Guest guest Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 I have two brews sitting right next to each other, one is in a 2 gallon glass jar (the bottom of the jar being equal to the opening) and a 1 gallon glass dish (more like a large pyrex mixing bowl - so the bottom is much smaller than the opening). Every time so far, the 2 gallon jug has come out sour and tart... and the 1 gallon dish has come out sweet... I have been wondering what the difference is.... and then I found this article: http://www.bluemarble.de/Norbert/kombucha/Oxygen/oxygen.htm It totally made sense after I read it, the SCOBY in the 1 gallon dish always seals itself completely to the top of the dish making it airtight. The SCOBY in the 2 gallon jar never seems to seal itself, maybe the way the jar is made inhibits it. The point is that the 1 gallon dish is always sweet, and the 2 gallon jar is always tart. The only difference between the two cultures is the jars, and the way the SCOBYs seal themselves. Thats my two cents... it seems to collaborate the experiment and their results as well... > > I have been brewing KT for a little over a month now, and every batch > I make comes out too sweet, and not bubbly enough. I really enjoy the > store bought " GT's Kombucha " ...it's very bubbly, and a little sour. I > have tried fermenting longer and longer, but it doesn't seem to make > much of a difference. My recent batch was for 12 days. Recipie I am > using: > > 3 quarts water > 1 cup white sugar > 4 bags earl grey > > Does anyone have any suggestions of how to get it to pack more punch!? > > Thanks in advance! > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 I have two brews sitting right next to each other, one is in a 2 gallon glass jar (the bottom of the jar being equal to the opening) and a 1 gallon glass dish (more like a large pyrex mixing bowl - so the bottom is much smaller than the opening). Every time so far, the 2 gallon jug has come out sour and tart... and the 1 gallon dish has come out sweet... I have been wondering what the difference is.... and then I found this article: http://www.bluemarble.de/Norbert/kombucha/Oxygen/oxygen.htm It totally made sense after I read it, the SCOBY in the 1 gallon dish always seals itself completely to the top of the dish making it airtight. The SCOBY in the 2 gallon jar never seems to seal itself, maybe the way the jar is made inhibits it. The point is that the 1 gallon dish is always sweet, and the 2 gallon jar is always tart. The only difference between the two cultures is the jars, and the way the SCOBYs seal themselves. Thats my two cents... it seems to collaborate the experiment and their results as well... > > I have been brewing KT for a little over a month now, and every batch > I make comes out too sweet, and not bubbly enough. I really enjoy the > store bought " GT's Kombucha " ...it's very bubbly, and a little sour. I > have tried fermenting longer and longer, but it doesn't seem to make > much of a difference. My recent batch was for 12 days. Recipie I am > using: > > 3 quarts water > 1 cup white sugar > 4 bags earl grey > > Does anyone have any suggestions of how to get it to pack more punch!? > > Thanks in advance! > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Earl Grey tea has oil of bergamot in it. I have read that it is not good for brewing. chrisbabyla wrote: I have been brewing KT for a little over a month now, and every batch I make comes out too sweet, and not bubbly enough. I really enjoy the store bought " GT's Kombucha " ...it's very bubbly, and a little sour. I have tried fermenting longer and longer, but it doesn't seem to make much of a difference. My recent batch was for 12 days. Recipie I am using: 3 quarts water 1 cup white sugar 4 bags earl grey Does anyone have any suggestions of how to get it to pack more punch!? Thanks in advance! __________________________________________________ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Earl Grey tea has oil of bergamot in it. I have read that it is not good for brewing. chrisbabyla wrote: I have been brewing KT for a little over a month now, and every batch I make comes out too sweet, and not bubbly enough. I really enjoy the store bought " GT's Kombucha " ...it's very bubbly, and a little sour. I have tried fermenting longer and longer, but it doesn't seem to make much of a difference. My recent batch was for 12 days. Recipie I am using: 3 quarts water 1 cup white sugar 4 bags earl grey Does anyone have any suggestions of how to get it to pack more punch!? Thanks in advance! __________________________________________________ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 I was told never to use EG tea. kismet under wrote: Earl Grey tea has oil of bergamot in it. I have read that it is not good for brewing. chrisbabyla wrote: I have been brewing KT for a little over a month now, and every batch I make comes out too sweet, and not bubbly enough. I really enjoy the store bought " GT's Kombucha " ...it's very bubbly, and a little sour. I have tried fermenting longer and longer, but it doesn't seem to make much of a difference. My recent batch was for 12 days. Recipie I am using: 3 quarts water 1 cup white sugar 4 bags earl grey Does anyone have any suggestions of how to get it to pack more punch!? Thanks in advance! __________________________________________________ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 18, 2006 Report Share Posted December 18, 2006 Try adding another 1/2 cup of sugar to your mix. Or after your primary ferment, add a little fruit juice to the bottles and let them sit on the counter for 2 days. (See other posts about exploding bottles, tho...) That typically makes mine nice and fizzy! Vee > > 3 quarts water > 1 cup white sugar > 4 bags earl grey > > Does anyone have any suggestions of how to get it to pack more punch!? > > Thanks in advance! > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 18, 2006 Report Share Posted December 18, 2006 >I was told never to use EG tea. > >kismet under wrote: Earl Grey tea has oil >of bergamot in it. >I have read that it is not good for brewing. Again, this warning has been proved wrong in actual practice. One of the original listowners of this list brewed exclusively with Earl Grey tea for many many years, and many members currently do. So, based on long experience rather than theory, Earl Grey is an exception to the rule against using ingredients with high amounts of volatile oils. --V ~~~ There is no way to peace; peace is the way ~~~~ --A.J. Muste Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 18, 2006 Report Share Posted December 18, 2006 >I was told never to use EG tea. > >kismet under wrote: Earl Grey tea has oil >of bergamot in it. >I have read that it is not good for brewing. Again, this warning has been proved wrong in actual practice. One of the original listowners of this list brewed exclusively with Earl Grey tea for many many years, and many members currently do. So, based on long experience rather than theory, Earl Grey is an exception to the rule against using ingredients with high amounts of volatile oils. --V ~~~ There is no way to peace; peace is the way ~~~~ --A.J. Muste Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 18, 2006 Report Share Posted December 18, 2006 Thanks for the input about the jar...currently I am using a 2 gallon glass jar, and it's still sweet! So maybe it has something to do with the fact that I am using Earl Grey. What tea do you guys suggest I use? Would any green tea do? Such as a sencha green? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 19, 2006 Report Share Posted December 19, 2006 I hope it works that way, I've left my brew sitting around much longer than it should be (it's two days past it's fairly regular schedule, but this time I used more earl gray than normal. And it does make very tasty kombucha, especially mixed with oolong tea. 2006/12/19, Margret Pegg : > In message you wrote: > > > Thanks for the input about the jar...currently I am using a 2 gallon > > glass jar, and it's still sweet! So maybe it has something to do > > with the fact that I am using Earl Grey. > > > > What tea do you guys suggest I use? Would any green tea do? Such as > > a sencha green? > > Hi , > Earl Grey by itself is o.k. for brewing, but like other black teas > seem to take a lot longer than green teas. > From my long experience, Earl Grey - which helps to impart a lovely > aroma to the finished product - is excellent in a tea mix. > Sencha is a brilliant green tea to mix it with ... any green tea will > do if you haven't got sencha, e.g. Gunpowder, green Jasmine, which I also > use a lot. > > Keep the brew in the gallon jar going. It will get there in the end and > it's well worth it to be patient. With the colder weather as well you may > needa fortnight or longer from start to finish. > > All the best, > > Margret:-) (UK) > > -- > +---------------------------------------------------------------+ > Minstrel@... > <)))<>< http://www.therpc.f9.co.uk <)))<>< > http://www.AnswersInGenesis.com > http://www.lamblion.com/ > +---------------------------------------------------------------+ > If high heels were so wonderful, men would still be wearing them. > (Sue Grafton) > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 20, 2006 Report Share Posted December 20, 2006 Well my recent batch was perfectly bubbly and sweet, but the older batch that I finaly bottled is not getting bubbly? So I added a tb. golden raisens to some with fresh ginger and golden raisens to some with lemon verbena, so will let you know how it goes...lol so much for following post recipes woops. The apple cider batch came out fantastic! working on some honey now, and apple...they drank up all the sparkling juices I made over thanksgiving. So trying to get ready for Christmas, before get to age some for next year. May shove a apple slice in a few also with cinimon? Audrey > Try adding another 1/2 cup of sugar to your mix. > > Or after your primary ferment, add a little fruit juice to the bottles > and let them sit on the counter for 2 days. (See other posts about > exploding bottles, tho...) > > That typically makes mine nice and fizzy! > > Vee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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