Leonine Kombucha sells at the Vancouver Farmer Markets 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM on the following dates:
Sat July 31Trout Lake
Sun Aug 1 Kits
Sat Aug 21 Trout Lake
Sun Aug 22 Kits
Sun Sept 12 Kits
Sat Sept 18 West End
Sat Sept 25 Trout Lake
Check out the Farmers Market website for details and exact locations, (I'm under prepared food):
http://eatlocal.org/
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Simplified Brewing instructions.
Please also read complete instructions below,
which include explanations and important warnings!
1) Boil water then brew and remove tea, about 4 teabags per 2 litres.
2) Dissolve sugar, about 1 cup per 2 litres.
3) Cool to just about room temperature.
4) Add to brewing vessel, no exposed metal!
5) Add Scoby and some ready kombucha, i.e. dump in the whole contents of the mason jar if you got your Scoby from me. If you are rebrewing, the Scoby and dregs left in the vessel work just fine!
6) Cover with a breathable material, i.e. cotton cloth, secured to stop insects and dust.
7) Depending on taste, wait 1-2 weeks then move the liquid into sealed mason jars or bottles, keep at room temperature (will build carbonation and acidify with age) or fridge, but always refrigerate after opening. Enjoy!
8) Rebrew a new batch in your old vessel by leaving some old Kombucha with the Scoby.
9) If Scoby has grown huge, try peeling off a layer. You can start a second brewing vessel with this "mother mushroom", or give it to a friend. If you jar Scoby, with some Kombucha, and keep in the fridge, you have an insurance policy: Should your original get moldy or be neglected and die, you can start all over from this clone. If you keep a clone, replace it yearly just to be sure of viability. Extra Scoby can also be composted, or even eaten!
Please also read complete instructions below,
which include explanations and important warnings!
1) Boil water then brew and remove tea, about 4 teabags per 2 litres.
2) Dissolve sugar, about 1 cup per 2 litres.
3) Cool to just about room temperature.
4) Add to brewing vessel, no exposed metal!
5) Add Scoby and some ready kombucha, i.e. dump in the whole contents of the mason jar if you got your Scoby from me. If you are rebrewing, the Scoby and dregs left in the vessel work just fine!
6) Cover with a breathable material, i.e. cotton cloth, secured to stop insects and dust.
7) Depending on taste, wait 1-2 weeks then move the liquid into sealed mason jars or bottles, keep at room temperature (will build carbonation and acidify with age) or fridge, but always refrigerate after opening. Enjoy!
8) Rebrew a new batch in your old vessel by leaving some old Kombucha with the Scoby.
9) If Scoby has grown huge, try peeling off a layer. You can start a second brewing vessel with this "mother mushroom", or give it to a friend. If you jar Scoby, with some Kombucha, and keep in the fridge, you have an insurance policy: Should your original get moldy or be neglected and die, you can start all over from this clone. If you keep a clone, replace it yearly just to be sure of viability. Extra Scoby can also be composted, or even eaten!
Friday, January 16, 2009
Brew Your Own
Brew Your Own Kombucha!
You will need:
1) a Scoby or "mother mushroom"
2) some kombucha as a starter
3) a container and cover, see below
4) water, sugar and tea, see below
5) optional but recommended: bottles and caps, or mason jars with lids
Regarding these:
1) I sell these with enough kombucha included to start your first batch. To creates subsequent batches you add sweetened tea to the dregs of the previous batches including the old Scoby.
2) For a small batch of say 2 litres, 250-355 ml of kombucha (1 bottle) should do. My starter kit includes a half litre and should start the 3.5 litre batch easily. My large Scobys include a litre and can start 6-12 litres. To start a large (i.e. 20+ litre) vat you should have at least 2 litres of kombucha and Scoby. Plan to save enough of each batch you brew to start the next.
3) Container is critical: NO METAL for it will form toxic acids and poison you!
Because the scoby will grow, and from time to time you must remove some by hand, a wide mouthed container is necessary, and allows the needed ventilation.
Glass is ideal, a salad bowl or wide mouthed pitcher or giant jar work well, and are often about 2 litre capacity. Ikea sells these and even larger "plant vases" at reasonable prices.
Enamel coated cooking pots work, and are often about 6 litre capacity, BUT be sure there are no scrapes or chips in the enamel or the metal beneath will corrode through. Many enamel pots have small flaws, so be careful and examine the walls after each use.
Ceramic is excellent but the glaze must be NON-LEAD.
Large brewing carboys generally have thin necks that will get clogged with scobe growth, but primary fermenters are good. Since these are plastic be sure it is food grade and/or intended for brewing. These are often 20 litres and larger.
The cover is very important: Use cloth secured about the mouth of the container by elastics or tight tied string. The goal here is that air flows, but no bugs and dust get in. Pillowcases, shirts, and folded sheets work. Kombucha needs oxygen or else you will brew alcohol.
4) Drinkable water. In the lower mainland tap water is fine: it will be boiled to remove any remaining microbes, and the length of the brewing process will evaporate any chlorine and chloromine. Feel free to use filtered or bottled water if you prefer.
Ordinary white sugar will do, but I prefer organic, fair-trade raw cane juice for ethical reasons, taste and micro-nutrient levels. Most of the sugar is going to be broken down by the organisms anyway, so white is not bad, just not as good.
Tea of any sorts. Tea is a perenial shrub so I recomend organic since toxins will build up. Kombucha thrives on black, rooibos and green varieties, and likes herbals too. Experiment and have fun. It obviously likes green and white tea best, since I have found baby scobes form most rapidly in those brews and they acidify the fastest, indicating rapid digestion by the cultures.
5) You aren't going to drink all the kombucha at once, so you need to store some. Easiest solution is mason jars, kept at room temperature they build some carbonation, once opened store in fridge. If you bottle it the same way you do beer, it keeps long (one year), and even builds up a little carbonation in the bottle. Beware, beer bottles can explode!
If you do not wish to bottle, when it is ready, move the brewing container to the fridge. This will put it to sleep, mostly. Keep serving until it gets low and then take it out and add new ingredients to brew your next batch. If you have two pots, you could always have one ready to drink and another brewing. You can even drink brew in progress, it will be a bit sweet but tastes good. However it does get better in a bottle with age.
Warnings:
All implements and your hands must be clean and non-metal (remove rings).
Discard entire batch of kombucha if ever there is sign of foreign mold or corrosion.
Bottled product should only be kept one year.
Bottled product under pressure, and could explode (like home beer/champagne)
You are making your own food at your own risk and liability.
THE PROCEDURE:
Boil sufficient water in stainless steel or enamel kettles or pots.
Alow the water to cool several degrees below boiling before adding the tea (for taste reasons).
Per 2 litres of water use 4 tea bags. Consider using three black or green and one herbal if you want flavoured kombucha. Or you can use all herbal.
Allow the tea to steep for about 15-30 minutes, or longer if you like somewhat bitter tea. Remove the bags without squeezing them (for taste reasons).
Per 2 litres of water use 1 cup sugar. Stir to dissolve thoroughly.
Let it cool! Before adding to the Scoby and kombucha it must be not much warmer than room temperature. It can be luke warm but not at all hot, like for baking bread. Perhaps 25 degrees.
Pour the sugary tea into the brewing container (NON-METAL)and add the Scoby and starter kombucha. If this is a second batch the starter and mother are already in your container!
Cover the container with tightly attached cloth. Keep it somewhere at room temperature.
You can taste it from time to time to check, but depending on temperature, ventilation and size of batch, it will take from 1-2 weeks to consume most of the sugar.
During the first fermentation, the Scoby will eventually float, then grow to cover the surface, indicating it is nearing readiness. During repeat brewings the mother thickens by adding a layer.
Fill mason jars or bottle as you would beer. Or move the entire container to the fridge and ladle out as desired. Keep the Scoby in the covered container with enough residual kombucha to start the next batch.
You will need:
1) a Scoby or "mother mushroom"
2) some kombucha as a starter
3) a container and cover, see below
4) water, sugar and tea, see below
5) optional but recommended: bottles and caps, or mason jars with lids
Regarding these:
1) I sell these with enough kombucha included to start your first batch. To creates subsequent batches you add sweetened tea to the dregs of the previous batches including the old Scoby.
2) For a small batch of say 2 litres, 250-355 ml of kombucha (1 bottle) should do. My starter kit includes a half litre and should start the 3.5 litre batch easily. My large Scobys include a litre and can start 6-12 litres. To start a large (i.e. 20+ litre) vat you should have at least 2 litres of kombucha and Scoby. Plan to save enough of each batch you brew to start the next.
3) Container is critical: NO METAL for it will form toxic acids and poison you!
Because the scoby will grow, and from time to time you must remove some by hand, a wide mouthed container is necessary, and allows the needed ventilation.
Glass is ideal, a salad bowl or wide mouthed pitcher or giant jar work well, and are often about 2 litre capacity. Ikea sells these and even larger "plant vases" at reasonable prices.
Enamel coated cooking pots work, and are often about 6 litre capacity, BUT be sure there are no scrapes or chips in the enamel or the metal beneath will corrode through. Many enamel pots have small flaws, so be careful and examine the walls after each use.
Ceramic is excellent but the glaze must be NON-LEAD.
Large brewing carboys generally have thin necks that will get clogged with scobe growth, but primary fermenters are good. Since these are plastic be sure it is food grade and/or intended for brewing. These are often 20 litres and larger.
The cover is very important: Use cloth secured about the mouth of the container by elastics or tight tied string. The goal here is that air flows, but no bugs and dust get in. Pillowcases, shirts, and folded sheets work. Kombucha needs oxygen or else you will brew alcohol.
4) Drinkable water. In the lower mainland tap water is fine: it will be boiled to remove any remaining microbes, and the length of the brewing process will evaporate any chlorine and chloromine. Feel free to use filtered or bottled water if you prefer.
Ordinary white sugar will do, but I prefer organic, fair-trade raw cane juice for ethical reasons, taste and micro-nutrient levels. Most of the sugar is going to be broken down by the organisms anyway, so white is not bad, just not as good.
Tea of any sorts. Tea is a perenial shrub so I recomend organic since toxins will build up. Kombucha thrives on black, rooibos and green varieties, and likes herbals too. Experiment and have fun. It obviously likes green and white tea best, since I have found baby scobes form most rapidly in those brews and they acidify the fastest, indicating rapid digestion by the cultures.
5) You aren't going to drink all the kombucha at once, so you need to store some. Easiest solution is mason jars, kept at room temperature they build some carbonation, once opened store in fridge. If you bottle it the same way you do beer, it keeps long (one year), and even builds up a little carbonation in the bottle. Beware, beer bottles can explode!
If you do not wish to bottle, when it is ready, move the brewing container to the fridge. This will put it to sleep, mostly. Keep serving until it gets low and then take it out and add new ingredients to brew your next batch. If you have two pots, you could always have one ready to drink and another brewing. You can even drink brew in progress, it will be a bit sweet but tastes good. However it does get better in a bottle with age.
Warnings:
All implements and your hands must be clean and non-metal (remove rings).
Discard entire batch of kombucha if ever there is sign of foreign mold or corrosion.
Bottled product should only be kept one year.
Bottled product under pressure, and could explode (like home beer/champagne)
You are making your own food at your own risk and liability.
THE PROCEDURE:
Boil sufficient water in stainless steel or enamel kettles or pots.
Alow the water to cool several degrees below boiling before adding the tea (for taste reasons).
Per 2 litres of water use 4 tea bags. Consider using three black or green and one herbal if you want flavoured kombucha. Or you can use all herbal.
Allow the tea to steep for about 15-30 minutes, or longer if you like somewhat bitter tea. Remove the bags without squeezing them (for taste reasons).
Per 2 litres of water use 1 cup sugar. Stir to dissolve thoroughly.
Let it cool! Before adding to the Scoby and kombucha it must be not much warmer than room temperature. It can be luke warm but not at all hot, like for baking bread. Perhaps 25 degrees.
Pour the sugary tea into the brewing container (NON-METAL)and add the Scoby and starter kombucha. If this is a second batch the starter and mother are already in your container!
Cover the container with tightly attached cloth. Keep it somewhere at room temperature.
You can taste it from time to time to check, but depending on temperature, ventilation and size of batch, it will take from 1-2 weeks to consume most of the sugar.
During the first fermentation, the Scoby will eventually float, then grow to cover the surface, indicating it is nearing readiness. During repeat brewings the mother thickens by adding a layer.
Fill mason jars or bottle as you would beer. Or move the entire container to the fridge and ladle out as desired. Keep the Scoby in the covered container with enough residual kombucha to start the next batch.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Leonine Kombucha
Kombucha is an ancient, vegan, pro-biotic drink, naturally brewed from tea and sugar and a starter known as a scobe or the "mother mushroom." In truth the "mushroom" is a culture of healthy yeasts and bacteria, similar to those found in yogurt, traditional pickles, and natural vinegar. It has been made for thousands of years throughout Asia and Europe. Indeed, the very scobe used to brew my kombucha is of an ancient lineage, lost in antiquity.
Cultures producing this marvelous drink, from Russia to China and Japan, promote its health benefits, and reccomend daily moderate consumption for longevity and well being. Certainly, it is an active vegan probiotic, and can help maintain beneficail intestinal fauna; the key to good digestion.
But what you really need to know is LEONINE KOMBUCHA TASTES GREAT! I look forward to my daily bottle, and it makes me feel great too.
Leonine Kombucha uses organic black, green, and herbal teas, and certified fair-trade organic evaporated cane juice sugars. Ginger water, a splash of fruit juice, and other plant flavourings are used along with the teas to create new and exciting flavour "kombunations." I bottle in brown glass beer bottles, and allow the brew to lighly carbonate. Drink it straight, or on ice: "Leon Trotsky" style. It can also be mixed with juice, mineral water, jamaican ginger ale, or whatever else you like in a "koktail."
Being bottled you could keep it for a year, if stored in a cool dark place. If you don't drink the whole bottle, refrigerate after opening.
A word about "mother mushrooms." Since this is a live product, any cloudyness or sedement is natural, non-harmful and indeed a sign of quality. In some cases a baby scobe is generated after bottling. Always pour into a glass, so you are not surprised by this. To find a "mother mushroom" in your drink is considered a sign of great fortune in some cultures. It will resemble a translucent jelly, and is actually delicious and nutritious! If, however, you are not enamored of this macrocosmic form, simply fish it out and add it to compost or plant pot.
Want to brew your own? I also have starter scobes with liquid and instructions for sale. Enjoy and have fun.
Leonine Kombucha sells at the Vancouver Farmer Winter Markets 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM,
At the WISE Hall, 1882 Adanac St. (at Victoria) on:
Jan 16, Mar 13, Apr 10
Check out the Farmers Market website for details and exact locations, (I'm under prepared food):
http://eatlocal.org/
Come and try a free sample!
To inquire about purchases email: leoninekombucha@gmail.com
Cultures producing this marvelous drink, from Russia to China and Japan, promote its health benefits, and reccomend daily moderate consumption for longevity and well being. Certainly, it is an active vegan probiotic, and can help maintain beneficail intestinal fauna; the key to good digestion.
But what you really need to know is LEONINE KOMBUCHA TASTES GREAT! I look forward to my daily bottle, and it makes me feel great too.
Leonine Kombucha uses organic black, green, and herbal teas, and certified fair-trade organic evaporated cane juice sugars. Ginger water, a splash of fruit juice, and other plant flavourings are used along with the teas to create new and exciting flavour "kombunations." I bottle in brown glass beer bottles, and allow the brew to lighly carbonate. Drink it straight, or on ice: "Leon Trotsky" style. It can also be mixed with juice, mineral water, jamaican ginger ale, or whatever else you like in a "koktail."
Being bottled you could keep it for a year, if stored in a cool dark place. If you don't drink the whole bottle, refrigerate after opening.
A word about "mother mushrooms." Since this is a live product, any cloudyness or sedement is natural, non-harmful and indeed a sign of quality. In some cases a baby scobe is generated after bottling. Always pour into a glass, so you are not surprised by this. To find a "mother mushroom" in your drink is considered a sign of great fortune in some cultures. It will resemble a translucent jelly, and is actually delicious and nutritious! If, however, you are not enamored of this macrocosmic form, simply fish it out and add it to compost or plant pot.
Want to brew your own? I also have starter scobes with liquid and instructions for sale. Enjoy and have fun.
Leonine Kombucha sells at the Vancouver Farmer Winter Markets 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM,
At the WISE Hall, 1882 Adanac St. (at Victoria) on:
Jan 16, Mar 13, Apr 10
Check out the Farmers Market website for details and exact locations, (I'm under prepared food):
http://eatlocal.org/
Come and try a free sample!
To inquire about purchases email: leoninekombucha@gmail.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)