Kombucha Brewers

[amd]

@IrishLass just remember to go slow when you're first starting to drink it! I notice that when I start drinking it after a time of not drinking it, that I can only do a few ounces and have to work up to a full bottle. Everyone's body is different, but for me, too much without an adjustment period gives me diarrhea, I constantly feel thirsty, and I sweat a ton... and it stinks! It usually takes about a week or so to get up to drinking half a bottle without the detox affects. My boochy co-worker though, she can drink a full bottle without having to break herself into it. Welcome to the club! Did she send you home with a SCOBY too?

Next week I am going to start brewing again. I've been waiting for a friend to have time to come over - she wants to start brewing too, and she's the type who wants to see the process rather than read it and then try it. The jar of SCOBY waved at me yesterday when I walked by, so I think they've forgiven me for neglecting them for the summer.

 

[Misschief]

My kombucha has been suffering this summer. It's just not doing what it should. I'm thinking of scrapping the whole lot.

 

[amd]

Oh no! What is it not doing?

 

[Misschief]

Oh no! What is it not doing?

I've ignored it mostly but the scoby hasn't been thriving this year. I do have a scoby hotel so I do have back up. I just really haven't been motivated to drink it or make it.

 

[IrishLass]

@IrishLass just remember to go slow when you're first starting to drink it! I notice that when I start drinking it after a time of not drinking it, that I can only do a few ounces and have to work up to a full bottle. Everyone's body is different, but for me, too much without an adjustment period gives me diarrhea, I constantly feel thirsty, and I sweat a ton... and it stinks! It usually takes about a week or so to get up to drinking half a bottle without the detox affects. My boochy co-worker though, she can drink a full bottle without having to break herself into it. Welcome to the club! Did she send you home with a SCOBY too?

Thank you for the heads-up! I suppose I should be thankful that I didn't drink much more than about 1/3 cup worth for my first try then! LOL. So far, I'm not feeling any weird side effects.


My SIL did not send me home with a SCOBY (I keep wanting to call it a Scooby, lol), because they are being kept at her sister's house at the moment for safe keeping while she gets settled into her new home (she just moved), but it's a good bet that I will be begging at her doorstep for one as soon as she retrieves them.


IrishLass

 

[amd]

I've ignored it mostly but the scoby hasn't been thriving this year. I do have a scoby hotel so I do have back up. I just really haven't been motivated to drink it or make it.

My mom's SCOBY was not thriving well earlier this summer. She brewed a strong cup of tea with a healthy dose of sugar in it and added to her batch. Perked it right up. I would try that, maybe it just needs an extra dose of food.

 

[Misschief]

My mom's SCOBY was not thriving well earlier this summer. She brewed a strong cup of tea with a healthy dose of sugar in it and added to her batch. Perked it right up. I would try that, maybe it just needs an extra dose of food.

Good idea!

 

[ulrurunaturals]

I know there are several threads about kombucha soap, but I'm really curious how many kombucha brewers are in the forum. So who's out there?

I have been drinking kombucha off and on for 2 years, just started brewing my own about a year ago, taking a small break at the beginning of summer when we moved, and December/January while I was getting my mental poop in a group. I make about 3/4 gallon at a time, because I'm the only one who drinks it at my house.

Tea: I usually brew mine with black and green tea, but I did do a few batches with oolong that I brought back from a China trip. (I'll be leaving more room in my bag on next trip. That was the best carbonation I have ever gotten!)

Sugar: I usually use regular old table sugar, but did my first batch with raw sugar just last week.

Flavors: Mostly plain, but I have experimented a bit with pumpkin, strawberry & rhubarb, and my last batch was strawberry & lime, which is my new favorite. I use my sister's homemade strawberry syrup for the strawberry part. It's too runny to be a decent ice cream sauce, and too rich for panpakes (pancakes), but works well for booch because I don't have to use alot.

...and no... I haven't tried to make soap with booch, but it is on my list.

I do my kombucha with pu erh only

 

[ulrurunaturals]

DH brews kombucha. He uses black tea and isn’t very adventurous so no experimenting with flavors. IMO he lets it ferment too long. It’s pretty acidic compared to what I’ve bought.

I've used hops cherry juice apple juice in my second ferment.

 

[dibbles]

I've used hops cherry juice apple juice in my second ferment.

I wish I could convince him to try something new. But he likes it the way it is, and he's the one who makes it so...there you go.

 

[DeeAnna]

@IrishLass -- You'd better be careful!!!! These folks will have you making booch before you know it. I just started to make kombucha this summer, thanks to the encouragement and advice from these crazy people. The several batches I made after I got a healthy scoby have all gone well.

I agree with not overdoing it, but everyone is a little different, so what is too much for one person might be fine for another. I don't get any particular digestive upset or physical reaction. What I've found is I enjoy about a cup -- it's refreshing and pleasant -- but it's hard for me to drink any much more than that at any one time. Not sure why.

I sometimes cut it with an equal amount of plain carbonated water to make a diluted, light drink a bit like an old fashioned switchel.

 

[amd]

@DeeAnna shhhhh... no one is supposed to know about our plan for world domination until it's too late!

 

[Obsidian]

I've just about given up on kombucha, I end up dumping more than I drink. For some reason, as soon as I put my bottles in the fridge, the carbonation disappears.
I thought it was my bottles but my daughter has the nice bottles with the wire closures and hers does the same thing. Any idea whats going on or how to fix it?

 

[ulrurunaturals]

I've just about given up on kombucha, I end up dumping more than I drink. For some reason, as soon as I put my bottles in the fridge, the carbonation disappears.
I thought it was my bottles but my daughter has the nice bottles with the wire closures and hers does the same thing. Any idea whats going on or how to fix it?

I use the GTS bottles to carbonate. I usually use fruit juice mine carbonate just fine some time they carbonate "too" much. My bottles are 16oz GTS bottles I just rinse and refill. I usually fill the juice just to where it covers the bottom of the bottle then add the fermented Kombucha. Then let it sit out a few days. I don't necessarily refrigerate mine right away .I mean I drink one a day. LOL. Latley I've been drinking my Kombucha from my dispenser vessels with a stainless steel spigot I bought from amazon. Side note about Carbonating.... It doesn't have to be carbonated to be "drinkable" just cause it didn't Carbonate doesn't mean it's a "ruined batch" it's still consumable. Also be when you put your carbonated bottles in the fridge because it natural carbonation from fermentation the mechanism that ferments goes dormant in the fridge. Maybe leave it out longer during 2nd ferment so it can consume all of the available sugars. The more sugars your Kombucha consumes during the second ferment the more carbonation it will produce. I find that adding hops to the second ferment gives a nice carbonation boost even after being refrigerated. That's been my experience. I'll never buy Kombucha from a store again! It's a very easy process. $3.00 a bottle? Pshhh...the only way I'll buy Kombucha again from store is if I start running out of bottles LOL.

 

[Obsidian]

I was using the GTS bottles too, guess I shouldn't have thrown them all out. I've used fruit puree for second fermentation, they seem to carbonate ok but never very much. Can burping too much lessen the fizz?

I know you can drink it flat but I don't like it, just like drinking flat soda lol. I got a couple flat bottles from DD yesterday, one night sitting at room temp have given enough fizz to make it drinkable but I'd still like a bit more and I'd really like it cold.

 

[ulrurunaturals]

I was using the GTS bottles too, guess I shouldn't have thrown them all out. I've used fruit puree for second fermentation, they seem to carbonate ok but never very much. Can burping too much lessen the fizz?

I know you can drink it flat but I don't like it, just like drinking flat soda lol. I got a couple flat bottles from DD yesterday, one night sitting at room temp have given enough fizz to make it drinkable but I'd still like a bit more and I'd really like it cold.

OK....do not burp your bottles I never burp my bottles. That's where all of your carbonation is prolly going. WHY!!!!! you want to build carbonation not burp it out. If u are worried about your bottles exploding then leave them out maximum 3 days no burping the. Refrigerate or leave out longer then refrigerate. BUT without burping. Try fruit juice experiment. Fruit juice is more available for kombucha consumption than fruit pure is. So fruit juice leave out for three days refrigerate then enjoy. See if that makes a difference. Also I've never had a bottle "explode" on me.

 

[Misschief]

One thing you might try, Obsidian... find a plastic soda bottle (Coke bottle or such). You'll only need one. When you bottle your 'buch, fill the soda bottle as well. Leave them to carbonate, without burping. When the plastic bottle is hard, like a fresh soda bottle, your kombucha is ready to refrigerate. Also, remember that, even though they're in the fridge, they will continue to ferment. The longer you leave them, the more carbonation you'll get.

 

[Obsidian]

Well, I was under the impression you had to burp off the excess pressure every day. No wonder I had some failures.
I'll get another batch going and see how it does. Thanks for the advice.

 

[DeeAnna]

The point of the first fermentation is to break down the starting ingredients (sugars, caffeine) and convert them into the ending ingredients (booch) over a longer period of time. The carbon dioxide gas production during primary fermentation is an undesirable thing, because it will eventually poison the critters that do the fermenting as well as build up way too much pressure if you happen to use a tightly closed container.

In the secondary fermentation, you now intentionally want the gas to build up over a short period of time. So you use a closed container, and you don't worry about keeping the microbes alive -- the mother scoby is gone at this point. You wouldn't want to burp, unless the pressure gets unsafely high for the container.

 

[Obsidian]

I completely misunderstood burping. The web sites I was reading said to do it every 2-3 days to release excess pressure but thinking back, I believe that was for newbies who didn't know how fast pressure would build up.
Feel a bit like a idiot lol.