Kombucha from GT Dave's culture - will it work?

[HerbanGirl]

I put together my first batch of kombucha yesterday, using a sizable culture from a bottle of GT Dave's, along with a half-gallon of brewed decaf black tea and about 1/2c sucanat. Does anyone think it will work???

[OceanMomma]

I would be surprised if it doesn't work. I am still trying to get rid of the dratted mushroom It mysteriously popped up in my water kefir grains which were kept sealed other than when I opened them to make them. The kombucha was in a crock with a lid on. I never made them on the same day.

[NoTiGG]

I have read that the cultures actually feed off of the caffeine and that they need it. I am not sure though.

I tried making some myself... i used a bottle of GT's kombucha... i drank all but maybe 1 or 2 ounces of it... and then i poured in a black forest berry Honest tea.... which had about 8 grams of sugar... and then i added just a little more sugar. I then put a napkin with a rubber band over the lid and let it sit for 7 days.

It ended up formin ga little bit of culture across the top under the napkin... it was a little bubbly.. but very very weak compared to a regular GT kombucha. I am not sure if i didn't add enough sugar.... didn't get enough of the mother culture in the original culture... didn't use a black or green caffeinated tea.... or didn't ferment it long enough

[MyLittleWonders]

It will work, but will need caffeinated tea. The first batch will probably take longer than normal, and based on my experience, I would dump the first batch and use the scoby to make a fresh batch. But, with decaf tea, I don't think it will work. If you are using decaf because you don't like or can't have caffeine, the caffeine will be gone by the time the kombucha is done. I can't have caffeine in tea/coffee as it makes me ill, but using black tea in kombucha is no problem for me.

Basically what I did was a basic recipe, but since I had no mushroom, I used an entire bottle of GT's with about 3 1/2 quarts black tea and however much sugar it says to use (quite a few cups IIRC). Anyways, like I said, the first batch took about 2 weeks to get a good looking scoby. I didn't drink it though because it didn't smell very good (but the scoby was in fine health). The second batch, which was almost 4 quarts black tea and sugar plus the scoby fermented up in about 8 days, smelled beautiful, and tasted great. When I bottled it, I put some fresh sliced ginger in the bottom and made ginger kombucha. I ended up killing my poor scoby because I just couldn't keep up production, though I might do it again. Even if I only do it for 2 batches, it makes 1 bottle of GT's last quite a bit longer than normal.

[abclan]

I used GT Dave's to start my mother scoby. It took about two weeks to grow - I tossed out the liquid (save a cup to add to the next batch) because it was too strong to drink. I used the recommended white sugar and black tea because I've read it works best with those two ingedients. It worked out great - I've been growing fine "kombi" ever since.

I used the instructions from an old MDC thread using a search for "Brew=your=own=scoby"

Good luck to you and your SCOBY

[HerbanGirl]

Thanks everyone...I'm sad to think I have to throw my first batch out! Over the weekend I drank some Kombucha Wonder Drink brand kombucha made with roobios tea - naturally caffeine free. But it didn't have the same fermentation as GT Dave's, and they added some peach juice which made it too sweet...even upset my stomach a little. Well, I think I'll give this batch some time and see if it does anything. If not, I'll just get another bottle and start over with caffeinated!

[kbchavez]

FYI- Kombucha Wonder Drink is pasteurized!

[HerbanGirl]

Originally Posted by kbchavez

FYI- Kombucha Wonder Drink is pasteurized!

Doesn't that kind of defeat the purpose??? :

[LionTigerBear]

Wow this is awesome! You guys are the best!

What if I start my GT Dave's Kombucha in a black tea/sugar mix and then for the second batch switch to Rooibos?

[NoTiGG]

so i guess ive you want to harvest a good scoby it is best to use a wide mouth jar ?

[kbchavez]

Originally Posted by HerbanGirl

Doesn't that kind of defeat the purpose??? :

Pretty much. Though you still get all (some?) of the beneficial acids and byproducts of fermentation.

[PeggyinNC]

I tried rooibos for kombucha, but didn't like the taste at all. It may have been too strong of a tea, though. I was concerned about caffeine, but now I just do the thirty-second pre-steep of the teabags, which is supposed to remove most of the caffeine. I do like rooibos tea, as a tea, but it was very odd for my tastes, in kombucha. But good luck anyway! Let us know if yours works.

[LionTigerBear]

Originally Posted by PeggyinNC

I tried rooibos for kombucha, but didn't like the taste at all. It may have been too strong of a tea, though. I was concerned about caffeine, but now I just do the thirty-second pre-steep of the teabags, which is supposed to remove most of the caffeine. I do like rooibos tea, as a tea, but it was very odd for my tastes, in kombucha. But good luck anyway! Let us know if yours works.

Okay. For me, it's not the caffeine, it's a religious commandment not to consume products of the tea plant. I hope I like it with rooibos.

[Ex Libris]

subbing

[HerbanGirl]

Originally Posted by LionTigerBear

Okay. For me, it's not the caffeine, it's a religious commandment not to consume products of the tea plant. I hope I like it with rooibos.

I don't know about that, but I'm curious! I hope you don't mind my asking (is it a silly question?), but which religion and what is the commandment?

[Goddess3_2005]

I'm going to guess she's LDS like me . A comandment is abasically a rule from God. We follow what is called the word of wisdom which outlines what things are considered good and conversely not good for our bodies. We don't drink coffee, black tea(or its derivatives), alcohol, smoke, eat a lot of meat(only in moderation in times of famine or winter) as an example. Theres more, but thats a tid bit.

LionTigerBear I am growing my Bucha in black tea and switching to roobios after. I was told every third or fourth batch you need to renew it with the black tea though.

[PeggyinNC]

I would guess she is LDS, like me, too. Not too many religions that restrict tea, I don't think. I feel a little guilty sometimes about the kombucha made with tea, but I do pre-steep it, and the tannins are absorbed by the scoby, I think, which is why the scoby turns so brown if you reuse it. But I think of the ways I used to eat, and the way so many even church dinners have so little nutrition, that I know that I eat better on the TF stuff than I used to. Didn't know there were so many sisters around here, cool.

[zzwhitejd]

Also of note - kombucha should be made with pure processed sugar, not something actually healthy like sucanat. The culture 'eats' the sugars, so it's not in the final drink. The caffeine and the type of sugar matter! Happy brewing! I love mine.

I am currently using Og Gunpowder Green Tea from Frontier and Og cane sugar (like table sugar but honey colored)... I also sit it to second brew for a week after I bottle it, producing the fizzies then. Right before I drink it, I add a splash of fruit juice and ginger juice!

[Feb2003]

zzwhitejd, a "second brew" capped on the counter? In glass? No explosions? I'd love more fizz, but I was afraid it might explode.