Do not use ingredients

[kyt]

Thought we could make a list of ingredients that do not ferment well in kombucha. This would be especially useful for new brewers so they don't have to waste a whole batch to find out.

Coconut sugar - this is a sweetener made from the coconut palm flower nectar. While it does seem to ferment, in doing so it smells like vomit and diarrhea mixed together.

Bird's Eye shredded coconut - I tried making a piña colada KT, and it tastes rancid while leaving a putrid bile smell in my sinuses.

What have you found that absolutely does not work?

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[gnomebrew]

Definitely avoid using molasses. I ran out of sugar once and tried using that instead. Just awful!

I've also experimented with various spices, and with the exception of ginger, they all did not interact well.

 

[kyt]

Yea spices can be weird. Stick cinnamon works great, but powdered makes a weird brown slimy mess.

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[Listen_Up_Sonny]

Matcha green tea (the powder form) makes clumps in your tea that looks like mold on the scoby. It did't affect flavor, but it looks just like mold.

I bet the coconut problems come from the fact that there is coconut oil in both of those products. I imagine the oil is bad for fermentation.

Some spices do odd things flavor wise. I definitely start with a small batch. Black pepper corns and galangal(like spicy ginger) make good flavorings.

 

[SJB104]

This is great, what are thoughts on powdered sugar in sweet tea starter


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[kyt]

Powdered sugar isn't just sugar, it has corn starch in it to keep it powdery. I don't know what would happen if you used it, but I wouldn't anticipate good results.

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[IslandLizard]

I don't do Kombucha/Tea but agree, old coconut smells and tastes like soap or vomit. Can't even imagine a sugar product made from that.

Ever had a "Pina Colada" from one of those pre-mix bottles? Or one that sat in the pantry for 2 years, half finished?

I love Pina Coladas but only from fresh ingredients. Oh those good old vacation days in Puerto Rico... $3.50 for a bottle of black Bacardi. Cans of real coconut pulp and pineapple juice. You can't buy that stuff here, except for the Bacardi then.

I've noticed too that cinnamon powder turns into an awful yukky slime in the bottom of my occasional cup of Starbucks/Wawa/roadside coffee. Wonder what causes that. Is there something mixed in?

 

[Owly055]

Don't use malt in place of sugar in the primary fermentation.. It leaves big cakey clumps of sediment floating around, and the yeast goes crazy for it and the bacteria doesn't sour the booch much......... It just really doesn't work well.

That said, I frequently use a wort of dark malted grains or dark DME in a ginger syrup which contains star anise and stick cinnamon as a bottling syrup. I pitch yeast and ferment the syrup out, then add 1/4 cup per liter of kombucha when bottling. I secondary ferment for 5-7 days depending on carbonation level. The result is a lovely rich dark malty ginger and spice kombucha with lots of carbonation, and little sweetness....... not a perceptible amount of alcohol.


H.W.