Kombucha has become too vinegar-y

I've been using the same SCOBY for a while now, perhaps 6 months when I started brewing kombucha. I tossed the original mother as some point, but the current SCOBY is formidable. Also, 2-3 months ago I converted to using a ceramic water dispenser with spigot which allows me to have a continuous brewing system. I like a little vinegar bite to my kombucha, but especially recently, it has become WAY too vinegar-y.

I'm looking for suggestions here. Is a prominent vinegar flavor even normal or is it a sign of some funkiness afoot? Should I just reduce the SCOBY or perhaps start a new brew without saving the existing, vinegar-y solution as a starter?

Thanks in advance.

how low do you let your brew get before adding more? I would start a brand new batch with about 10% starter

I brew a new batch that I add to the dispenser when it gets close to the spigot and starts draining slowly. I'm using 8 sachets of black tea per gallon of water and 1 cup of cane sugar. Perhaps I'll switch to green tea.

its hard to say without it being on a set schedule (ie every 7 days you add more), if you are just adding as it gets low than it may just be that you have an active culture and its working quicker than your drinking it. Think about bottling and refridgerating it when its drinking how you like it

Thanks for your input. I think you're right that it's just going too long and the vinegar-y-ness is simply what happens when a SCOBY is allowed to continue to work for weeks. I'll either start drinking more or transferring some to the fridge when it's ready.

I've found that black tea gets vinegar-y faster than green tea. Green tea seems to take forever to get a vinegar bite to it so I mix both green and black teas in my kombucha.

Quetzolcotl said:

I've found that black tea gets vinegar-y faster than green tea. Green tea seems to take forever to get a vinegar bite to it so I mix both green and black teas in my kombucha.

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Very helpful input, Quetzolcotl. I was actually wondering that. I'll switch over to green tea and see!