WHY I STARTED: After years of succumbing to the $5 kombucha at Whole Foods, I started thinking about the prospect of brewing while visiting my brother in my college town of SLO (San Luis Obispo). We were joking about the pronunciation of Scoby- is it "scooby" as in "Scooby Doo" or Sk-OH-bee?!" Eventually, we discovered the latter was correct.
My interest in brewing my own continued from there and I was determined to find a mother SCOBY (which, by the way, stands for Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast). Yes, it is ALIVE-growing, multiplying, and fermenting.
HEALTH BENEFITS: Kombucha is an amazing probiotic- helping your digestive tract and aiding in nutrient absorption. It is said to benefit people with Crohn's, Celiac, IBS, etc. It is also great for your metabolism and immune system.
LET'S GET STARTED:
Ingredients:
-1 kombucha scoby (I bought mine from Poseymom)
-1 gallon spring water (don't use water from your faucet since most tap water has chlorine in it...which is not good for the scoby)
- 1 cup cane sugar
- 10 bags of organic black or green tea bags (organic ensures there are no added chemicals, which is also not good for the scoby)
Other necessities:
- Large 1 gallon glass container (I purchased this one from Crate & Barrel)
- Large pot for boiling water
- Distilled white vinegar
- Brewing thermometer (I purchased this one from Amazon)
- Spoon (for stirring)
- Cheesecloth or bandana
- Large rubber band
- Funnel
- Glass bottles (I like the EZ flip cap Bottles)
DIRECTIONS:
1. Make sure you SANITIZE (this is crucial...sanitize everything you use with distilled white vinegar).
2. Boil the spring water. I only boiled about 1/2 of the gallon (to brew the tea).
3. Once the water starts boiling, remove from heat and add the tea bags, steeping for approx. 15 minutes.
4. Remove the tea bags.
5. Add sugar and stir.
6. Let the tea cool (also, if you only boiled 1/2 the gallon like I did, you can add the remaining 1/2 gallon of water, allowing it to cool down even faster).
7. Use the thermometer to ensure the tea is around 75 F.
8. Add the scoby.
9. Cover the glass container with a cheesecloth and secure with the rubber band.
10. Place the container in a dark area (away from light, people).
11. Allow the kombucha to brew for 5 to 7 days (occasionally checking in to see that it stays around 70-75 F range). Also, ensure that mold is not growing on the scoby.
12. When ready, remove the cheesecloth and taste to see if it is to your liking. It will be sweet initially~ the longer you brew, it will be stronger/more sour.
13. You are done with the brewing/ first fermentation process and ready for the next step- secondary fermentation!! This is the fun part which involves bottling and getting creative with “bucha” flavoring. Stay tuned for more.
