Why spend $4 per bottle when you could brew your own kombucha at home for like $.10 a bottle! Plus, its really fun to make and experiment with different flavorings. More on that later.
If you love kombucha, you will want to read on to learn how to brew your own kombucha at home!
First: Collect your supplies
You will need:
1 gallon glass jar with a wide mouth
**no, you don’t have to spend $ on glass bottles off amazon. (I mean, you can if you want to). I re-purposed old glass pickle jars and use them instead! You can even really use any large glass jar you have. Just make sure it is completely clean and free of any odors. You don’t want to contaminate your brew.
1 skoby with starter (or a bottle of kombucha)
**a starter is just some of the kombucha left over from your last batch
Filtered water
6 organic unbleached black tea bags (or use loose tea and filter it out)
**you can really use any caffeinated tea, like a green tea. But, using black tea is the traditional way so I would suggest starting with this until you get a feel for brewing.
1 cup unrefined sugar
**NO this is not for a sweetened tea. This is necessary food for the bacteria to eat while it is fermenting. IF you don’t add the sugar, the bacteria will have nothing to eat and will die. If you don’t like a sweet taste, let it go to about 2 weeks and the bacteria will have eaten almost all of the sugar.
Cheesecloth
**I used unbleached, and re-usable ones.
Rubber bands
Note: you can buy a skoby on line. I liked the one I started with on the “kombucha” section of my amazon shop account. If you want to make your own skoby. And that is AWESOME. I love doing it totally DIY. Click this link to my blog post about growing your own skoby. You will need all of the supplies above plus a bottle of store bought kombucha.
If you already have a skoby, move on to brewing the tea.
Brew black tea
Add the one cup of sugar to the bottom of the glass jar or pitcher. Heat the water and pour it into the jar (about ½ way). Stir to dissolve the sugar.
Add the tea bags and let them steep about 5-10 minutes. You can do more or less time if you want a stronger tea flavor.
Remove the tea bags. Test the temperature of your water with a thermometer. You will want it ~75-85 degrees. You can speed this process up by adding more cool filtered water. Or, even placing it in an ice bath. I like to let it cool naturally, because you don’t want it to be too cold. Room temperature is perfect for the healthy kombucha bacteria to thrive.
Add your skoby & starter
Once your black tea is 75-85 degrees, you can add your starter and your skoby. Your starter is just a cup of kombucha from your last batch. If this is your first brew, add a bottle of store bought kombucha. But, when you purchase a skoby, it typically comes with a starter.
If there is still more room in the jar, fill it with more filtered water. Leave about an inch of room at the top. Cover with cheesecloth and a rubber band.
Fermenting
Put your jar somewhere, out of direct sunlight with ample air flow. And somewhere that it is not going to get bumped into. You will want it to be undisturbed until it is time for the taste test.
Where to ferment:
- Do NOT put your kombucha in a cupboard of closet. It will mold.
- Do NOT put your kombucha near the garbage. It will mold.
- Do NOT put your kombucha near onions/ other produce. It will ruin the flavor.
Ideally, put it on an out of the way shelf.
At 7 days, you can pour a little kombucha out and see how it tastes. If you like it to be more acidic, let it go longer. If you like the sweetness, you can move on to bottling it.
You will see your skoby floating, and even sinking to the bottom. There may be dark pieces of goop hanging off the bottom. Don’t worry, this is all normal.
IF there is fuzzy mold on top, discard it. It is likely you didn’t cool your tea enough before adding your skoby and killed the good bacteria.
Bottling and flavoring kombucha
Remove your skoby with about 1 cup of the kombucha and place it in a dish to the side. You can also prepare for re-brewing and boil your water while you bottle your kombucha. When re-brewing, go back to “brew the black tea” sub section and do this all again!
For bottling, there are many different flavors you can add. Read my full blog on bottling and flavoring your kombucha.
But basically, right now you are creating carbonation. If you don’t want it carbonated. Simply pour your kombucha into an airtight container and put it directly into the fridge.
If you do want it carbonated:
Line up clean glass jars that can be sealed air tight. (these are the ones I use)
Add ~1” of some kind of juice to the bottom. I usually use mango or guava juice.
Pour your kombucha in and leave about 2” of room at the top.
Seal and let them sit for 2-3 days at room temperature.
They may grow another tiny skoby, so instead of drinking a chunky surprise, you can strain the kombucha and pour it back into the bottle. Seal it again. Store it in your fridge.
It will stay for up to a month. And there you have it. You have brewed your own kombucha!
Make some gut-healthy mocktails with your home made kombucha!
Disclosure: Some of the links in my post are affiliate partners. This does not result in an increased cost for you, but it does mean that I make a commission if you make a purchase through the link. The money earned helps me maintain the cost of running this website.
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