Brewing Up a Storm!

Last month, Jason made a few online purchases and told me to look for some packages to be delivered. But, I couldn't open them and he wouldn't tell me what all he had ordered. He kept implying that maybe he had ordered my birthday present, but my birthday is still several months away. The one thing I did know that he was getting was a Mead Making Kit. When the packages started showing up, he always opened them in secret, and only showed me the stuff for his mead making. One night, he randomly mentioned that he had my birthday present in a good hiding spot. A day or so later, he randomly said that maybe he should give me my gift now; he said it could be a "happy day gift" instead of birthday. I tried to tell him that he could wait until my birthday, but he said he didn't want to wait. And, after disappearing for a few minutes, he returned with a gift bag. I asked again if didn't he want to wait until my birthday, and he said no, it should be a "happy day gift," and to open it. This is what he had gotten me:

A kombucha brewing kit! I was shocked, for sure. I'm almost positive that Jason does not like kombucha, and typically does not participate in all of
my "hippie" tastes, or ventures. But, he knew that I used to buy, and drink, kombucha occasionally, and thought maybe I'd like to try making my own.

I actually have no idea if any of my readers know what kombucha is, so I'll just pretend like no one does and explain it the way I know it. Kombucha is a sweetened black or green tea that is fermented with a SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast). It is said to have been an ancient Chinese drink which they used for it's health benefits. Depending on what you read, you will find lots of different and various health claims for kombucha. For myself, I simply believe that it contains lots of healthy probiotics that promote healthy gut activity, and potentially a lot of other health benefits. Since I am not a researcher, Wellness Mama has a fairly in-depth article on what kombucha is. If you're looking for more of a non-hippie-influenced article, with less health details, this is an article on the Forbes website that might be interesting to you.

Since he gave the kombucha brewing kit to me the week before we left on vacation, and it has to brew for at least a week, I didn't get it started until after vacation. It was very simple to start: I just brewed some black tea, added some organic sugar, cold filtered water, and waited for it to cool down before adding the SCOBY.

The kit came with everything needed to make the first batch, except for the jars to store it in. The thermometer is a sticker that just goes on the side of my brewing jar.

Opening, and adding, the SCOBY that came in the kit.

After Jason gave me the gift and I had opened the kit, we found out that the SCOBY had a shelf life that would not have lasted until my birthday! So it was a good thing he gave it to me as a "happy day" gift.

After the tea had cooled, and I added the SCOBY, it is just supposed to sit and stay between 68-86 degrees for 7-9 days, or to the length of your taste preference (but not more than 30 days, I read somewhere). I set it to brew on the top of my kitchen cupboards, and checked it the next day. That is when I discovered that we do not keep our house warm enough for the brew. The brew, which was named Scooby, was at 64 degrees while sitting on top of the cupboard. The directions say to not move the jar once it's started brewing, but I didn't know what would happen if it stayed cooler than the recommended temperature. So I carefully moved Scooby from the top of the kitchen cupboard into our bedroom, which is usually the warmest room in the house. After a day in the bedroom, Scooby was at 66 degrees; an improvement, but not much. That night, Jason said to move it into his office, because he had been roasting in there while working. It did feel warmer in the office room, so once again, I moved Scooby.

For two days, our weather warmed up to 80+ degrees outside, and we have not turned on our air conditioner yet. So it was perfect for my kombucha brewing! The SCOBY finally rose to the top of the brew and started growing a baby. But then the weather got down to below freezing, and has been snowing/freezing rain for the past two days, and our house temperature plummeted to 60 one night. And, my Scooby's temperatures went back down to 64. Jason turned the furnace back on, and set it higher than our normal 62 degrees, but it didn't warm my Scooby back up.

I was worried that with being too cold for it to brew, it might instead start to mold. So, yesterday, I got out the heating pad and wrapped it around Scooby.

We have to keep going in and turning the heating pad back on, as it automatically shuts off every two hours, but it is helping Scooby to stay a bit warmer. When the heating pad is on, Scooby is at 70 degrees. Overnight when we don't keep the heating pad going, it dips back down to about 68 I think.

My Scooby has been brewing for almost 7 days now. I did some reading online about whether it can brew below the recommended temperatures, and have found that yes, it can. It will just be a slower process and take longer. On the flip side, if it is warmer than the recommended temp, it will brew faster. The one downside I did read is that fluctuating temperatures are not recommended for the brew; it is best to stay at a consistent temperature. In light of that, I will be checking on my Scooby tomorrow, make sure there is no mold, doing a pH test, and tasting it. If all seems good, I will bottle it for the second fermentation process, although that needs to stay at a warm and consistent temperature, too. (Hopefully the weather warms up this week!) If I feel that something is off about it, I will toss this brew and "hibernate" my SCOBY until warmer weather is here to stay, and I will try again.

On the brewing process and length of time, they say that the faster the brew and shorter time will result in a sweeter taste, whereas a slower, longer brew will taste more tart. It is in the second fermentation process that you can add flavors, and sweeten, if you like, and hopefully it will also carbonate. The second fermentation is for a shorter period of time than the first brew. I will have to update you on how my Scooby, my first kombucha brewing, turns out!

As for Jason's mead making kit that he ordered along with my kombucha brewing kit- well, he has been wanting to try making honey mead for a few years now. At my request, he has kindly put off purchasing the supplies for quite a while. When he got his new job and was no longer going to be working nights, he decided to reward himself by getting all the supplies and start a batch of honey mead. He has a book on mead making that he has been reading for the past year or two, and has been doing a lot of research online, as well as talking with other folks that make their own wine, beer, etc. When we returned from our vacation the other week, he spent part of the afternoon going through the kit, figuring out conversions, writing down notes, and measuring out various powders in grams.

I think it was on Sunday that he got his very first batch started, and it was a week-long, kind of involved process.

There were temperatures involved with activating the yeast, optimal brewing temps, stirring vigorously several times a day, adding a certain amount of grams of various powders, testing sugar levels and converting them to alcohol levels, and looking for bubbles. He was very anxious to get his brew to bubble.

I believe that his mead brew is now at the stage that it needs to just sit in the brew bucket for a few weeks and not be disturbed. But, it still has to be at a certain temperature, preferably. That's the real reason he turned up the furnace over the weekend- his mead was not maintaining it's optimal temperature. (He said it was for my kombucha, too, though.)

At some point, the mead brew will be removed from the bucket and put into glass jars. It will sit in the basement at that point for a few months, I believe, before being bottled. And, after bottling, I think it is ready to consume, although letting it sit for a few more months to age in the bottles may enhance the flavor. I think. Jason is the man with the research, and we can let you know what the results are in a few months!

We have never brewed our own anything before, besides a cup of tea, so this is all new to us! But, it's kind of exciting as long as you don't mind half of your kitchen counter being taken up with brewing stuff for the mead! I will keep you posted on my kombucha, Scooby, as well as Jason's mead making. If you have any personal experience in these two areas, do share! It'd be great to talk to someone with personal knowledge on the subject!