somebody explain kombucha to me... ?

[TzippityDoulah]

I was tying to look it up and I gave up and came here instead. it's so much nicer to get more than one take/comment on something knew...

I bought some organic raw kombucha from WFs the other day. I figured I should buy it here before I attempt it at home or whatever. it's um... interesting. I'm not a fan of anything that even remotely tastes like alcohol and to me this was very strong. sorta like beer deluted with tea. I dislike beer - yuck. am I a wimp or is it normally this strong? it kinda hurts my stomache if I drink more than an tiny sip.

also how are you supossed to drink it? like a bottle a day? or a few sips throw out the day? or what? drink it like a beverage or a supplement? etc...

and how exactly is it made. everywhere I look says something a little different and I'm confused now.

and what is "good" about it? probitics... got that much. what which ones. and how much. and is if chock full of carbs? b/c I'm sensitive to carbs right now.

thanks in advance! and a big to whoeveer takes the time to answer this for me!

[tinuviel_k]

The first tme I tried kombucha was the GT brand in a bottle I'd gotten from my health food store. I already had a scoby on the way to start my own batches of kombucha, and I thought I'd see what the stuff tasted like.
I HATED it, LOL! It was so strong and sour, and even diluted 1/2 and 1/2 I couldn't bring myself to drink it. If I took even a sip my whole face would pucker up, and it felt like I'd been drinking straight vinegar. My belly was not pleased with me, either.
I was pretty dissapointed that I didn't like kombucha, especially since my scoby was on the way.

I got the scoby in the mail a couple days later and decided to try brewing my own kombucha anyway. I am SO glad I did. it tasted 100% better than the stuff in the bottle: sweet and sour and bubbly and pleasntly astringent (probably from the tea). I still diluted it by half when drinking it, but I thought it was pretty good. Now I drink it full strenght, and I think it tastes really great.

I think you can drink asmuch or as little as you like throughout the day. i usually have an 8 oz glass a day. A friend of mine drinks to or three big glasses a day. I've heard that drinking 4 oz three times a day before meals is ideal, but I can't attest to why that is.

I make it by boiling 3 quarts of water with 1 1/2 cups of sugar. I then steep black and green tea (teabags) in it for ten minutes. After it cools I place it in a 1 gallon clear glass wide-mouth container and float the scoby (kombucha mushroom o top.) I then cover it with a clean white tea towel fastned with a rubber band, place it in a kitchen cabinet away from light. I let it brew without disturbing it for 7 days, and then taste it too see if it is ready. If so, I brew more sugar-water-tea, and pour the old batch of kombucha into jugs to store in the fridge for drinking throughout the week.

[Pinky Tuscadero]

Hey there!
My kids love kombucha. I do not!! My mom drinks it every day. It made a noticeable difference in her arthritis in 3 days. Her joint swelling went down by at least half.
I brew it for her using the kind you bought at the store. Basically the same as the pp said except I start with a bottle of GTs instead of a scoby. It takes a little longer to ferment but it tastes better and will grow a scoby that you can use again. Mom drinks it half and half with water.

[erin a]

Funny, I was thinking about coming here to post the same questions!
What about the caffine and sugar? I'm dealing with candida issues so I'm wondering about the sugar.

[TzippityDoulah]

Originally Posted by erin a

Funny, I was thinking about coming here to post the same questions!
What about the caffine and sugar? I'm dealing with candida issues so I'm wondering about the sugar.

I am also dealing with candida issues. I'm still unsure if this will help or aggrivate it!

I'm impressed that I can start my own brewing from the bottled kind at WFs. neato! (suzy, was it the same brand I got -- form whole foods?)

I still think it taste like beer tea. it's really not horrible, I just hate beer. never liked it... but my husand (a beer drinker) say he likes the kombucha.

[pampered_mom]

You may want to see this other thread about kombucha and candidia http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=569388

[erin a]

Thanks for the link to the other thread pamperedmom. I also found thishttp://www.seedsofhealth.co.uk/fermenting/kombucha.shtml while on the net with lots of info.
OK, I'm convinced this is something I need to try, now I just need to figure out how to get the scoby to get started!

[Pinky Tuscadero]

I get it at either Whole Foods or David's. I usually buy the plain when I'm using it to start a batch.