Makes: 1L Kombucha from 250mL starter
Ingredients:
• 1/4 cup per litre organic raw cane sugar
• Cold filtered water: 1000mL for 250mL starter
• 2 organic black or green tea bags (strings removed) per litre
• Starter liquid
Equipment:
• Saucepan large enough to hold desired amount of kombucha
• Coffee filter/cheese cloth
• White vinegar
• Rubber band
• Glass brewing vessel large enough to hold desired amount of kombucha
Method:
1. Sanitise everything by rinsing in white vinegar.
2. Add 250mL of cold filtered water and sugar to a saucepan.
3. Bring mixture in saucepan to a light boil, stirring until sugar has dissolved.
4. Turn off saucepan and add teabags. Leave to steep for 5 minutes.
5. Remove tea bags from saucepan and add remaining cold filtered water.
6. Allow mixture in saucepan to cool below 35°C, then add starter liquid and transfer into brewing vessel.
7. Cover vessel with cloth and rubber band, then place in a room with no direct sunlight.
Equipment:
• Round glass bottles that seal well
• White vinegar
Method:
1. Sanitise bottles by rinsing with white vinegar.
2. Take completed base fermentation brew (save 250mL liquid for the next brew) and transfer to bottles with your desired flavour additive (see suggestions below).
3. Leave 1-2cm of air at the top of the bottles (ensure to use a round bottle to prevent explosions)
4. Leave bottles at room temperature for 1-7 days to ferment/infuse.
5. Check bottles daily for fizz by carefully opening (if too fizzy the brew can erupt out the top or in extreme cases, explode).
6. Once flavour & fizz is to your liking, store in fridge to stop secondary fermentation process.
Favourite flavour combinations:
• Lemon & Ginger: 1/2 a lemon (with rind) & 1/2 teaspoon of ginger per litre
• Mandarin: 1/2 a mandarin (with rind) per litre
Q: Can I brew more with the same amount of starter?
A: No, you will over dilute the starter which reduces pH level and risks Mould growing. See our Why does Mould Grow blog post for more details. If you want to scale up to a larger brew (say 2L or 4L) then do it in steps by repeating the phase 1 stage and scaling up the amount of starter, tea and sugar used.
Q: Can I add fruit to the first ferment?
A: No, you will probably introduce some mould or unwanted yeasts (and end up with kahm). Fruit and other flavouring should be done in Phase 2 - Second Ferment
Q: Why do I need to seal the top of the base fermentation vessel with a fine filter and rubber band?
A: The scoby needs to breath, but also be protected from micro-organisms to prevent mould.
Q: How do I know when 1st fermentation is done?
A: The pH level should be between 2.5 - 3.5 (ideally around 3.0). You can use pH testing strips or a pH meter to do this.
Q: What are the brown strands and clumps forming in my brew?
A: These are long strands of yeast, they are completely normal despite how they look.
Q: Why does my batch taste overly vinegary?
A: It has spent too long in 1st fermentation. Higher temperatures also makes fermentation go faster.
Q: What is the best type of bottle for 2nd fermentation/flavouring?
A: Round bottles with a good sealing lid will handle the pressure of 2nd fermentation best. Square bottles will often explode.
Q: I have SCOBY's growing at the top of my bottles during 2nd fermentation. Is that normal?
A: This is normal as some fermentation will continue in the bottles.
Q: Why am I not getting any fizz during 2nd fermentation?
A: Getting fizz can be tricky. Some common causes are bottles not sealing well enough, too much head space at the top of the bottle or the flavouring doesn’t contain enough sugar (fruits often have enough natural sugars to warrant not adding any sugar).
Happy brewing
Chris