Is there a FAQ? (I can't find one, nor any stickied threads)

[z-bob]

I visited my daughter in Texas a couple of weeks ago and she had me try the kombucha she makes -- and it was actually good! Before I came back to snow country, she gave me a quart jar with a little sour kombucha in it and a piece of scoby. (I think that's what y'all call a hotel)

Just wondering how I get started? I think I just make sweet tea and add the scoby and a little of the sour liquid, then cover it to keep the fruitflies out. What are the temperature requirements? Do you always add flavorings at bottling time, or could you just use a little sugar? Does it matter whether I use green tea or black, or a mixture? (I kinda like "gunpowder tea", which is green but darker and stronger than most green teas)

 

[Scientific hippie]

Welcome to kombucha land! You should probably start with a gallon or less. Make a bunch of tea (strong if you like the flavor; mix green with some black for your first batch) and let it cool down to body temp or below. Add the scoby and the starter tea and top off with cold water. Cover the jar with cloth and rubber bands (cheesecloth is too coarse; it'll let fruit flies in). Start checking the pH after the third day. When the pH is below 3.5 and it tastes good, bottle it, saving the scoby and a cup or two of the tea to start the next batch. When you bottle it, let it sit out for another day or two (this is secondary fermentation). After a couple of days at room temperature, taste it and backsweeten it if you like. I like to add blueberries in season; right now I am adding dried chopped ginger or dried elderberries and sugar. Figure out how long it takes you to drink the gallon so you can start the next batch on time. A "hotel" is where you park the scoby/scobies if you're not going to use them for a long time, feeding them a little sweet tea every so often; that hasn't happened to me yet!

 

[z-bob]

Thanks, SH. I have some half-gallon canning jars and figured I would use one of them. I could also use a gallon glass jug and only fill it half to 3/4 full, but not sure how I'd get the scoby out. (I assume I don't want to break it apart) If I use the canning jar, will probably cap it with a piece of muslin and a canning ring. If a jug, I can stuff the top with gauze.

Fruit flies are swarming around the hotel, even with a tight lid (I burp it occasionally)

What temperature do I need to maintain for the primary fermentation? It starts out at body temp, but it won't stay there. Maybe I can put in on top of the fridge or the water heater... Or put a jar of warm water up there beforehand to see where the temperature stabilizes.

 

[Scientific hippie]

Unless your kitchen is near-freezing, room temp is fine. Top of the fridge is great. Have fun!

 

[z-bob]

My water is pretty alkaline. When I mix up my first batch, the pH might be higher than 4 even after I add the starter booch. I have a pH meter.

Everything I read says to add white vinegar to lower the pH, but I also have lactic, phosphoric, and citric acids. Would one of them work and taste less "vinegary"? It shouldn't take much so maybe I'm overthinking this.

 

[RPh_Guy]

Since the SCOBYs are handed around they're all going to be a little different.
Just go for it! Then if it's not to your taste, you can try to adjust fermentation process, change the tea, or try a different SCOBY.

I'd suggest lactic acid or phosphoric acid for lowering pH (to 4.0-4.5, the same as I would do for any wild culture).

Cheers

 

[Scientific hippie]

My water is pretty alkaline. When I mix up my first batch, the pH might be higher than 4 even after I add the starter booch. I have a pH meter.

Everything I read says to add white vinegar to lower the pH, but I also have lactic, phosphoric, and citric acids. Would one of them work and taste less "vinegary"? It shouldn't take much so maybe I'm overthinking this.

I would defer to RPh Guy; I've only been brewing since August. I have no idea what the pH of my water is; I do use a Brita pitcher to filter it. I have pH test strips that are centered on 3.0 or 4.0; the initial reading is way alkaline, but the pH goes down promptly; even more promptly now that my scobies have attained Jabba the Hut size. Of course, you can always do what I do; make one batch with added acid and one without and compare. I'm new to all this and when I make a mistake like not noticing the packet of oak chips in a 1 gal wine kit, I just make a second with the chips added and see what the difference is. I am enthusiastic about making larger volumes of wine (given the glassware I have, I always make 2.5 gallons of kombucha) and mead. Unfortunately I mismeasured the honey on my first big 3-gallon mead batch; it was driving me crazy! I just relegated it (the S.G. won't go down) to the basement to go for a longer time, and have made a correctly-measured batch now, happily bubbling on top of the fridge.

Warning: this hobby is very addictive. I started out when I had just had sampled a few bottles of commercial kombucha and found it very refreshing. I kept asking my husband to pick up a few bottles when he was shopping. One day he said, "I'm happy to get the kombucha for you, but it's a little pricey. Can you figure out how to make it yourself?" Never ask that question of someone who has roasted her own coffee beans, owns an industrial sewing machine, has yarn squirreled away in filing cabinets, makes her own bread, and grows most of her own veggies (I did all this when I was working full-time as a radiologist; I'm semi-retired now). I hit the Web, got some scobies, and the rest is history! I just planted some elderberry shrubs so I can make wine with them.

More advice: There are kombucha sites (www.getkombucha.com, www.kombuchacamp.com) that have supplies; I usually buy my tea from the first one, my equipment (not much equipment; flavorings [the ones at the home-brew store are better], cloth and extra-long rubber bands for the big jars) from the second one. You will be bombarded with sketchy info about various health benefits, none of which have been proven. That's why I migrated to this site. I just like kombucha because it is refreshing and I can make it exactly how I like it; I don't need to be told that the scoby makes a great facial (I doubt it).

 

[RPh_Guy]

I have pH test strips that are centered on 3.0 or 4.0; the initial reading is way alkaline, but the pH goes down promptly; even more promptly now that my scobies have attained Jabba the Hut size.

I should have mentioned... Adding the previous scoby and liquid may be enough to "naturally" bring the pH into range at the onset, but you're right, the microbes can pretty quickly handle it too. So adjustment may not be needed depending on your scoby, water pH/alkalinity, and process.

Warning: this hobby is very addictive.

Addictive and delicious!!

 

[z-bob]

I only have one scoby and it's pretty small. I don't want to kill or contaminate it on my first batch That's why I want to make sure the pH is below 4 when I start. Once I kinda know what I'm doing and I have a spare scoby, I won't worry about it. I'll brew some tea tonight and get started. I'm going to use hard tapwater; I will add a crushed vitamin C tablet to a gallon of water to get rid of the chlorine/chloramine. (I assume chlorophenols are bad) That will help acidify it too.

 

[z-bob]

I crushed a 500 mg vitamin C tablet and put it in a gallon jug and filled it with tap water (that was to remove chlorine and chloramine.) Used a couple of cups to brew some tea -- 4 Aldi tea bags that look just like Lipton's, and 2 tsp of loose "gunpowder" green tea. I put 1/2 a cup of sugar in a half-gallon mason jar and added the hot tea. Filled the jar about 2/3 full with the treated water and checked the temperature. It was 86°F so I dumped in the scoby and the liquid it was in, topped the jar off almost to the top with water and check the pH. pH was about 6 which is too high. I added about a teaspoon of white vinegar (so much for using fancy brewing acids) and that dropped it to 4.5. Then I put a clean cotton handkerchief on top and closed it up with a canning ring.

In a couple of days, how do I know if it's working? The scoby floats to the top? This first batch is mostly to build up the scoby and to get some sour kombucha to prime the next batch, so I'm going to let it go for a while. First batch doesn't have to be drinkable but I hope it is. I haven't decided whether to flavor it with blackberries or candied ginger.

 

[Scientific hippie]

If the pH doesn't begin to drop in a few days, I'd add more sugar to make 3/4 - 1 cup; that's according to the recipe I use. Otherwise, it sounds great!

 

[RPh_Guy]

In a couple of days, how do I know if it's working? The scoby floats to the top?

I was going to let someone who actually makes kombucha answer this

There will be light bubbling and CO2 production from the yeast fermentation (causing s.g. drop).
A new scoby pellicle will form at the top.
It will sour from the bacteria, down to around 3.0-3.5 if I had to guess.

Good luck!

 

[Andrew Hodgson]

RPh guy is right on, I will usually start to taste mine after a week, but I like it real vinegary. I don't see any reason why you can't start tasting as you like, as he said above best visual cue is the starting of the scoby pellicle on the surface. I just gently push it down with a spoon and taste.

 

[Scientific hippie]

I didn't know RPh guy hasn't made kombucha; it was my gateway drug. I've been making it since August, so I'm not exactly an expert. The recipe I have from KombuchaKamp calls for 3/4 to 1 cup of sugar per gallon; that's what I use. I you are making a gallon, you may want to add a little more sugar. But don't worry if the scoby floats or sinks; it doesn't matter. Mine never bubbled. I would start measuring the pH after 3-4 days, more for experience than for anything else.

 

[RPh_Guy]

I didn't know RPh guy hasn't made kombucha; it was my gateway drug. I've been making it since August, so I'm not exactly an expert. The recipe I have from KombuchaKamp calls for 3/4 to 1 cup of sugar per gallon; that's what I use. I you are making a gallon, you may want to add a little more sugar. But don't worry if the scoby floats or sinks; it doesn't matter. Mine never bubbled. I would start measuring the pH after 3-4 days, more for experience than for anything else.

I just like kombucha for the science

1 cup sugar per gallon should be about 1.020. Assuming complete attenuation, about 13 volumes CO2 should be produced (and 2.5% ABV). You don't get any fizziness?

 

[z-bob]

I'm making a half gallon. I only mentioned the gallon jug because that's how much water i treated before I started. So, 1/2 C sugar in just under a 1/2 gallon of tea.

 

[Yooper]

I just like kombucha for the science

1 cup sugar per gallon should be about 1.020. Assuming complete attenuation, about 13 volumes CO2 should be produced (and 2.5% ABV). You don't get any fizziness?

Remember that it's not just a yeast fermentation- it's a mixed culture with lactic acid bacteria, as well as some acetobacter, so the actual ABV is usually under .5%, since the bacteria ferment some of the sugars, as well as "eat" some of the ethanol.

I like mine carbonated, so I have mine on tap with my beer. The keg we just finished was straight black tea fermented, and then I added a puree of my fresh blackberries and then strained out before kegging. It was fantastic!

 

[RPh_Guy]

I know some ethanol will be metabolized to acetic acid. How much depends on the process (oxygen exposure).

Commercial kombucha is produced with less than 0.5% ABV to be considered non-alcoholic. But homebrew could easily be higher ABV simply by limiting the oxygen exposure, decreasing vinegar formation. No?

 

[Scientific hippie]

I just like kombucha for the science

1 cup sugar per gallon should be about 1.020. Assuming complete attenuation, about 13 volumes CO2 should be produced (and 2.5% ABV). You don't get any fizziness?

I get a little fizziness when I taste it out of the primary; I seldom get anything approaching bubbles.

 

[z-bob]

I'm about bottle it today; I have some strong tea brewing to start another batch immediately. Just wondering how much fresh ginger to add per 750ml bottle? 2 tsp of finely-minced ginger sound about right?

Edit: I just bottled it. My math must have been off a bit because a 2 quart canning jar doesn't hold enough to fill two 750ml bottles and have enough left over to start the next batch. So one of my bottles isn't as full as it should be. I may top that one up with apple juice or some of Wife's cranberry juice cocktail (will have to check that for preservatives) I assume I don't want several inches of headspace in the bottle? Or maybe that's okay if I open that one first. I should get a 500ml fliptop bottle; one 500 and one 750 would be about perfect.

 

[z-bob]

I have some cider that's ready to bottle, so I used a wine thief to take a couple ounces out and used that to top up the kombucha bottle that's short. And I marked an X on the lid so I know that one is contaminated with wine yeast. (not sure that matters, except I'll need to clean it especially well)

 

[Scientific hippie]

I use about 1 tsp. dried to 1/2 gallon; fresh is less concentrated; you may want to start with 1 tsp; you can always add more the next day.