Upcoming Kombucha Demo on Monday, May 16

My next Kombucha Demo will be on Monday, May 16, from 7-8 pm in Brookline, MA. For more details and to RSVP, go to the event page on the Urban Homesteaders' League here. You may also RSVP by e-mailing me at kombuchafuel[at]gmail.com. Hope you'll join us!

Kombucha Demo on March 21

I am happy to announce that my next kombucha demo will be on Monday, March 21, from 7-8 pm in Brookline, MA. For more details and to RSVP, please go to the event page on the Urban Homesteaders' League. If you have any questions about the event, please e-mail me at kombuchafuel [at] gmail.com.

Hope to see you there!

Keeping the Kombucha Brew Warm

It's been a pretty cold and snowy winter this year in Boston, and because the house that I'm currently living in is on the chilly side, I finally decided to purchase a seedling mat for my brew!

Ideally, kombucha brews at around 74 - 84 degrees F. According to Happy Herbalist, the warmer temperatures produce a "faster more consistent ferment while the lower temperatures produce a less harsh more mellow taste though more inconsistent and with a greater susceptibility to molds and pathogens forming. Kombucha brewing seems to work better in the summer than in the winter months."

I agree that kombucha brewing works much better during the summer months than in the winter. So to keep my kombucha warm, I purchased this seedling mat from Amazon. The mat, which you plug into an electric outlet, is supposed to warm the area about 10-20 degrees F above ambient temperature. Although the kombucha and SCOBYs still don't seem to be as happy as they typically are during the summer, the seedling mat has definitely helped!

Other ideas to keep your kombucha warm:

• Brewing your kombucha in a warm (but undisturbed) location, such as in a kitchen cupboard
• Brewing the kombucha in a cabinet with a light bulb (as recommended by Happy Herbalist)
  
• Using a heating pad
  
  

What do you do to keep your kombucha warm?

Next Kombucha Demo: Jan. 31

My next Kombucha Demo will be one week from today: Monday, January 31, from 7-8 pm in Brookline.

For more information about the demo and to sign up, please go to the event page on the Urban Homesteaders' League here.

Hope to see you there!

Kombucha Back on the Shelves

Here is a much delayed follow-up on the Kombucha Recall!

Earlier this year, there was a Kombucha Recall in many stores. This was not a quality issue, but it was due to the alcohol content of kombucha. For a beverage to be sold as a non-alcoholic beverage, the alcohol content must be under .5%. Because kombucha can reach alcohol levels of around 2-something % due to the fermentation process, many brands of kombucha were taken off of store shelves in June because they did not meet the < .5% alcohol content requirement of a non-alcoholic beverage. I read about one company's reaction to the recall on Kombucha Kamp. Because CEO David Koretz, founder of Vibranz Kombucha, had a background in wine-making and expertise in fermented foods, after the recall they were able to reformulate and get their kombucha back on the shelves in only two weeks!

Although not all of the kombucha companies were able to respond to the recall as quickly, it is good to see that numerous brands of kombucha are back on store shelves again. However, some may notice that the kombucha does not taste quite the same as before. How did the companies get the alcohol content to below .5%? Below are some possibilities of how to reduce the alcohol content of kombucha. Please note that I don't actually know what each company is specifically doing to reduce the alcohol content of their kombucha- they may be doing one, several, or none of the options that I list below.

Before I list the various methods, a reminder about the fermentation process: Kombucha is fermented with a SCOBY, also known as a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeasts. The yeasts convert the sugars to alcohol and CO2, and the bacteria convert most (but not all) of the alcohol to organic acids, such as acetic acid, and water.

To reduce the alcoholic content of kombucha:

• Pasteurization- this process kills the live cultures in kombucha, so the yeasts can no longer produce alcohol. However, through this method, you are losing the benefits of having live cultures in your beverage. Fortunately, it seems that the brands that produced raw kombucha before the recall have decided to continue to stay raw and unpasteurized.
• Earlier expiration dates- refrigeration slows down the fermentation process significantly, but not completely. If the yeasts are still living while the kombucha is in the fridge, they can continue to produce alcohol. Earlier expiration dates help to ensure that the alcohol content won't reach .5%.
• Altering fermentation methods- this includes numerous methods. For example, as you can see from this chart, the alcohol content varies according to the amount of time the kombucha ferments. By altering the amount of time that you brew your kombucha, you can affect the alcohol content of your brew. However, numerous other factors affect kombucha, its alcoholic content, and its rate of fermentation, including temperature, amount of starter used, which strains of bacteria and yeasts are in your brew, etc.
  
• Favoring the bacteria in your SCOBY- this can also be done using various methods. For example, the sediment that is present at the bottom of your fermentation vessel contains yeasts/dead yeasts cells. By filtering these yeast cells out, you are favoring the bacteria, and not the yeasts, which produce the alcohol.
• Diluting the kombucha with water- not ideal, and I'm not sure if any companies actually do it, but it's another possibility.
  

More methods suggested in this Kombucha Kamp blog post featuring Ed Kasper of Happy Herbalist include (read the post for more details):

• Removal of alcohol (such as in the production of non-alcoholic wines)
  
• Know your yeasts! Select specific yeast strains and exclude the yeasts that contribute to higher alcohol content

In addition, here is a link to a podcast where you can listen to (and read the transcript of) Hannah Krum of Kombucha Kamp talk to GT Dave of GT's Kombucha about his product returning to store shelves. (Please note that this interview was before GT's Kombuchas returned to store shelves). According to this interview, GT Dave says that they were not going to change their kombucha formula nor dilute their beverage. And in this blog post, you can read more about GT's two new kombucha lines: the "Enlightened" line with less than .5% alcohol, and the "Full Strength" kombucha line, which contains over .5% alcohol- even though it may take some time before you see the "full strength" version in your area.

Although most companies have tried to get their kombucha to below .5% alcohol so that they can continue to sell it as a non-alcoholic beverage, two companies are taking a different approach to kombucha, by combining kombucha and beer: Lambrucha and Goose Island's Fleur.

It's really too bad that kombucha had to be taken off of store shelves not because of a quality issue, but because of its alcohol content, which is typically still pretty low at <3%. It's great to see numerous brands of kombucha back on store shelves, but again, the great thing about home-brewing is that you can brew your kombucha to exactly how you enjoy it! If you are interested in beginning to brew kombucha, here are several kombucha brewing recipes to get you started.

Upcoming Kombucha Demonstration in Brookline

The information about my next kombucha demo is provided below. However, due to limited capacity, RSVP is required on the Urban Homsteaders' League Meetup Page here. (You will need to join the group, but you can always leave the group after the demo).

Thanks, and hope to see you there!

Kombucha Demo

Date: Monday, December 13, 2010
Time: 7-8 pm

Location: TBA, in Brookline, MA. Nearby T stops: Harvard Avenue Station stop on the B (green) line, Coolidge Corner stop on the C (green) line
The exact location of the workshop will be e-mailed to participants the night before the event.
Cost: Sliding scale, $15-$30
Description:
Kombucha is a fermented tea traced back to Chinese origins to around 220 B.C. Numerous health benefits have been attributed to kombucha, including curing cancer, reducing blood pressure, boosting the immune system, and aiding digestion. Kombucha is also said to have probiotics and detoxifying effects.
Brewing kombucha is quite easy to do at home, and it's fun! Annabelle Ho, author of the blog Kombucha Fuel, will demonstrate and explain the basics of brewing and bottling kombucha. Topics to be covered include required materials, the traditional and continuous brewing methods, how to grow your own kombucha mushroom, and more.
Samples of home-brewed kombucha tea will be available to taste. SCOBYs will also be available for individuals to take home. For those interested in adopting a kombucha mushroom, bringing a clean, glass pint jar would help to facilitate distribution.
For more information on kombucha and how to brew it, visit http://www.kombuchafuel.com.
__________________________________________________________________________
Annabelle Ho is the author of Kombucha Fuel and has been brewing kombucha for over two years. She is currently an undergraduate student studying nutrition in Boston and is the president of Slow Food BU. Annabelle’s interests include herbalism, gardening, agriculture, and biking.

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.