ingredients that could be a little tricky. As always, follow the basic safety instructions. The Beer and The OilsThe beer used in this soap is a bottled stout from a small local brewery, "Welsh Stout" by North Wales Brewery of Abergele, and the ABV is 4.4%. The stout is a good dark colour but in order to have a darker soap 5% of raw Cocoa Butter was used with Shea Butter, Coconut Oil, Olive Pomace and Sunflower Oil making up the 95% in equal amounts.Stage OneIn order to make beer soap you need to remove as much alcohol from the beer as possible. To do this simmer the beer at 80° C for 15 - 20 minutes; this also reduces the volume. One 500ml bottle will give sufficient liquid for 450 - 500g oils, using SoapCalc with 39% water rate and 6% superfatting rate and 2% of the oils weight of liquid Sodium Lactate added (I normally have 41% water for HP soap).Some people add sugar to the lye water; in this instance sugar should not be added as it is already in the beer! Stage Two
Having weighed out all ingredients according to the calculated recipe put the oils and butters in the crockpot on High; when the butters have almost melted turn the control to Low. Add 10% of the weighed stout to the sodium lactate then slowly add the sodium hydroxide to the rest of the stout. This is best done outside as the fumes are quite foul-smelling. Add approximately a tablespoonful at a time and stir really well, adding too much at a time may result in a volcano of caustic beer!The lye and the beer/sodium lactate; note the slight "head" caused by mixing the lye.
Gently stir the beer lye into the oils then start to use the stickblender - it is likely that there will be more bubbly froth on the surface than is usual when making HP soap, however it does disappear. Another point to note is that there are bubbles coming up from the bottom, these continue all the way through trace. Using the stickblender - at the far side of the frothy bubbles can be seen the bubbles which have risen from the bottom of the pot. Stage FourContinue with stickblender until trace starts. Then add the sodium lactate mix. Continue blending until there is a thick trace.
Stage FivePut the lid on the pot and ensure heat is set to as low as possible (on some crockpots this may be "Warm") but be aware that the soap is likely to start to rise much sooner than with normal HP, do not go far from the pot!(NB at this stage there may be signs of curdling/ricing; cause may be because there was too much alcohol left in the beer or it may be that the crockpot is too hot. If this occurs switch off crockpot and blend until the soap is smooth; unfortunately this may take quite a time and the mix will be quite stiff, pause occasionally to allow the blender motor to cool.)
This picture was taken just a few minutes after putting on the lid... ...and shortly afterwards the beer soap was trying to climb out of the pot! Note the raw mix remaining in the centre. Stir the beer soap to ensure that it is well mixed and the colour is even throughout as it darkens and becomes transluscent. 
This more fluid state is the norm when sodium lactate is used in HP, though the beer may well help (as can some sugar in the lye water in non-beer soap). Try the "zap test" or equivalent as the soap may be ready to go in the mould at any time from now on.
Stage SixIf a 1000g oils and a 3 litre crockpot is used then it is possible to lift the pot and pour the contents into the mould, using a spatula to scrape the last part; however with larger amounts and a 6 litre crocpot the pot is too heavy to lift safely so a good sized ladle should be used.
When the mould is filled to the required depth with the beer soap mixture give it a few shakes then bang it down firmly two or three times to ensure the soap is evenly dispersed. Some photos of HP soap slices show a definite dip in the centre of the top; to avoid this when the soap in the mould has been levelled by shaking/banging, remove excess spillage spots with a palette knife and carefully fold the lining paper over the surface.
Put the lid in position (or cut to size a piece of double walled card from a delivery box) and weight down with tins or some other suitable objects. 
A textured top can be made by using a piece of bubble wrap , bamboo matting, textured plastic etc. intead of folding over the lining paper; alternatively the top can be sprinkled with seeds, oatmeal or other botanicals. 
This photo shows the level top of tops of slices from the log - the wrinkled texture is unavoidable but can be planed off if wished or left as a feature. A HUGE THANK YOU to Elaine for these really clear instructions and FAB pictures!!
Go to the Hot Process Soap Page
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