Lowering Kombucha’s ABV?

[BoochBrewer]

Has anyone had any success in lowering the ABV of Kombucha? If so, how? Looking for any and all ideas!!

 

[Yooper]

Diluting with fruit juice is nice, as it sweetens it too. But I make very low ABV kombucha, so it's not a concern. Mine is less than .25% ABV.

 

[BoochBrewer]

Diluting with fruit juice is nice, as it sweetens it too. But I make very low ABV kombucha, so it's not a concern. Mine is less than .25% ABV.

Nice! How have you tested yours to know it’s at.25? And what do you do differently to keep it low?

 

[Yooper]

No, I don't have a sophisticated way to measure it- that equipment is expensive! I have a hydrometer, and a refractometer. The culture I have doesn't form much alcohol because there is enough acetobacter to convert some of the alcohol to vinegar (but not too much) and plenty of lactobacillus.

It's just a guestimate. But it's very much like homemade soda.

However, if you're going commercial you need to be under something like .5% and prove it. You'll need more sophisticated equipment of course, or use a lab.

 

[mr_stout]

Why would you need to lower the ABV of Kombucha? Does it even have alcohol?

Has anyone had any success in lowering the ABV of Kombucha? If so, how? Looking for any and all ideas!!

 

[BoochBrewer]

Why would you need to lower the ABV of Kombucha? Does it even have alcohol?

Yes, it usually has a small amount that is created by the fermentation process. To sell commercially, you need to be under .5%.

 

[BoochBrewer]

No, I don't have a sophisticated way to measure it- that equipment is expensive! I have a hydrometer, and a refractometer. The culture I have doesn't form much alcohol because there is enough acetobacter to convert some of the alcohol to vinegar (but not too much) and plenty of lactobacillus.

It's just a guestimate. But it's very much like homemade soda.

However, if you're going commercial you need to be under something like .5% and prove it. You'll need more sophisticated equipment of course, or use a lab.

We’ve sent home batches for gas chromatography testing and came back at .6-1%. From what I understand, the levels in the Kombucha are too low for refractometers and hydrometers to accurately read. We are going commercial so we are making tweaks to the process in hopes of lowering it under .5.

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

We’ve sent home batches for gas chromatography testing and came back at .6-1%. From what I understand, the levels in the Kombucha are too low for refractometers and hydrometers to accurately read. We are going commercial so we are making tweaks to the process in hopes of lowering it under .5.

The ONLY way to be certain is to test each batch, and then dilute.

 

[BoochBrewer]

The ONLY way to be certain is to test each batch, and then dilute.

Yeah, I’m hoping to avoid diluting. But it’s not off the table if all else fails. :-/

 

[madscientist451]

If you are going to sell a non-alcohol beverage commercially, you need a full blown lab or send your product out for testing. There are other things you need to test for besides alcohol levels. If anyone claims that drinking your product made them ill, you'll need to prove that you performed adequate tests and that there wasn't anything wrong with it when it left your facility.

 

[BoochBrewer]

If you are going to sell a non-alcohol beverage commercially, you need a full blown lab or send your product out for testing. There are other things you need to test for besides alcohol levels. If anyone claims that drinking your product made them ill, you'll need to prove that you performed adequate tests and that there wasn't anything wrong with it when it left your facility.

For sure. We’ll be doing ABV testing at a TTB certified lab, along with monitoring the pH throughout the entire process, and any other monitoring required by the health dept. My current challenge is getting below and staying below .5 ABV.

 

[KombuchaChaChaCha]

I'm pretty late to this thread but @BoochBrewer it would be super helpful to understand how ended up addressing!

 

[bracconiere]

@KombuchaChaChaCha , @BoochBrewer hasn't been since 2018....but my best guess for fermenting low ABV kombucha, would be to give the acetobacter and stuff the O2 they want to make the acetoethyl esters...or the stuff that's made during kombucha fermentation...yeast like anerobic, and acetobacter like aerobic....

just a guess on my part, maybe one of those fish tank bubblers or something?

 

[KombuchaChaChaCha]

Thanks @bracconiere! I have seen a few threads on this but no one reporting back if it was successful.

 

[bracconiere]

Thanks @bracconiere! I have seen a few threads on this but no one reporting back if it was successful.

i just recently found that you can compare a hydro reading to refrac, and figure how much ABV it has....but i don't think it's going to be accurate enough to tell the difference more then 1% or so.....

i'd imagine if the bubbler worked that good, should be close to zero though? when i was making kombucha for a work drink, i wanted it 1%, so kept the fermentor sealed! just thinking the opposite would be true for 0%?