Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

well, I will hang tight on starting anything until more bucha wisdom flows:D
thanks for the heads up on the vinegar, greatly appreciated.

---------- Post added at 09:39 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:57 PM ----------

sorry for my constant questions but..when you say fresh sweet tea what do you mean?
I will need to get distilled white vinegar but if fresh sweet tea is what I think it is I already have that.

Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

I'm about to start brewing again!!! I'm excited. I brewed for a while but then I let my SCOBYs die when we moved. I just set out a jar to grow a new SCOBY today.



Does anyone else prefer to drink it at room temperature instead of cold? Does the carbonation add any benefits, or is it just because people like it that way? I hate carbonation, so I like it better if it's room temperature and more flat.


I had another question but now I can't remember. :scratch

Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

I have been seeing that some people mix their kombucha with fruit juice instead of adding fruit. Is this ok? Also I saw that some people are making kombucha *coffee* is this ok for the scoby? Will the benefits be the same?

Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

I am extremely leery of kombucha coffee. It might be fine, it might be dangerous.

Fresh sweet tea is black tea and white sugar in the proper proportions, freshly made.

Yes, you can use juice for your second ferment. I prefer whole fruit.

No, the carbonation has no benefit that I know. I just like it and feel pretty proud of myself :lol.

Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

I read through this whole thread and am faaaascinated. A little creeped out at first at this scoby, because I pictured an algae eater type of moving, swimming creature that you see in fish tanks, but then I image searched it, and okay, so it's like a slimy pancake mushroom :giggle No face or legs. I can handle that. But the carbonation makes me think of this expired grape juice I had once and think the tea will have rotted so much it starts forming gaseous bubbles. Bleck. HOWEVER. I am up for anything that sounds as cool as this whole process does, so I picked up a bottle of cherry kombucha to try today cuz we are in the city and can go to the organic store. AND IT'S DELICIOUS.

So. I'm in. :D And I have a few questions:

My bottle's ingredients were made of green tea instead of black. What's the difference (I'm not a tea drinker, so have no idea)?

There was also cane sugar listed. Is that from before and what the scoby eats? Or is it added afterward to help the flavour? If after, is it going to be a huge difference in taste that I will not like my homemade one at all because it's going to be so plain and gross? Or if it is, can I add some stevia to it? Will that affect the fermentation? I assume there shouldn't be any, of much, sugar left when you go to drink it. Is that correct?

Would you trust someone off the World Wide Kombucha Exchange website in mailing a free scoby, or would it be more reliable to get it off etsy for $5 http://www.etsy.com/listing/50293331...facet=handmade ?

I see a strainer on that same etsy shop. Do you guys strain yours first before drinking?

Okay, I think that's all for now. :) Thanks!

Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

Can you tell me what makes you leery of coffee kombucha? In theory (add freshly made coffee with sugar and a scoby) it sounds good. I'd like to hear your opinions on that. :yes

Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

:)

---------- Post added at 03:42 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:42 PM ----------


I am thinking that the coffee isn't going to have the same benefits as the tea...but not sure.

Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

You can use a green tea as a portion of your tea but if you use 100% green tea, the SCOBY will not ferment the sweet tea properly. It will take much longer to ferment and will never ferment as completely as it would in black tea. If you repeatedly use 100% green tea your SCOBYs will die eventually.

All white, green, and black tea come from the same plant, the tea plant. (herbal teas aren't truly teas, they're herbal infusions.) Black tea is made when the tea leaves are left out to ferment. Green tea leaves are not left to ferment. Black tea has significantly more tannins and a kombucha SCOBY needs tannins.

The cane sugar is put in BEFORE the kombucha is set to ferment. Some residual sugar is in the finished product, how much depends on how long you let it ferment. I ferment mine twice so there's very, very little left.

I add fruit to the second ferment. If you wanted cherry flavor kombucha, you would add cherries or cherry juice to your second ferment. If you only ferment it once or ferment it twice w/o adding fruit, it tastes like somewhat like hard cider.

You can use other sweeteners to ferment like rapadura/sucanat or honey but not stevia. Stevia does not have the carbohydrates that the SCOBY needs to eat. (You could add stevia after it's done, though, I suppose, but I'm not sure why anyone would want to.) I have no experience using anything other than white cane sugar and blonde evaporated cane juice but-- I used to be on a Yahoo group for kombucha and some people there had the time and money to experiment. There were some that used honey and rapadura or sucanat regularly. Using a blonde sugar like evaporated cane juice or a dark sugar like rapadura/sucanat will work BUT it will not ferment quite as well and you will be left with more residual sugar than if you use white sugar.

The carbonation comes from the yeasts consuming the carbohydrates and releasing CO2. Just like making homemade beer or homemade root beer.

The reason I am extremely leery of putting a kombucha SCOBY into coffee is because you have NO IDEA what you will get. Kombucha SCOBYs have been around for a very long time and have evolved to survive off black tea, sugar, and fruit/fruit juice. Coffee is very different from tea--tea are leaves, coffee beans are legumes, just very different. It is possible to get sick when you experiment with fermentation. :shrug You can google it and maybe you'll find enough people who've done it w/o issue. I have my hands full with brewing my 12 gallons of regular kombucha every two weeks plus we just love it the way it is--I might get in big trouble if I changed it. :lol

Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

Thanks so much for all the information. I really appreciate it. Do I need to use cane sugar, or would refined white sugar work as well?

Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

refined white sugar is cane sugar. :)

Rapadura, sucanat, Florida crystals, evaporated cane juice, etc are all from sugar cane. I use the horrid white stuff for kombucha and only for kombucha.

Shoot, what if I just read this and used Bragg's apple cider vinegar? :doh
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Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

Good to know! Ha, yes, this will be the first time I have bought sugar in a couple years. :giggle

Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

Wait and see, I guess! How much did you use and do you remember if any of the mother got in?

Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

Two tablespoons in two liters. I don't remember if any of the mother got in. Sigh.
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Re: kombucha 101 thread! *another new question #63 and 64*
 

just for the fun of it.. My scoby

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...uegirl/002.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...uegirl/001.jpg