Anybody here make Kombucha?

[Mrs. H.]

If you do, I have a few questions for you, if you don't mind. Thanks.

[Jean in Newcastle]

My dh has. If you post the questions I can ask him. Now he gets it ready made in a bottle.

[Maria/ME]

I've made my own, also. What's your question?

[dixiemaiden]

We make Kombucha.

[Elinor Everywhere]

If you do, I have a few questions for you, if you don't mind. Thanks.

My kids love their "booch"!

[*anj*]

I make it too. What would you like to know? :D

[Mrs. H.]

I knew I'd find several of you here. Sorry I took so long to reply, but I posted the question right before time to make dinner, bathe kids, etc. and I wasn't able to get back online until this morning. So, here goes:

1. Have any of you ever made this by growing your own SCOBY from a bottle of store bought Kombucha?

I read on another forum you could do this, and I have started mine, but I also bought a SCOBY off eBay in case my culture doesn't work.

2. What are the side effects of detoxing? Is gas (maybe TMI, sorry), bloating, and belching normal? Also, would you be sore in the stomach area, like you've done lots of sit ups after being out of shape?

3. For those of you whose kids drink this, how much and how often?

The store bought Kombucha is really strong, so I've been limiting it to 4oz. per day for dh, and only 2oz. per day for me, because I've had some adjusting to do. I haven't given any to the kids yet, but I'm assuming that the homemade stuff is weaker than GT, because it's brewed for a month, and the homemade is only brewed for a week or two.

I'm sure I'll come up with more questions later, but that's all I can think of right now. Dh wants assurance that I'm not poisoning him, lol. Thanks.

[*anj*]

1. Have any of you ever made this by growing your own SCOBY from a bottle of store bought Kombucha?

No, I've not made one from store bought Kombucha, but I have made a SCOBY from a jar of KT I purchased through my natural foods co-op. This was basically homemade KT, not pasteurized or anything. I think that people have made SCOBYs from GT's KT because it is raw, but I don't recall seeing anything in there that is big enough to grow, you know?

I read on another forum you could do this, and I have started mine, but I also bought a SCOBY off eBay in case my culture doesn't work.

Good idea. That should be the last SCOBY you'll ever need to buy because you will soon find yourself swimming in them!:)

2. What are the side effects of detoxing? Is gas (maybe TMI, sorry), bloating, and belching normal? Also, would you be sore in the stomach area, like you've done lots of sit ups after being out of shape?

I have heard people complain about gas and bloating, but I didn't really experience much at all. My stomach wasn't sore at all. I basically made sure I drank at least one glass of water for every glass of KT. I think that helps.

3. For those of you whose kids drink this, how much and how often?

Most of my kids don't like it. The one who is willing to have some gets maybe a couple of ounces. My dh won't drink it either.

Oh, and you didn't ask about this, but it's fun to experiment with different types of tea and putting different things in the bottles for the second fermentation. My absolute favorite is to add candied ginger to jasmine tea.

[Mrs. H.]

Yes, I had read about others putting a flavored tea bag (lemon, raspberry, etc.) in with the black tea to infuse it, and I also read about those who added dried fruit and/or ginger for a second fermentation. I plan to try all of this once I get the basics mastered, and the dried tart cherries sound outrageously good.

I believe I can get the kids to drink this, because we only drink milk, water, and fruit juice here now. No sodas, but they do like club soda in their fruit juice, and the flavor is similar to Kombucha without the vinegar smell. Dh doesn't like the taste much, but he is willing to be my guinea pig and try all the flavors I create, in the name of science.

[*anj*]

Yes, I had read about others putting a flavored tea bag (lemon, raspberry, etc.) in with the black tea to infuse it, and I also read about those who added dried fruit and/or ginger for a second fermentation. I plan to try all of this once I get the basics mastered, and the dried tart cherries sound outrageously good.

They are outrageously good. So are dried strawberries. Excellent! I don't add any fruit flavored tea bags to my brewing, and I especially wouldn't use lemon because it has antibacterial properties (actually raspberries do too) and some people think they might harm the SCOBY. If I wanted to add those types of flavors I'd wait til the second fermentation, just to be safe.

I believe I can get the kids to drink this, because we only drink milk, water, and fruit juice here now. No sodas, but they do like club soda in their fruit juice, and the flavor is similar to Kombucha without the vinegar smell. Dh doesn't like the taste much, but he is willing to be my guinea pig and try all the flavors I create, in the name of science.

Yup, it's that vinegar smell that turns my kids off. But yeah, they love to make fruit juice spritzers. Also, I have a bottle of liquid stevia that has orange flavoring, and we put a couple of drops of that in seltzer. They love it!

[Maria/ME]

I realize most of your questions have been answered, but thought I'd chime in, also!

I have never really experienced a lot of detoxing with Kombucha. Honestly. Maybe some *gas* but that's about it. I think if you are already eating a Standard American Diet you won't notice a whole lot of detoxing. And that's with the store bought stuff. I drank that exclusively w/out side effects before I made my own.

I've never tried a SCOBY from a store bought one. That is a good idea as my last SCOBY completely died because I was in a hurry and forgot to add sugar to my last batch thereby molding the whole thing. (Me: What is that wierd smell around here?)

My dd doesn't love Kombucha (yet) but I would have no qualms letting her have 8 oz a day. It's not going to hurt her at all...but she's 10. If my child was younger maybe less. But I've never gotton the feeling that Kombucha is a radical detoxifier. More gentle if anything.

I would be interested in hearing how it goes for you! Check back in and let us know!

[Mrs. H.]

Thanks for the info. My kiddos are all wanting to try it, but I'm sure the first taste will probably turn them off for a while.