The Make Your Own Kombucha Co.
Feel the liftBrewing Instructions
Download a PDF of brewing instructions here.
Brewing Kombucha at home is fun and easy. The steps are simple: Boil water, brew tea, add sugar, let it cool, and add culture. If you have purchased the complete kit, the tea, sugar and culture are included, If you have purchased the basic kit, the tea and culture are included and you will need to provide one cup of sugar. A kit makes one gallon of kombucha.
Boil one gallon of water in a large pot. Turn off the heat and let the water cool for a few minutes to reach optimum brewing temperature. Add the tea bag included or 12 regular tea bags and stir. Remove black tea bags in 4 minutes and green or white tea in 2 minutes. Add the enclosed packet of organic sugar or add one cup of sugar, and stir until dissolved. Let the tea cool until it is room temperature.
We recommend using organic sugar, but any granulated sugar will work. In our experience, honey, agave, dark brown sugar and stevia do not produce consistent, tasty kombucha. Much of the sugar added at the beginning of the process is used up during the process. The finished kombucha is fairly low in sugar. Our kombucha has about 25 calories per 8 oz serving.
When the tea is cool, pour it into a suitable brewing container and add the entire contents of the culture packet. Add both the liquid and the solid culture.
Nearly any non-metal food container can be used as a brewing container. A large glass or ceramic bowl, a one gallon glass jar, a large Tupperware type container, or a Crockpot liner will all work. You can improvise by cutting the neck off a one gallon plastic milk bottle.
Cover your brewing container with a cloth to keep dirt and bugs out. A clean dish-towel or t-shirt works well. It keeps out some light and lets the kombucha breathe.
Kombucha brews best between 75-90 degrees. We keep our brew room at our factory at 80 degrees year round. If you house is warm, you can brew kombucha anywhere clean and dry. If your house is cool, you will need to find a warm spot to brew. Many homes have a warm spot near a heater vent, or a pilot light, or next to a water heater. You can make a simple warm box with an insulated cooler. Put your brewing container in a cooler with a jar of hot tap water and keep the cooler lid closed. A fresh jar of hot tap water morning and evening will keep the box warm inside.
Now comes the hardest part of kombucha brewing - wait. Everyday for about 30 days, your kombucha will get more kombucha flavor, more tartness and more fizz. We suggest tasting a sample on day 7 and then every few days. When it tastes good to you, it is done. Some folks like it light and sweet at 7 days. Others prefer the big tangy taste of kombucha at 30 days. Move the kombucha to the refrigerator and the brewing will stop. Kombucha will store for months in the refrigerator.
The live culture in this kit is a SCOBY - a Symbiotic Culture Of Bacteria and Yeast. It is a living organism and it will grow in the sweet tea in your brew container and turn the tea and sugar into kombucha. During the brewing process, healthy vitamins and digestionaiding acids are formed. The brewing also creates natural carbonation. A trace amount of alcohol, usually less than 1/2% may form. At first, the SCOBY may appear as a transparent film on the tea, and then it grow into a solid mass the size and shape of the container. It may be white or dark, smooth or lumpy or bumpy. Dark spots may appear in the SCOBY. It may float or sink. And it may grow into layers that can be separated.
You can use the SCOBY to grow an unlimited number of batches of kombucha. Store the SCOBY at room temperature until you are ready to make another batch. Store it floating in kombucha or a combination of kombucha and sweet tea, covered with a clean cloth. Add a piece of the SCOBY and 1/2 cup of kombucha to each new batch. SCOBYs grow rapidly. Share some with your friends.
Download a funny pic.
We love to hear from you. Call or email anytime with your favorite kombucha recipes and formulas.
Phyllis and Summer Abbott
The Kombucha Starter Kit Co.
Brewing Kombucha at home is fun and easy. The steps are simple: Boil water, brew tea, add sugar, let it cool, and add culture. If you have purchased the complete kit, the tea, sugar and culture are included, If you have purchased the basic kit, the tea and culture are included and you will need to provide one cup of sugar. A kit makes one gallon of kombucha.
Boil one gallon of water in a large pot. Turn off the heat and let the water cool for a few minutes to reach optimum brewing temperature. Add the tea bag included or 12 regular tea bags and stir. Remove black tea bags in 4 minutes and green or white tea in 2 minutes. Add the enclosed packet of organic sugar or add one cup of sugar, and stir until dissolved. Let the tea cool until it is room temperature.
We recommend using organic sugar, but any granulated sugar will work. In our experience, honey, agave, dark brown sugar and stevia do not produce consistent, tasty kombucha. Much of the sugar added at the beginning of the process is used up during the process. The finished kombucha is fairly low in sugar. Our kombucha has about 25 calories per 8 oz serving.
When the tea is cool, pour it into a suitable brewing container and add the entire contents of the culture packet. Add both the liquid and the solid culture.
Nearly any non-metal food container can be used as a brewing container. A large glass or ceramic bowl, a one gallon glass jar, a large Tupperware type container, or a Crockpot liner will all work. You can improvise by cutting the neck off a one gallon plastic milk bottle.
Cover your brewing container with a cloth to keep dirt and bugs out. A clean dish-towel or t-shirt works well. It keeps out some light and lets the kombucha breathe.
Kombucha brews best between 75-90 degrees. We keep our brew room at our factory at 80 degrees year round. If you house is warm, you can brew kombucha anywhere clean and dry. If your house is cool, you will need to find a warm spot to brew. Many homes have a warm spot near a heater vent, or a pilot light, or next to a water heater. You can make a simple warm box with an insulated cooler. Put your brewing container in a cooler with a jar of hot tap water and keep the cooler lid closed. A fresh jar of hot tap water morning and evening will keep the box warm inside.
Now comes the hardest part of kombucha brewing - wait. Everyday for about 30 days, your kombucha will get more kombucha flavor, more tartness and more fizz. We suggest tasting a sample on day 7 and then every few days. When it tastes good to you, it is done. Some folks like it light and sweet at 7 days. Others prefer the big tangy taste of kombucha at 30 days. Move the kombucha to the refrigerator and the brewing will stop. Kombucha will store for months in the refrigerator.
The live culture in this kit is a SCOBY - a Symbiotic Culture Of Bacteria and Yeast. It is a living organism and it will grow in the sweet tea in your brew container and turn the tea and sugar into kombucha. During the brewing process, healthy vitamins and digestionaiding acids are formed. The brewing also creates natural carbonation. A trace amount of alcohol, usually less than 1/2% may form. At first, the SCOBY may appear as a transparent film on the tea, and then it grow into a solid mass the size and shape of the container. It may be white or dark, smooth or lumpy or bumpy. Dark spots may appear in the SCOBY. It may float or sink. And it may grow into layers that can be separated.
You can use the SCOBY to grow an unlimited number of batches of kombucha. Store the SCOBY at room temperature until you are ready to make another batch. Store it floating in kombucha or a combination of kombucha and sweet tea, covered with a clean cloth. Add a piece of the SCOBY and 1/2 cup of kombucha to each new batch. SCOBYs grow rapidly. Share some with your friends.
Download a funny pic.
We love to hear from you. Call or email anytime with your favorite kombucha recipes and formulas.
Phyllis and Summer Abbott
The Kombucha Starter Kit Co.
Oregon Kombucha
4124 SE 60th Avenue - Portland, OR 97217 - (503) 477.4601
www.oregonkombucha.com
Oregon Kombucha - Feel the lift!
