Kombucha 101
So You Want To Brew Kombucha… Read this article to get you started!
There are two ways to brew your kombucha - Batch and Continuous. No matter which way you brew there is a golden ratio to follow:
Vessel: Only brew in glass vessels the acids in kombucha don’t mix well with metal or plastics.
Water: Use filtered unchlorinated water (to dechlorinate tap water boil for 10 minutes or leave on the counter for 24 hours).
Starter: Well fermented Kombucha (I have heard of some people even using store bought kombucha for this with good results).
Sugar: Use organic unbleached sugar. I have personally experimented with coconut sugar, maple syrup and agave nectar and all have worked wonderfully. Most recommend not to use honey but I have and it turned out lovely. Experiment with small batches to see what you like best!
Tea: Organic teas are preferred as scoby’s can be sensitive to chemicals. The scoby needs caffeine to support its growth. If you're sensitive to caffeine, swap out half the amount of required tea for a caffeine free alternative. Experiment with green, white, rooibos, oolong or darjeeling teas! Some people even swap in different types of herbal teas with amazing results.
Scoby: The SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) is the mother of the kombucha, providing bacteria and yeast to ferment the sweet tea, protecting the tea from outside contaminants, and providing a loose seal to keep a bit of the carbonation in.
Equipment You Will Need:
pot or tea kettle
brewing vessel (glass only!)
stirring spoon (wood only)
tight weave cloth cover (no cheesecloth) and rubber band or custom brewer cap
bottles with tightly closing lids
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Batch Brew: First Fermentation
Boil half of your desired amount of purified water.
Add hot water & tea bags to pot or brewing vessel.
Steep 7-15 minutes, then remove tea bags.
Add sugar and stir to dissolve.
Add the remaining amount of water to your sweet tea concentrate.
Check to make sure the sweet tea is body temperature or below. A clean finger is the perfect tool!
Once it is, add SCOBY and starter liquid.
Cover with cloth cover and rubber band or a custom brewer cap.
Say a prayer, send good vibes, commune with your culture.
Place the container in a warm, ventilated area out of direct sunlight for 7- 21 days (depends on taste). 24-29°C is the best range, 27°C is ideal. It may or may not get fizzy. The SCOBY may rise to the top or sink to the bottom, doesn’t matter, the new culture will always form at the top.
After 7 days, or when you are ready to taste your brew, gently insert a straw beneath the SCOBY and take a sip. If too tart, then reduce your brewing cycle next time. If too sweet, allow to brew for a few more days. Continue to taste every day or so until you reach your optimum flavour preference. Your own Kombucha Recipe may vary.
Set aside your SCOBY(s) and starter liquid (2 cups if possible) for the next batch from the top of the current brew. You may put them in any vessel or a SCOBY Hotel (more about this later).
Decant & flavour your kombucha (optional).
Continuous Brew Kombucha
1. HEALTHIER: Using one container to both ferment and dispense your Kombucha removes much of the risk of contamination associated with the batch brewing method where the SCOBY is removed at each cycle.
2. TASTIER: The Continuous Brew Kombucha System allows you to customize the taste of your Kombucha more easily than batch brewing methods. There is a more distinct balance of sweet and tart. Plus you can opt to just add a splash to any beverage.
3. EASIER: The Continuous Brewing System is easier to use, from drinking to bottling to refilling.
How does it work exactly?
In the batch brewing method, every time you brew, you make a bunch of sweet tea and combine with a little delicious starter liquid, a super sweet 9/1 solution. After 1-2 weeks, the SCOBY and starter liquid work very, very hard and finally transform ALL that liquid into Kombucha Tea (KT).
By contrast, with your Continuous Brew Kombucha System, you will only be refilling around 25% of the container with sweet tea nutrient solution, while 75% is your mature fermented tea and giant SCOBY, this time a powerful 3/1 concentration in favour of the Kombucha. It will take only a day or two to transform that relatively small amount of sweet tea into healthy booch.
Continuous Brew Kombucha is easy and fun, too! Depending on how much you drink, well, that’s how much you put back in. Simple. If you think the Kombucha has gotten too tart, drain some mature brew out and set it aside, then add more sweet tea mixture and you’ve instantly customized your homemade Kombucha to your own taste.
In fact, shockingly, some of the absolute best acids for your health don’t begin to form until 2 weeks into the fermentation process. Some not till 21 days into fermentation. Once you’ve begun using your Continuous Brew, not only will the acids be expressed more fully, the bacteria and yeast will have time to mature.
What worldwide researchers have discovered is that some of the acids found in the more mature Kombucha brews can successfully bind to toxins and allow the body to flush them from the liver and gut more efficiently than without Kombucha. Like bodyguards carrying troublemakers out of a club and tossing them on the street. Get out and don’t come back!
Second Fermentation: Flavouring Your Booch!
Once your kombucha has fermented and tastes good its ready for step two!!
Kombucha can be flavoured with fresh or dried fruit, jams and jellies, dried herbs and flowers, barks, spices, syrups or literally just about anything that sparks your imagination! And there are no real rules, because you have removed the SCOBY and starter liquid for the next batch. So as long as you like the end result, any flavoring will work with Kombucha.
You can combine multiple flavours in the bottle, and then pour the Kombucha on top. Seal the bottle and allow carbonation to build during the second fermentation. This process may take 1-3 days, or longer depending on your brewing environment. As long as you leave it at room temperature, the Kombucha will continue to ferment in the bottle.
Kombucha Flavouring & Bottling Safety
If not paying attention, small explosions can occur with the bottles. This is more likely if there is too much flavouring used or it is very hot, such as in Summer. To prevent explosions, burp the bottles by opening the caps slightly during the flavouring process (aka “second fermentation”) and allowing carbonation to escape.
How to Make Your Own Kombucha Flavour Recipe
Perhaps my favourite Kombucha flavourings recipe was inspired by ginger ale: a little bit of dried ginger can be added to the Kombucha for an extra kick (ginger can also be added into your first fermentation safely for extra flavour). Ginger also increases carbonation in the Kombucha. Lemons and berries are also great additions to Kombucha. Elderberries and Goji berries are two of my favourite berry flavourings for Kombucha. Add frozen berries during cooler months. Some other seasonal Kombucha flavourings you should consider trying are:
Spring – Elderberries, lemon, and rose petals
Summer – Wine spritzer
Fall – Ginger, lavender
Winter – Frozen berries
One of the most delicious ways I’ve discovered to flavour Kombucha is with champagne or wine for a fun spritzer during hot summer months.
Kombucha Recipe Notes & Tips
Kombucha in the bottle never “goes bad” as long as no mold is present. However, it may eventually be too sour to enjoy. Refrigeration slows this process.
Small variations in tea or sugar used are not a concern. Increase or decrease the amounts to find the Kombucha recipe you prefer.
Airflow is key, therefore find an open area for your Kombucha Tea. A typical empty cupboard or pantry is fine but one jammed with other food items or without any airspace may not work as well.
Always use cotton cloth covers to allow oxygen to reach the brew. Only cloth with a tight weave should be used. Clean used t-shirts or sheets are a great option. Avoid cheesecloth as the holes are too large and will allow fruit flies and contaminants.
Soap is not needed when rinsing the brewing vessel between batches, unless there was mold or some other brewing issue. If the brew was successful, all that is needed is a clean water rinse.
Should mold or other brewing issues occur, clean with hot water and soap, then rinse very well with clean water. If the jar has a spigot, remove it and soak in soapy water or bleach to kill any spores, then rinse clean. All items can be cured in distilled (pasteurized) white vinegar. Never use raw vinegar with Kombucha to avoid spoiling the brew.
Scoby Hotel
The SCOBY Hotel is an important resource in every Kombucha brewer’s tool box. Since a healthy Kombucha culture reproduces with each batch, it would be foolhardy not to keep a few around in case mold strikes. Plus, with all the great uses for extra SCOBYs you never know when one will come in handy.
Unlike other more delicate cultures such as milk kefir or water kefir which will disintegrate and disappear if not fed regularly, the Kombucha culture is a very hardy organism and can remain in stasis for extended periods of time. This is in part due to their very protective pH (2.5-3.5). It makes Kombucha one of the safest ferments to brew at home. However, the SCOBY hotel does need to be maintained from time to time. This ensures that the cultures remain viable after weeks, months or even years!
As the name implies, the SCOBY is a Symbiotic Culture Of Bacteria and Yeast. Although the bacteria and yeast live in symbiosis, they are also in competition. Our role as brewers is to maintain balance by nurturing the bacteria and removing excess yeast. This same principle applies to the hotel.
Perform maintenance on your hotel every 2-6 months or when you observe a build up in yeast to keep your cultures healthy, happy and ready to brew at a moment’s notice. Remember, never store your Kombucha SCOBYs in the fridge as the bacteria may go deeply dormant or perish, leading to flat, weak flavour and usually mold.
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