Simple Brewing and Bottling Instructions

These are my simple brewing instructions that I provided at my demo earlier this year for the Urban Homesteaders' League Market Stand. In addition, I've included my simple bottling instructions. More detailed brewing instructions can be found here, and more detailed bottling instructions are here. In addition, this is a link to a post where I list/link to several other kombucha recipes for more perspective and additional information. There is no recipe that's "right." Every brewer has his or her own style and favorite recipe, so adapt the recipe to what works for you!

My next Kombucha Brewing Demo will be sometime in December. Stay tuned for details, and happy brewing!

BREWING DIRECTIONS

Note: It is recommended to clean the equipment with white distilled vinegar, because of soap’s antibacterial properties, which may harm the bacteria in the SCOBY.

Materials

• 1 kombucha culture (also known as a kombucha mother or a SCOBY)
• 2 black or green tea bags (or around 1 tsp. loose leaf tea) per quart water
• ¼ cup (50 g) sugar per quart water
• ½ cup (4 fl. oz) starter tea per quart water
• Water
• 1 glass jar
• 1 pot to boil the water (such as stainless steel, don’t use aluminum)
• 1 clean cloth or paper towel
• 1 rubber band

Directions

1. Boil the water.

2. Add the tea and allow it to steep for 15 minutes.

3. Remove the tea bags/tea leaves.

4. Add the sugar and stir until it all dissolves.

5. Let the sweet tea solution cool down to room temperature (hot temperatures can kill the SCOBY).

6. Pour the sweet tea solution into the brewing container.

7. Add the starter tea into the brewing container and stir it so that it’s evenly distributed throughout the solution.

8. Add the SCOBY that is also at room temperature (it’s ok if it floats or sinks).

9. Cover the container with the clean cloth and secure it with a rubber band.

10. Put your brewing vessel in a quiet, undisturbed spot.

a. With each brewing cycle, a new baby mushroom typically forms.

b. SCOBYs like warm temperatures and the brewing vessel shouldn’t be moved during the fermentation process, because movement will disrupt the formation of the new SCOBY.

c. SCOBYs prefer warm temperatures and brewing between 75-85 F is ideal, 68-85 F is ok.

11. Leave the tea to ferment for 6-14 days (kombucha ferments more quickly in warmer temperatures, so the 6-14 days is just a guideline).

12. Your kombucha tea is done! (Signs include an apple cider vinegar aroma or taste. Taste is the best indicator; it should taste similar to a slighty fizzy version of apple cider vinegar).

13. Set aside a SCOBY and some kombucha as starter tea for your next brew.

14. Drink your kombucha tea as is and store the extra in the fridge, or consider letting your kombucha undergo a second fermentation in the bottling process.

Tip: When first learning how to brew, it is recommended to brew smaller batches (1-2 quarts). Once you get the hang of it and the kombucha mother has produced new SCOBYs, you can brew larger quantities.

Sources:

• http://www.happyherbalist.com/libraryandresearch.aspx
• http://www.kombu.de/anleit-e.htm
• http://www.kombuchafuel.com
  

BOTTLING DIRECTIONS

Materials

• Kombucha
• Bottles and caps
• Bottle capper (if you are bottling your kombucha in beer bottles)
• Optional: small pieces of cut up fruit, ginger, herbs, or jams to add flavors to your kombucha. The possibilities are endless!

Directions

1. Optional: Add some flavors to your brew by adding little pieces of cut up fruit, ginger, herbs, or jam to your bottles. Smaller pieces are better because they give the yeast more surface area to act on.
2. Fill your bottle(s).
1. I typically leave around 1.5 inches of headroom for a 12 oz beer bottle.
3. Cap your bottle(s).
4. Leave your bottle(s) out at room temperature for 1-2 days, or for week(s).
5. Fill your bottle(s).
1. The kombucha is undergoing a secondary fermentation, which can produce more fizz in the kombucha. The secondary fermentation is also a good opportunity to add different flavors to your brew.
2. Kombucha ferments more quickly at higher temperatures.
3. Typically when I have a batch I try one bottle after a few days, and decide whether the rest of the bottles are ready to refrigerate or require more time to ferment.
4. *PLEASE NOTE* if you leave your bottles out for too long, they may explode due to the buildup of carbon dioxide.
6. Refrigerate the kombucha.
1. Refrigerating the kombucha will cause the yeast and bacteria to go dormant. Fermentation isn't completely stopped, but is slowed significantly.
7. Enjoy and drink your kombucha!

Where to shop: The Modern Homebrew Emporium is great for brewing supplies of any kind. Location: 2304 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02140, T: (614) 498-0400.

Q&A: When is my kombucha done fermenting? (Updated 5-31-2010)

Q: How do you know when your kombucha is ready to drink, ready to bottle, or if it's done fermenting?

A: If you are brewing using the traditional method, your kombucha may be done at anywhere between 6-14 days. The time may even be more or less, depending on personal preference, the amount and strength of the starter tea you used, and various environmental factors, such as temperature. So how do you know when your kombucha is done? Here is a list of several signs that help to indicate when your kombucha is ready (please note that not all of these need to apply!):

• According to taste- the most important indicator, as individuals have varying preferences for the amount of fizz, the strength of the sweetness, and the intensity of the vinegar-taste of kombucha
• Hard apple cider or apple cider vinegar aroma or taste present
• The kombucha tastes slightly sour or acidic (like vinegar)
• Kombucha gets more cloudy/opaue, and thus becomes lighter in color, the longer it ferments due to yeast reproduction
• The partial/complete formation of a new kombucha baby
• Kombucha is bottled "optimally" at a pH of 2.5 - 3.5 (testing pH is optional)

Note the clearness of the kombucha at the beginning of fermentation (left) and the cloudiness of the kombucha at the end of the primary fermentation process (right). (My apologies if it is hard to tell in this photo).

Note:

• Home-brewed kombucha tastes a lot different than GT's traditional kombucha. I've found that Katalyst and High Country kombucha taste more similar to home-brews.

Kombucha Recipes

My simple kombucha recipe using the traditional brewing method can be found here, and my more detailed brewing recipe is here.

Here are links to several other kombucha recipes for more perspective and for additional information:

The Traditional Brewing Method

• Kombucha Brewing Guide by Happy Herbalist
• Quick Recipe KT by Happy Herbalist
• How to make your own Kombucha Tea by Günther W. Frank
• Kombucha Recipe: How to Make Kombucha Tea by Manna International
• How to Make a Big Batch of Kombucha at instructables.com
• Kombucha Recipe at getkombucha.com
• Brewing and F&Q at Organic-Kombucha.com

The Continuous Brewing Method

• I cover continuous brewing in Part I and Part II
  
• Continuous Brewing Method by Happy Herbalist
• Continuous Brewing: Tastier, Easier and Superior Kombucha by the Weston A. Price Foundation
  

The Continuous Brewing Method - Part II - Advantages & Disadvantages

Hello everyone!

My apologies, but handing in job applications and seeing Michael Pollan (!!!) at the West Roxbury Branch Library got in the way of my posting the past few days.

I promised that I would talk about some of the advantages and disadvantages of the continuous brewing method, so here it goes.

PROS of the Continuous Brewing Method

• It's quick & easy
• You have kombucha tea continuously on hand
  
• Less/no sanitizing
• Decreased bottling time
• Decreased mold risk (SCOBY stays in brewing vessel)
  
  -Because you are drawing off how much KT you would like to drink/bottle each day, and because the SCOBY is constantly in the same container, the amount of time you need to sanitize the equipment/area is significantly less. This will save you time and decrease the chance that your SCOBY will become contaminated by mold (even though contamination by mold is rare, anyways- next post!).

• Health Benefits
  -According to Happy Herbalist, the continuous brewing method produces the "fullest most complete range of beneficial nutrients available at any one time."
  -Kombucha researcher Mike Roussin indicated that some beneficial acids do not even appear until 14-21 days of fermentation (1).
  

However, there are several CONS to the Continuous Brewing Method.

• The beverage dispensers that I found in stores had plastic and metal spigots, both materials of which can leach contaminants into the tea when they remain in contact with acid/kombucha tea. This is the very reason why I do not use the continuous brewing method (yet). But:
  
  -Maybe the continuous brewing vessels sold on kombucha websites are specifically designed to avoid this problem? (They are $, however).
  -Some people say to "pick your poison," plastic or metal.
  -*Potential solution!* - Someone at my last workshop had the idea of brewing kombucha tea in its normal container, and then using the continuous brewing method by just siphoning off the liquid from the top. What a great idea!! Hm...I may need to try that soon...

• You won't be producing any more kombucha babies by this method, which may or may not be desirable. I also don't know how long SCOBYs live- some say 8 cycles, some say they last for months- it will depend on many factors. But case in point: kombucha mushrooms do not live forever.

If you would like to read another take on the Continuous Brewing Method, look here.

And remember- whether you decide to use the Continuous Brewing Method or brew the typical way, it all just depends on you and your lifestyle!

Happy Friday!!!

Sources:
-http://www.happyherbalist.com/continuous_brewing.htm
-http://getkombucha.com/
-Photos: http://www.happyherbalist.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=123 and http://getkombucha.com/porcelain.html

Kombucha Workshops + the Continuous Brewing Method (Part I)

Sorry for the late recap, but last week final exams hit. Thankfully, all my finals are over and I'm very excited for summer!!!

I would first like to thank everyone who attended my workshop at the 2009 Boston Skillshare on April 19th! I was very impressed with the turnout, and you were a great audience! Although Keith Person was not able to hold his workshop, I was happy to be able to give out some mushrooms for him! Thanks, Keith!

I would also like to touch on the Continuous Brewing Method that I mentioned at the workshop.

The Continuous Brewing Method is an extremely easy way to ferment kombucha tea!

It involves drinking/drawing off 10-20% of your KT brew daily, and then replacing the amount that you drank with sweet tea (every day, every other day, or every three days) (1).

-Every time you add the sweet tea:

• You want to stir the brew to mix the old ferment with the new sweet tea, so the bacteria/yeast are distributed throughout.
• Stirring will bring in more oxygen that the bacteria need to do their job.
• Because you are disturbing the tea every time by stirring, no new babies will form. This is not a problem at all, unless you were looking to have extra SCOBYs on hand or if you wanted to give some SCOBYs away. If this is the case, you may want to use the traditional brewing method.

As an example, one recipe of Sweet Tea would be:

• 1 quart (aka 4 cups) water
• 2-3 tea bags (or around 1 tsp. or 3-5 g of loose leaf tea)
• 1/4 cup sugar (around 70 g)

Reminder: the key is to do everything proportionally. You can make more/less sweet tea, and store extra sweet tea in the fridge for a few days so that you won't need to brew it everyday.

Also, please remember that your sweet tea and your brew/mushroom need to be at the SAME TEMPERATURE! Otherwise, you will be increasing the risk of your SCOBY getting a mold infection.

For the continuous brewing method, you will need:

• A beverage dispenser- Happy Herbalist suggests that the amount of KT you drink daily should be 10-20% the size of your container. One way to obtain a beverage dispensor for continuous brewing is from online, such as from Happy Herbalist and getkombucha.com.

Sample Directions

1. Boil the water- not for too long, because the bacteria need the oxygen that's in the water.
2. Add the tea- steep for ~15 minutes or follow the tea's specific brewing instructions.
3. Remove the tea bags/tea leaves.
4. Add the sugar and mix until it is all dissolved.
5. Let the sweet tea cool down to room temperature (such as by leaving it overnight).
6. Draw off 10-20% of the fermented kombucha tea from your brewing container, and then add the sweet tea (which should be around the same amount of tea that you drew off).
7. Stir the fermented tea and the sweet tea.
8. Continue repeating these directions each day! :)

What's great is that the continuous brewing method is really simple and easy! Because you are starting with ~80-90% kombucha tea and ~10-20% sweet tea (vs. the other way around), your ferment is ready within ~24 hours (vs. being ready within 6-14 days). And you don't need to be exact, either- you can skip/overdo some days!

In order not to make this an overwhelming post, I will talk about some advantages and disadvantages of the continuous brewing method tomorrow!

Thanks for visiting my blog, and please feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions!

Sources:
-http://www.happyherbalist.com/continuous_brewing.htm
-http://getkombucha.com/
-Photo: http://www.happyherbalist.com/continuous_brewing.htm

Your Average One-Gallon Kombucha Recipe

So I meant to make this a really brief Kombucha Brewing Recipe, but there was too much important information! So the truly short and simple recipe may have to wait. And I promise to post more Kombucha brewing/bottling details! These are just the "essential basics"!

Note: DO NOT use soap, which can kill some of the bacteria/probiotics! Please clean with distilled vinegar or some sort of sanitizer used by brewers, such as Iodophor!

MATERIALS

• 1 brewing container
  -glass is best
  -size depends on how much you want to brew
• 1 SCOBY aka a Kombucha Mushroom
• 3 quarts water (aka 12 cups)
  -preferably filtered water
• 5-6 tea bags (or around 2-3 tsp. or 15 g of loose leaf tea)
  -ex. Organic Green, Oolong, or Black Tea, or a combination
• 3/4 cup sugar (around 150 g)
  -What’s typical: organic evaporated cane juice
• 1.5 cups (12 oz) starter tea
  -From your previous batch, or some good, raw, store-bought, unflavored KT
  -The starter tea should be 10-20% of your overall brew
• 1 clean cloth
  -or a paper towel, coffee filter, or cheesecloth
  -make sure it’s big enough to cover the container
• 1 rubber band
  -or something to secure the cloth on the container
• Optional: pH strips/pH meter

DIRECTIONS

1. Boil the water.
   -Not for too long- remove the pot from the heat once the water reaches a boil.
   -Boiling reduces the oxygen and carbon in the water, which are needed for the fermentation process.
2. Add the tea and allow it to steep for 15 minutes (or follow the specific tea brewing instructions).
3. Remove the tea bags/tea leaves (or you can leave them there overnight. It's your choice).
4. Add the sugar and mix it until it all dissolves.
5. Let the sugar/tea solution cool to room temperature
   -Leaving it overnight is easiest.
   -Make sure the mixture is properly covered so nothing gets inside!
6. Pour the sugar/tea solution into the brewing container.
7. Add the starter tea into the brewing container and stir it so that it’s evenly distributed throughout the solution.
   -Optional: check the pH of the liquid. You want it to be between 3-4.
8. Add the SCOBY.
   -You want the temperatures of the sugar/tea solution, starter tea, and the SCOBY to be the same so that the SCOBY won’t get temperature shocked. SCOBYs are living things!
9. Cover the container with the clean cloth and secure it with a rubber band.
   -The goal is to allow oxygen in and keep pathogens out.
   -If you cover the container with cheesecloth, double layer it! The holes in cheesecloth are pretty big and may let pathogens inside.
10. Put your brewing container in a quiet, undisturbed spot.
    -Every time you brew, a new baby mushroom typically forms.
    -Factors promoting Kombucha Baby Mushroom formation:
    -Constant temperatures
    -Warm temperatures (SCOBYs particularly like 73-83°F, or 21-26°C)
    -Undisturbed spots- every time you disturb your brew, the new mushroom has to begin forming all over again.
    -To avoid:
    -Smoke (ex.: in kitchens)
    -Pollen
    -Direct sunlight (brewing in the light is ok, though)
11. Ferment for 6-8 days (when you’re brewing at around 80°F at a constant temp.)
    -Takes around 8-14 days when you’re brewing in the 70’s.
12. Your kombucha tea is done! Enjoy! To check-
    -It should taste like semi-sweet cider, hard apple cider, or vinegar
    -Optional: check the pH of your brew. It should be around 2.5-3.5.
13. Set aside 1.5 cups of KT for your next brew.
14. Drink your kombucha tea as is, or consider bottling your kombucha or letting it undergo a second fermentation (kombucha wine, anyone?)

Thanks to Happy Herbalist (and my own experience and research) for some of this information!

Note: You do not have to brew a gallon of KT at once! You just need to brew everything proportionally. (A useful conversion: 1 quart = 4 cups).

*HAPPY BREWING!*