A Lot of Fizz

Back again and this time I think I've got my sugar amount just right. The batch i made back in April, a while ago I know, had 1/2 a tsp of granulated white sugar added before I bottled it. Well this morning after a night in the fridge, the bottle that is, I opened it up cautiously just in case I got an uncontrollable explosion of Kombucha, and was relieved to have a fantastic pop, a mist forming inside the neck of the bottle and when I poured it, a cascading torrent of bubbles. It was ever so slightly dry but a wonderful feeling on the palate. I'll see if I can get a video put on so you can see.

A Few Months On

I've been away for a while now and my Kombucha bottles are still intact.
The bottles with 1/2 tsp of sugar were lovely and clear and almost sparkling wine like. Not too dry and with plenty of fizz.


The bottle with the 1/4 tsp was disappointing to say the least. Slightly fizzy and very dry.


I've still got 8 bottles to use up before i go back to making it again.


I've discarded the Kombucha culture that I left in the fermenting container. It looked tired and dark in colour. I have still got a culture in the fridge and it looks healthy as ever.

Kombucha Sugar and Ginger

I bottled my Kombucha on the 3rd April 2010 and thought I'd experiment with some Ginger and different amounts of sugar.


I thinly sliced root ginger and added about 4 or 5 slices about the size of your index finger nail plus different amounts of sugar ranging from 1/4 to 1/2 an teaspoon.


Well I thought I'd open a bottle today to see what it tasted like and got a bit of a shock!!


There was plenty of gas produced and I managed to get the lid back on before I sprayed the entire kitchen with Kombucha.


I release the stopper a tiny bit to let out the gas and all I can say is that this is one explosive mixture.


Once the pressure had dissipated, I could smell the ginger in the air. I poured some out and WOW!! Very fizzy and a subtle hint of ginger. 


My only concern now is what the remaining bottles are like and have I generated my own accident waiting to happen.


I'll see if I can get some video footage when I next open another bottle. I think I'll open it on the decking in the safety of the outdoors.

Stopped Drinking Kombucha

I've stopped drinking Kombucha fro the time being as suggested by a few books I've read. They mention the 'Interruption Theory' to suppress the bodies reliance on the product you are using. It allows the body a chance to 'return to normal' if you like. A suggested time scale is anywhere from 2 weeks to a month.
We will see what happens.

Apple in my Kombucha

I put the apple pulp in a batch of Kombucha I made on the 18th March 2010. I had hoped it would make a huge difference to the fizz. I must say I was a bit disappointed but the flavour was still acceptable.

The fizz that was there was still noticeable but may be i should use filtered apple juice with a higher sugar content.

I had better success with the Blueberries although they were a wee bit on the bland side when it came to flavour. Perhaps I should have use the cooking apple instead. Come to think of it, maybe the Bramble cooking apple would make the difference.

I've left my Kombucha for too long.....or have I?

I have been side tracked for the last week or so with on goings in the house that I neglected my Kombucha brew. I normally have it fermenting for about 9 days which gives my 6 Litre batch enough time to convert the sugars. After this time period, there has been a consistent loss of liquid of around a litre. Well this time it has been reduced by 2 litres which is quite a lot considering that I only let it ferment for 2 weeks.


I was expecting too see an exhausted Scoby but too my surprise, it was beautifully white and healthy. On removing it to see the colour of the liquid, I was chuffed to bits to see that it hadn't been affected by this longer period. OK the 'yeasty threads' were more abundant and the liquid appeared darker but all I did was place my tea strainer in the liquid at the mouth of my tap, that way at least I could be happy that I would get a clearer liquid when I bottled.


Having tried the apple juice route last time, i thought I'd try something different....


I like the flavour of 'ginger ale' and thought 'what would it taste like if I added some slithers of ginger root?'. So this time I have put about a 1/2" cube of thinly sliced ginger root in and added a 1/4tsp of caster sugar to assist a second fermentation and provide me with some fizz. I have also added a 1/4tsp of caster sugar to 2 other bottles and 1/2tsp to another 2 to see what happens.

So what's going on with them apples?

Well it has been some time since I added the apple juice to my Kombucha brew and I have to disappoint. I am still going through my previous batches of Kombucha. However, I have introduced a few of my work colleagues to the beverage and may be around to trying the apple experiment pretty soon.


All I can say is it appears that the apple pulp and Kombucha have had a party and a new Scoby has formed and will need straining when I try it. That's if it doesn't get jammed in the bottle neck!!