getting started & have some questions

November 23, 2008

I was looking at the photos and it seems that many of you use sun tea jars

or the bases of water bottle jug holders with spigots on them. So when you

are ready to remove the liquid, do you take it out then through the spigot?

I've got both of these from previous uses and was excited to see the pics of

them in use for this as well. Glad I didn't Freecycle those!

Also I got my brand new scoby on Saturday. First of all it's very large.

Should I at some point cut it in half or something? I saw plenty of pictures

in the files that showed huge ones as well. One pic even said her scoby was

consuming 2 gallons of tea a day! I had no idea!

Another question, what is this second fermentation that some have mentioned?

I was thinking that we would let it brew til we thought it was done, then

bottle it and put in fridge and drink as desired. But is there another step

I'm not aware of?

I'm also confused as to what point I add some fruit juice. Is this after

it's brewed to my liking or do I brew it with this fruit juice within as

well as the sugar and tea? OR is this the second fermenting mentioned above?

Lastly, just wondering... do some of you give your scoby names? tee hee

Thank you!

Desi

November 24, 2008

Hello Desi,

Second fermentation is totally optional, Some folks swear by it, others like

me don't do it at all.

Any lead free glass or ceramic container with a spigot that holds enuf brew to

keep you going is fair game. These are great for continuous brewing which

is the method I use. Far less time consuming and I am no longer a slave to

my brews !!!!

Yes the liquid is removed thru the spigot. Generally these are used for the

continuous brewing cycle which requires no bottling whatsoever. I simply

draw off what I wish to consume and leave the rest for another time. By the

end of 2 days I am ready to replenish my brew and it takes a few hours before

its ready to drink again.

There are two of us here and the 408 oz glass container barely makes enuf

for our immediate consumption. I'm seriously considering getting the 650 oz

one when finances permit.

IF you have an overage and need to bottle be very careful and put those

bottles in the fridge elsewise you risk creating Kombucha bombs which

can and do explode with a mighty force.

My experience with bottling was quite less than satisfactory. I went to the

expense of purchasing the grolsch bottles ( that beer is not sold where I

lived) and carefully bottling. I personally didn't have any explode on

me.........but...............upon opening they were gushers which of course

wasted 1/2 to 2/3rds of my brew. Twas very disappointing. Soooooo I

began to bottle in recycled water bottles of all sizes. Let me tell you I

had caps blowing off all over the place, some of them were never found.

I must also explain thqt my brews are uncommonly fizzy right out of the tap.

I do nothing special to cause this, they just are and have been over the

years. I use nothing but tea and sugar, no special additional

ingredients, no fruits, nothing, just plain tea and sugar. My teas

come from www.sfherb.com and my sugar is unrefined pure dehydrated cane

juice.. We have a natural spring water at the tap so that is used. When

in CA I used bottled mountain spring water.

Prior to my arrival, used to bottle his in the old fashioned beer

bottles and capped them. Several that he gave to his children DID

explode- needless to say they were not very happy about it. He was lucky-

none of them up here did that. He no longer bottles his brews either.

The size of your scoby is not important unless it is filling your

container and not leaving room for the liquid. Yes you can cut it, even a

very small piece will make a nice brew. If your container is large enuf to

accomodate it, you might want to leave it whole for a while and watch it

grow. Which reminds me I need to remove a few from my brew jar- they are

beginning to take over the place. LOL

Happy Brewing

zoe

Sunday, November 23, 2008, 11:36:02 PM, you wrote:

> I was looking at the photos and it seems that many of you use sun tea jars

> or the bases of water bottle jug holders with spigots on them. So when you

> are ready to remove the liquid, do you take it out then through the spigot?

> I've got both of these from previous uses and was excited to see the pics of

> them in use for this as well. Glad I didn't Freecycle those!

> Also I got my brand new scoby on Saturday. First of all it's very large.

> Should I at some point cut it in half or something? I saw plenty of pictures

> in the files that showed huge ones as well. One pic even said her scoby was

> consuming 2 gallons of tea a day! I had no idea!

> Another question, what is this second fermentation that some have mentioned?

> I was thinking that we would let it brew til we thought it was done, then

> bottle it and put in fridge and drink as desired. But is there another step

> I'm not aware of?

> I'm also confused as to what point I add some fruit juice. Is this after

> it's brewed to my liking or do I brew it with this fruit juice within as

> well as the sugar and tea? OR is this the second fermenting mentioned above?

> Lastly, just wondering... do some of you give your scoby names? tee hee

> Thank you!

> Desi

November 24, 2008

i am going to chime in on the other side for secondary fermenting. if your brew

isnt naturally fizzy, then secondary brewing to get some fizz and add flavor is

great. i have never had a bottle explode (though i realize it is possible). i

bottle in GT KT bottles, beer bottles with crimp caps, and whatever else is

handy. if i try to open a really fizzy bottle at room temp, i might get a

gusher, but i have learned to always refrigerate the bottles before opening, and

if they still threaten to gush, open just a bit and before they can foam over,

tighten the cap again. put it back in the fridge and let it settle and try

again. every once in awhile i find one that needs this done 2-3 times, but

usually once will do it. some people 'burp' their bottles daily, and if you have

a problem with explosions i would certainly to this. you can keep your bottles

in a plastic tub or in cardboard boxes to contain the mess if you do have an

explosion. one idea someone here

mentioned is to always do one plastic bottle as you can feel it getting hard,

and thus know it is time to burp your other bottles.

so, if you are happy with your brew the way it is, skip bottling and the 2nd

ferment. if you want to experiment with flavors, dont let the process scare you,

experiment away and find what flavors, temps, and length of bottling gives you

the best brews.

dl

________________________________

From: Zoe W <mtnwalker2b@...>

Desi <kombucha tea >

Sent: Monday, November 24, 2008 8:17:52 AM

Subject: Re: getting started & have some questions

Hello Desi,

Second fermentation is totally optional, Some folks swear by it, others like me

don't do it at all.

Any lead free glass or ceramic container with a spigot that holds enuf brew to

keep you going is fair game. These are great for continuous brewing which is the

method I use. Far less time consuming and I am no longer a slave to my brews

!!!!

Yes the liquid is removed thru the spigot. Generally these are used for the

continuous brewing cycle which requires no bottling whatsoever. I simply draw

off what I wish to consume and leave the rest for another time. By the end of 2

days I am ready to replenish my brew and it takes a few hours before its ready

to drink again.

There are two of us here and the 408 oz glass container barely makes enuf for

our immediate consumption. I'm seriously considering getting the 650 oz one when

finances permit.

IF you have an overage and need to bottle be very careful and put those bottles

in the fridge elsewise you risk creating Kombucha bombs which can and do explode

with a mighty force.

My experience with bottling was quite less than satisfactory. I went to the

expense of purchasing the grolsch bottles ( that beer is not sold where I lived)

and carefully bottling. I personally didn't have any explode on me.........but.

.......... .....upon opening they were gushers which of course wasted 1/2 to

2/3rds of my brew. Twas very disappointing. Soooooo I began to bottle in

recycled water bottles of all sizes. Let me tell you I had caps blowing off all

over the place, some of them were never found. I must also explain thqt my brews

are uncommonly fizzy right out of the tap. I do nothing special to cause this,

they just are and have been over the years. I use nothing but tea and sugar, no

special additional ingredients, no fruits, nothing, just plain tea and sugar. My

teas come from www.sfherb.com and my sugar is unrefined pure dehydrated cane

juice.. We have a natural spring water at the tap so that is used. When in CA I

used bottled mountain

spring water.

Prior to my arrival, used to bottle his in the old fashioned beer bottles

and capped them. Several that he gave to his children DID explode- needless to

say they were not very happy about it. He was lucky- none of them up here did

that. He no longer bottles his brews either.

The size of your scoby is not important unless it is filling your container and

not leaving room for the liquid. Yes you can cut it, even a very small piece

will make a nice brew. If your container is large enuf to accomodate it, you

might want to leave it whole for a while and watch it grow. Which reminds me I

need to remove a few from my brew jar- they are beginning to take over the

place. LOL