Re: question about kombucha

[Guest guest]

I think Betty at www.gemcultures.com is the best.

She will answer all your questions and has a lot of

great cultures.

I use kombucha and fil molek.

Fil molek is a room temp milk culture similar to

butter milk. In cream its a great sour cream and

sweetened its a fruit topping

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

I have also purchased from Gem (kefir grains & kombucha) and was very please

dwith what I got. The only time I had a problem was when I ordered a culture and

it sat in the sun on my porch all day in the summer, and they helped me out with

that one.

I plan to try some of the soy ones soon.

-------------- Original message --------------

From: Debra Lynn <lynnds2001@...>

> I think Betty at www.gemcultures.com is the best.

> She will answer all your questions and has a lot of

> great cultures.

> I use kombucha and fil molek.

> Fil molek is a room temp milk culture similar to

> butter milk. In cream its a great sour cream and

> sweetened its a fruit topping

>

> __________________________________________________

>

[Guest guest]

Thank you for all this great info...I will check it out.

As far as making it goes...do I have to use white sugar? Could I use date

sugar or fruit juice of some sort? I don't use white sugar (hardly any cane

sugar for that matter at all) for anything anymore. How can they be flavored

too? I noticed that there are commercial ones with different flavors.

Zaidee

seaorca@... wrote:

I have also purchased from Gem (kefir grains & kombucha) and was very please

dwith what I got. The only time I had a problem was when I ordered a culture and

it sat in the sun on my porch all day in the summer, and they helped me out with

that one.

I plan to try some of the soy ones soon.

-------------- Original message --------------

From: Debra Lynn

> I think Betty at www.gemcultures.com is the best.

> She will answer all your questions and has a lot of

> great cultures.

> I use kombucha and fil molek.

> Fil molek is a room temp milk culture similar to

> butter milk. In cream its a great sour cream and

> sweetened its a fruit topping

>

> __________________________________________________

>

[Guest guest]

>

> I was wondering if anyone knows of a good place to get a starter.

From my understanding, if you can find raw unfiltered plain ole

kombucha, even at the health food store, you can use that as a

starter. If you like fruit juice added, that is added during the

second fermentation, or even when you are pouring it to drink. The

scoby will form in your tea if the starter tea is raw. Hope this helps...

3jsmom31

[Guest guest]

3jsmom31, I disagree on a couple of accounts.

Legally anything may be called " kombucha "

What you get off the store shelf may or may not be honest in

their declarations.

Commercial KT raw and unfiltered will produce something.

However even if it is a real kombucha tea, it may not be a

complete SCOBY as generally the commercial stuff is weaker

in the available bio available SCOBY plus you lack the

contributions attributed to the mother culture, that is

missing.

secondly, adding fruit juice - especially fresh juice - will

contribute other yeasts and bacteria - that is typically not

found in kombucha.

What you'll end up with is a ferment of bacterial and

yeasts - but which ones? The range of possibilities is

endless. True it may taste good, and actually be healthy,

but to declare it " kombucha " is not truthful and misleading

especially to those that are kombucha brewers.

There is a number of legimate research on the internet and

in books on what is and isn't kombucha. There are

similarities between lactic acid ferments and acetic acids

ferments and between mother of vinegar and kombucha tea -

and there are differences between them. It really depends

upon what you are looking for?

Brewing Kombucha Pictures online

http://www.happyherbalist.com/pictures.htm

Enjoy Your Health,

Ed Kasper L.Ac.

California Licensed Acupuncturist & Herbalist

www.HappyHerbalist.com eddy@...

..........................................

original message ....

>From my understanding, if you can find raw unfiltered plain

ole

kombucha, even at the health food store, you can use that as

a

starter. If you like fruit juice added, that is added during

the

second fermentation, or even when you are pouring it to

drink. The

scoby will form in your tea if the starter tea is raw. Hope

this helps...

3jsmom31

[Guest guest]

Hi 3jMom, I really like the people at happyherbalist.com. they have good

starters and good prices, and they will even ship you free water kefir starters

sometimes. billie

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[Guest guest]

Hi Billie,

I recall reading this on their page but was not sure if it meant

free or not?

Audrey

<snippet>

> Hi 3jMom, I really like the people at happyherbalist.com. they

have good starters and good prices, and they will even ship you free

water kefir starters sometimes. billie

>

[Guest guest]

they sent me some free along with my order...

sweet!!

billie

---------------------------------

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[Guest guest]

Hello:

I also do continuous brew, I have 3 2 1/2 gallon kegs going all the

time. I take out 1/3 of each every 3-4 days. I clean mine out every

6 months without any problem. I think the tea gets better the longer

its going continuously.

Connie

>

> Hi,

> This is my first time to submit a question. Here it is:

>

> I am doing continuous brew of Kombucha in a 2 1/2 gallon

> ceramic container with a spigot at the bottom.

>

> How long can I continue to brew in the container before I need to

clean it out? Or may I continue (forever?) as long as I have no mold

or fruit fly infestations? I am probably brewing about 2- 3 gallons

of kombucha tea a week,

>

> Can anyone share their knowledge and/or experiences with me on this

one?

>

> Sincerely, Carl Watner

> Inman, South Carolina

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Carl and EveryOne,

The Continuous Fermentation method is easier in many ways and one of

them is that you don't need to take everything apart every time you

brew a new batch of Kombucha.

I usually remove the Kombucha Colonies and rinse out the container

with hot water, no soap, every time I get too many Kombucha Colonies

at once. This is usually about once a month or so....

With too many colonies the brew ferments too fast and I would have to

bottle it to keep it from turning to vinegar. I like to just take a

glass from the spigot so try to keep the right amount of Kombucha

Colonies in the jar so that it ferments, but not too quickly:-))

Experience will tell you about your own particular brew and what works

for you.

Happy Brewing!

Peace, Love and Harmony,

Bev

Kombucha Drops - Convenient, Safe, Effective, Easy to use.

http://KMI.mannainternational.com

Manna Green & White Tea Extract - Liquid Green & White Tea Extract

http://GTE.mannainternational.com

All products made and bottled in glass

100% Certified Organic, Fair Traded, Ingredients

>

> Hi,

> This is my first time to submit a question. Here it is:

>

> I am doing continuous brew of Kombucha in a 2 1/2 gallon

> ceramic container with a spigot at the bottom.

>

> How long can I continue to brew in the container before I need to

clean it out? Or may I continue (forever?) as long as I have no mold

or fruit fly infestations? I am probably brewing about 2- 3 gallons of

kombucha tea a week,

>

> Can anyone share their knowledge and/or experiences with me on this one?

>

> Sincerely, Carl Watner

> Inman, South Carolina

>

>

>