Kombucha Tea

SCOBY, originally uploaded by treknpaddle.

A few months back, I was chatting with some of my students and I mentioned my addiction to Kombucha Tea. If you don’t know what that is, you’re probably not alone. Kombucha is an Asian thing, where you brew up some tea (1 gallon w/ ~ 1-1 1/2 C sugar- I used Sucanat), ferment it for a few weeks, and then you drink it.

The fermentation process uses a living disc, called a SCOBY (Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast), which feed on the sugar and make a baby SCOBY. I discovered on Wednesday that my SCOBY had had a baby and decided to start 2 new gallons and enjoy my first batch of Kombucha. It’s pretty awesome, slightly carbonated with a hint of vinegar.

In a month or so, I may well have more SCOBYs than I can handle, so if you want one, let me know and I’m sure we can work something out. Kombucha in the store costs $3.19 for 16oz. (if you’re lucky!), these gallon jugs cost about $4.50. You do the math,