Kombucha Adventure
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I just had a drink of kombucha and it tasted nothing like what I expected. It tasted wonderful, fizzy, pop like, full of flavour….it didn’t taste like the gross cloudy juice with what looks like mold growing in the bottom would taste like.
Kombucha is growing in popularity. It’s a huge trend. The idea of drinking tea that has been left to ferment for 30 days was very unappealing. I was wandering around the health food section and the pretty packaging caught my eye. *I like colourful shinny things! I picked up the bottle and examined it. I put it back. Walked away 5 feet. Walked back to pick up the bottle. I held it in my hands thinking this is crazy. It’s $4.99 CAD for one bottle. I read the packaging over again and thought maybe there is something to this drink so I bought it! Now I was the proud owner of 1 gingerade flavoured kombucha with living cultures! 
The book of wisdom….Wikipedia says this scientific stuff about kombucha:
The bacterial component of a kombucha culture comprises several species, it almost always includes Gluconacetobacter xylinus (formerly Acetobacter xylinum), which ferments the alcohols produced by the yeast(s) into acetic acid. This increases the acidity while limiting the alcoholic content of kombucha. G. xylinum is responsible for most or all of the physical structure of a kombucha mother, and has been shown to produce microbial cellulose. This is likely due to artificial selection by brewers over time, selecting for firmer and more robust cultures.
The acidity and mild alcoholic element of kombucha resists contamination by most airborne molds or bacterial spores. As a result, kombucha is relatively easy to maintain as a culture outside of sterile conditions. The bacteria and yeasts in kombucha may also produce antimicrobial defense molecules.
The strands of culture didn’t bother me as much as I thought they would. I imagined swallowing gooey strings…but it didn’t happen.
CAUTION! This drink is effervescent! When I first opened the bottle the liquid spilled out like a bottle of champagne. Each time I reopened the drink it got fizzy but not did not spill out. I really loved my first experience with kombucha. I’m slowly getting into fermentated foods and the health benefits associated with them. My friend makes her own kombucha. I’m sooo excited to learn from her how to make this tasty drink.
If you have never had kombucha give it a try. It tasted like pop, and in my case ginger ale pop. I added the link on amazon where you can purchase some and share your experience with me. Let me know what flavour(s) you get!
*Update Resources
I learned how to make kombucha here. I found this book very helpful for learning how to ferment various foods + a tutorial on kombucha. Real Food Fermentation (found here on Amazon) focuses on a beginners guide to fermenting vegetables, fruits, drinks and meat. If you want to learn more about how to ferment foods you should look into Nourished Kitchen’s course, Get Cultured. Click here for more information. Also you can purchase kombucha making supplies here. Enjoy,
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Carol Lovett is the founder of Ditch the Wheat and a Globe and Mail bestselling author of the cookbook, Ditch the Wheat. She has been eating gluten free since 2010. She loves all things food, natural living, and spiritual. She's also a reiki master and crystal healer.
Gluten Free Resources
Do you need help with gluten free meals?
I recommend this meal-planning app. It makes cooking gluten free dinners extremely easy and family-friendly.
What gluten free snacks can I eat?
Lots! I have a ton of practical gluten free snack recipes in my cookbook.
How can I eat dessert on a gluten free diet?
You can 100% eat dessert while eating gluten free. Try my dessert cookbook for easy gluten free dessert recipes.
How do I know what is gluten free and what isn’t?
I have a whole section is it gluten free?
How do I make substitutions?
If you need substitution advice I created a ton of resources here.
I buy my Kombucha at Hanniford grocery store.
It’s a great alternative to high sugared or artificially sweetened soda.
Hi Nancy!
I loved it. What flavour do you like?
Thanks for explaining kombucha. I’ve seen a lot of people talking about it, but I wasn’t sure what the hype was all about. I still don’t know if I’m brave enough to try it..lol. Have you tried other flavors? What are your favorites?
Karen,
It seriously tastes like pop! I can’t claim I felt any health benefits after one bottle…but my friend Katrina makes kombucha so I’m hoping she will show me how to make it and all the Ditch The Wheat readers. I avoided kombucha for the longest time because it looked gross! I have only tasted the one flavour, which was ginger. I was in a health food store yesterday and I noticed a large bottle of kombucha for $35 (ouch) that you take a tbsp of and add to a glass of water. If you try some other flavours can you let me know what you think. I want to drink so more of it!
Thanks!
I’ll have to give it a try next time I make it to the health food store. Thanks!
Also, what’s scoby? I hear a lot of people talking about it when they make their own.
I read that the scoby is the culture (living culture). My bottle of kombucha didn’t have the scoby but it did have some strands of culture floating in the bottom.
Gotcha, thanks Carol!
I tried the Kombucha in grape flavor from Whole Foods. I loved it and can’t wait to go and buy my own case. It’s a tad expensive though..
I want to start making my own 🙂