Kombucha First Ferment

Kombucha First Ferment

So you have grown your own SCOBY. Now what? Its easy. When your SCOBY is large enough for a gallon you can really get going. Here are the steps I use:

1. Make sure all of your tools are sanitized and cleaned well. I use star san cleanser to ensure nothing funky goes into my brew.  
2. Boil a pot of water, add 8 tea bags and one cup of water. Stir to dissolve the sugar. I use black tea but you can use green or any tea that doesnt have oils added to it. Hibiscus is a popular tea I see used a lot but I have only used black. Let the tea steep to desired strength.
3. When the tea has cooled pour it in a gallon jar and add your scoby and 2 cups of your starter tea. Top off with water. Your starter tea is the tea you used to grow your SCOBY.
4. Cover your jar with a light cloth or coffee filter and secure with a rubber band. I always use a light cloth like muslin. Do not use cheesecloth - it is too porous.
5. Date & label your jar and set aside in your pantry or out of direct sunlight.
6. After about 5 days test daily by sticking a (reusable) straw into your kombucha until you get your desired taste. Kombucha should be slightly vinagary/ tart with some sweetness. You decide the level of sourness/ sweetness though so its ready when it tastes good to you. Mine is usually done in 5-7 days.
7. At this point you will pour your kombucha from your gallon jug into flip top bottles for your second ferment. 

I will post about your second ferment next week. I use fruit or fruit puree in mine. The options are endless. If you missed my -Create Your Own SCOBY post check it out here. You can also click the kombucha tab on my sidebar to see all of my kombucha posts.

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