A Guide to Making Kombucha

Kombucha Ingredients

3 litres of bottled spring water room temperature
6 black tea or green tea bags (I use 5 green & 1 black)
1 cup of white sugar
1 jar of starter liquid with live SCOBY

Instructions

Boil 4 cups of the water and add to a heatproof bowl with the sugar and stir until dissolved.
Add the tea bags and leave for 10 minutes to steep.
Remove teabags and add the sweet tea to your empty Kombucha jug along with the remaining water.
Once the mixture is at room temperature add your SCOBY and starter liquid.
Cover the fermenting vessel with a breathable cloth to prevent fruit flies.
Note: NEVER ADD HOT WATER TO YOUR SCOBY, do not keep in direct sunlight, do not use washing up liquid to wash your hands or Kombucha equipment (I use hot water and rinse with apple cider vinegar) and finally, do not use metal utensils as all these things will kill the bacteria.

After 4 days start testing your Kombucha via the tap. When the flavour has soured to your liking the brew is ready for bottling or a second ferment.
Bottle and refrigerate until required.
Leave 2 cups of starter liquid and the SCOBY in the fermenting vessel for your next batch. Do not refrigerate the fermenting Kombucha or SCOBY.

A second ferment is when you bottle your Kombucha and add fresh fruit or fruit juice, then cap the bottle but leave it at room temperature. The yeast and bacteria feed on the new sugar source and create more bubbles and adds flavour.
With the second ferment you need to pop the caps open each day to prevent an explosion. Once you are happy with the amount of fizz (usually 3-5 days) it is ready to strain and refrigerate to stop further fermentation.

It may look like a bit of a process, but once you get set up it is simple to make in your own home. Best of all, inexpensive to make. No more expensive purchased Kombucha and you know your Booch is alive and feeding your body valuable probiotics.

I have found several very helpful videos on Youtube searching “Kombucha” in the search bar. Please feel free to message me if you have any further questions.