Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

Yup. Eventually it will just get toooo big and massive, and you'll want to section some off, but that's fine.

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Ok. Here is my kombucha. Thoughts? It's been weeks.

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

like.. how many weeks? i would think wherever you live it would be warm enough by now. :think

how does it smell?

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

it smells like vinegar. I'll check my post about it for how many weeks it's been.

I had it in my pantry, but it stays surprisingly cold in there, so I took it out and put it on the counter last week.

I'll brb

ETA: I started it on the 14th of May, so it's been almost a month. Not as long as I thought! :doh So, maybe I need to be a bit more patient? :shifty

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

yeah..if it was cool in there, then that makes sense. mine took about 4 weeks..but it was still really cool in my house.

maybe wrap it up in a dark towel ( except for the top) and set it somewhere that gets sun so it will warm up :tu

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

Do you have a metal or other lid on your jar? Kombucha likes air, it's an aerobic process. Also, the acid can wear at metal. It still needs to be covered, but with something breathable, like a kitchen towel held on by a rubber band. Smell of vinegar is a good sign.

No lid. Just a rag tied on. Very thin, cheesecloth like.

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

Mine is starting to grow icky stuff! :rockon

I started it 48 hours ago. I can hardly wait...but I know I have a ways to go.

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

I just drank my last bottle and my next batch won't be ready until Thursday-ish. I should check it, though, because it has been over 90 most days here so it may be done before Thursday. I need to find another fermenting jar.

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

to cover kombucha you really want to use like a tea towel or old cut up tshirt. it needs to be able to breath, but if the "holes" are too big (like cheese cloth) you will get fruit flies hatching in it:sick fruit flies love the booch. i actually use komb. in my fruit fly traps in summer

I don't know, I never use vinegar in my pickles, I ferment them.

Yes, you can add it to soups or other recipes that call for vinegar.

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I don't see ANY baby. Is there even a film on top?

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Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

I never got to go to restaurants to beg for jars this weekend. :giggle

There's a restaurant supply outlet near my house and I might try to drop by there this week too to see what they have. 10 gallon vats for kombucha? Yes, please! :lol

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

it looks to me like it is trying to grow a scoby. I would try adding a little sugar.

There is a little bit of film.
Just sprinkle some sugar in there?
How long should I keep at it before starting again?

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

I would just add some sugar and give it a few more days. If it still doesn't so anything I would try again.

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

Maybe you could play some classical music or sing to it? I'd heard plants like that so maybe the fungus does too. :giggle

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

I am DEVASTATED! I put my scobies in a bowl with some of the KT while we were gone so that I wouldn't come home to vinegar and my housesitter wouldn't have to deal with them, and they dehydrated :cry

I just watched a video about rehydrating scobies and we've got it in the liquid but I'm hoping that it works :pray4

any suggestions or encouragement?

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

I have never had to do that. If that doesn't work you can grow a new one from a bottle of KT. :hug2

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

Aw, that's too bad, Crystal. I think I did read somewhere about rehydrating a scoby too. :yes I hope that works for you.

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

the youtube video said 14-21 days but brewing is supposed to be that long and I have that whole Phx heat thing going on--so I'm hoping it will be shorter. My mom and a friend have scobies I gave them so if I have to I know I can get one back. I have already talked to my mom. I am just devastated because this was 6 scobies :( And my family drinks it by the gallon!

I'll definitely report back whether it works or not.

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

I dunno about your scoby, Ms Crystal, but your new avitar is stunning!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! bow-chicka-wow-wow!!!!!!! :eyebrows

ok...back onto topic of slimy gross mushroom thingys....

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

My starter scoby is ALMOST 1/4" thick. :jump

---------- Post added 06-18-2012 at 12:14 AM ---------- Previous post was 06-17-2012 at 11:23 PM ----------

Okay, NOW what ?

:giggle

I don't really know what to do now. I'm thinking my scoby will be ready in a few days. I have a nice, thick chunk of goo on top of my tea/kombucha. I'm surprised at how quickly it grew. It has some blackish floaty doo-dads in there. Is that okay ?
"
So, I just brew a bunch of tea, and float my scoby in it ? What about the "juice" that I already have ? Do I add that in with the tea ? Then I let it sit for 5 days, right ? Then bottle it, put some fruit in it, and hide it for a few more days ?


I've read this whole thread, and read online, but I'm still scared. I don't want to mess it up! :nails

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

:giggle Thank you :hug

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

Go find LisaM's specific "recipe" for brewing tea on the 2nd page (I checked and it is post #19). Yes, plop your scoby in there. You will put at a minimum 1/2 C of the current KT the scoby is growing in, in there. Let is sit for 5 days and then start smelling/tasting to figure out how strong you like it. Yes, then bottle it with fruit or juice, wait a few more days, then voila! :tu I've been using Lisa's instructions with fantastic results. :yes

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

What do I do with what's left after the 1/2 goes into the next batch ? Maybe I'll leave it and grow another scoby...:think

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

I'm still not convinced that "kombucha" and "fantastic" can be in the same sentence. :giggle :duck

I just gotta get to the hfs and buy a bottle to try out, and then grow my scoby from it.

I like the idea of Norma's grape-flavoured stuff. But I'm STILL not convinced I'm gonna like it. :snooty

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

Okay, we should just plan a meet-up and we can bring you some of ours to try. :grin

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

Yes, great idea, Karisa! Stiina, you will succumb to the kombucha magic eventually ;) No point holding out anymore.

---------- Post added at 06:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:08 PM ----------

The leftover might be pretty strong depending how long it has been sitting to grow your scoby. You could use it to grow more scobys (but remember your current scoby will continue to produce "offspring" as well), consume it if it tastes any good to you, or just discard it.

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

I'm finally getting mine started tonight! :woohoo

---------- Post added at 10:50 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:27 PM ----------

Quick question. Do I leave the tea bags in the whole time it's cooling? Mine is taking hours. It's 11pm and it's still not room temp. :yawn

Also I am terrified of contaminating this. I need a clean room. :nails

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

I leave my tea (I usually use loose tea) in the whole time it is cooling. If it's been cooling for a long time, but still warmish, what I've done in the past is add some cold water to the jar with the scoby first, then add the warmish tea...and fill the rest of the way room temp water. I don't think warm water will hurt it...you just don't want it *hot* and kill those good bacteria/yeast cells. That's my uneducated guess, anyway. :wink

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

This has been quite a production tonight. I boiled the water and started steeping in my big pot but then needed the pot to make dinner so I had to add the still brewing tea to the jar... but I forgot to leave room for adding my kombucha later :doh so I'm going to have poor out some liquid when it is cool enough so there is room for the kombucha.

I'm growing my own scoby because I haven't had time to drive and meet Jen so she could bless me with one of hers. Although that still might happen as I have 3 other jars to get started. :shifty

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

Well, think of it this way...you've made all the mistakes tonight, so that next time, it will be an easy and smooth process. Right? :shifty

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

I follow LisaM's instructions and only boil 4 cups of water, not the whole thing. Then I add the sugar, it gets dissolved, and I add the tea bags and let it sit for maybe 30 minutes to make sure there is enough of it in the water (I am not a tea drinker and have no idea how long tea takes normally to steep LOL). I remove the tea bags and add the remaining 12 cups of cold water to the hot. It's room temp at that point, and I pour it all into the brewing jar with the starter tea and put the scoby back in.

The first time I made it, I waited foreeeever for the 4 cups to become room temp, but it doesn't seem to make a difference to just add the rest of the cool water in to make it happen a lot faster.

Yes, you can make a concentrated sweet tea, let it steep about 30 minutes, then add cold water.

Or let it cool overnight.

If you have fruit flies in your kitchen, do the concentrated method. The heat will keep them away. Once it cools, though, they'll be attracted to it.

It really does get easier over time.

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Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

My scoby went into the big jar last night! I'm so close!

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

ok Karisa! When are we getting together?? :heart

Kat - eeeek! Exciting!!!! :cheer

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

I tried the jar of liquid that grew my scoby. It was...intense, but tolerable. I put a strawberry in it 2 days ago and set it in the fridge- I kinda thought it would get fizzy, but it didn't. :pout I strained out the goobers and sipped it. It's pretty wild. :roll I hope my actual kombucha is yummier, and actually gets fizzy.

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

Ooohh you put it in the fridge right after putting the strawberry in it? Leave it out for a few days first :) Putting it in the fridge will slow down the fermentation, whereas leaving it out will give the bacteria a chance to feed on the sugars from the strawberry and produce the fizziness in the closed bottles. I leave mine for another 7 days for the "second ferment", but someone said earlier they only do a couple days, and it still gets fizzy. So try it that way, and you might have more luck! :)

Glad you are having a ball with it though! Haha.. I let my last batch ferment for just over 4 weeks and then another week with the fruit in it, just for kicks to see how a longer fermentation would taste. HO MAN. It is SO STRONG. Burrrrrrrrrrns going down and has me in choking fits. This is how I imagine hard liquor tastes, if I were to ever drink that. :phew Never again. I think 2 weeks + 1 with fruit is my happy spot.

Re: kombucha 101 thread!
 

I don't want to have to throw out the batch I'm using to grow my scoby, do you think diluting it with juice/water would mellow it out enough to taste okay or would adding water make it taste weird?

I've got my jar sitting in my bathroom shower that doesn't work. I have no counter space or places to put it where the kids won't likely attack it. Does it need sunlight? It doesn't right?

I ended up having to buy four 1 gallon jars of pickles to get the jars. I have been gifting pickles all week. It has made people surprisingly happy. :giggle