The Complete Guide to Home Brew Kombucha: Full proof your first attempt and nail that ferment

By Mitch James Evenden

Your guide to brewing and enjoying homemade Kombucha! From the history of booch to brewing it in your own kitchen, this guide will be a staple part of your journey from conception to production. Skip through all the trial and error and find the answers to any questions with this guide to be successful on your first batch!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tablo Publishing
• Release date: Sep 3, 2019
• ISBN: 9781922309884

Book preview

Disclaimer

The ideas, concepts, and opinions expressed in this book are intended to be used for educational purposes only. This book is provided with the understanding that author and publisher are not rendering medical advice of any kind, nor is this book intended to replace medical advice, nor to diagnose, prescribe, or treat any disease, condition, illness, or injury. 

It is imperative to use good judgment when consuming kombucha and never to consume any kombucha that looks, tastes, or smells unpleasant. Further, before consuming kombucha or any other fermented or cultured food, you should receive full medical clearance from a licensed physician. Author and publisher claim no responsibility to any person or entity for any liability, loss, or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly because of the use, application, or interpretation of the material in this book.

Author Bio

Why Kombucha? Well, because it tastes good, it makes me feel good, and my incredible family that I share my life with LOVE it! I was searching for ways to improve our gut health and stumbled across an article on how to make Kombucha at home. Being a stay at home dad at the time I decided this could be something fun and a great sensory activity for the kids and I. So we took a trip to the shops, bought what we needed and the rest is history! 

Years later I now realise the potential health benefits of this very easy to make elixir and really want to teach people to start making it themselves. For lots of little info gems follow our Kombucha story on Instagram @kombuchamt :D 

Table of Contents

An Introduction to Kombucha

Fermentation and gut health

History of Kombucha

What is Kombucha?

A scoby? What’s that?

Kombucha, broken down

Beneficial bacteria

Yeast

Organic acids

Vitamins and minerals

Caffeine & L-Theanine content

Alcohol content

Health benefits of Kombucha

Seven evidence-based health benefits

Ingredient selection for brewing Kombucha

Tea

Sugar

Water

Starter tea

A scoby

Ingredients

Equipment 

Procedure

Equipment selection for brewing Kombucha

Fermenting containers and spigots

Covering your container

Useful extras

Brew your first batch of Kombucha

Shopping list

Equipment

Procedure

Start your first continuous brew Kombucha

Shopping list

Equipment

Procedure

Everyone loves flavoured Kombucha

How do I alter the final flavour of my Kombucha?

Why should I flavour my Booch with a second fermentation?

What you need to think about when beginning the second ferment!

Steps to start your second fermentation

Potential problems and troubleshooting

Mould

Insects

Black (dead) scoby

No sign of fermentation

Potential side effects of drinking Kombucha

Safe consumption of Kombucha

Alternate versions of Kombucha

Kombucha Beer and Kombucha Ale

Kombucha Wine and Kombucha Champagne

Kombucha Coffee

Bonus information

Scoby hotel

Creating and Incorporating a flavour POWERHOUSE – The Ginger Bug!

Ingredients

Equipment

Procedure

What makes Ginger healthy?

Fermenting Kombucha vinegar and it’s various uses

Creative ways to use extra scobys

Recipes/ Flavour combo ideas

Salad dressings

Marinades

Sauces

Family favourite treats

Scoby jerky

An Introduction to Kombucha

What is Kombucha, where did it come from and how do I make it? I will answer these questions and more in the following guide! The complete guide to home brewing Kombucha!

Fermentation and gut health

Consuming a wide array of fermented foods and drinks is a great way to increase the diversity of your gut microbiome. Obviously, this book is going to focus on the benefits contained in a delicious glass of ice cold Kombucha, but there are many fermented food and drink options out there, all with their own unique make up of bacteria and yeast that can benefit your body in one way or another.

Gut health is one of my favorite things to discuss as I believe it is one of the most influential components of our body, and it can affect one’s health in drastic ways, for better or worse. The average human microbiome contains up to 2kg of bacteria and yeasts, most of it in the stomach. There are more bacteria in our guts, then there are cells in our entire body, to be more precise up to 90% of our cells can be bacterial, quite amazing when you think about it. The only way we can really change which bacteria and yeast is present is by consuming the correct food and drinks. The more nutrient dense and healthy our food is, the more beneficial bacteria we have in our gut and body. Generally speaking, the good guys like to eat healthy food. Peoples food cravings can be swayed in a large way by their gut microbiome.

The gut is now being called our second mini-brain as research is showing that hormones like serotonin are produced mainly in the stomach, up to 90% of production. Serotonin is a feel-good hormone that is very important in mental health. Our guts contain a lot of the same neurotransmitters as our brains and even contains more neurons then our entire spinal cord. These neurons make up the enteric nervous system and allow the gut and brain to communicate via the gut brain axis. This communication controls things such as appetite and food desires.

A huge reason as to why I am passionate about gut health is that recent studies have shown a direct link between autoimmune disease and gut health. As a Type 1 Diabetic (an autoimmune disease) I think about all the other problems this must create for people and believe that so many issues could be prevented if we all just started to be more conscious of what we put in our mouths.

Things you should start doing to improve gut health:

Include fermented foods in your diets such as