The Science of Kombucha

[@ACSReactions]

A symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (aka SCOBY) turns tea plus sugar into kombucha. SCOBY kinda looks like a big, slimy mushroom, so it makes sense that kombucha is sometimes called “mushroom tea.”

[@teekotrain6845]

Fun fact: you do NOT need a scoby if you have good starter kombucha. Get yourself a bottle of PLAIN GT's kombucha and start your own! It will produce a brand new SCOBY on top! Just leave undisturbed to keep it in tact

[@MOROCCO000]

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[@richardgrant8634]

Hey can you guys make a video just like this but for kefir? There is not much content on kefir on KZbin and you guys seem to really get into the right details, awesome video! Hope to see more!

[@dl4608]

While the growth of a pellicle certainly is an indication that fermentation has occurred, the lack of growth of one doesn’t actually indicate squat. Some substrates just don’t encourage pellicle growth, despite producing perfectly good kombucha. The role of the pellicle in kombucha fermentation is overstated and grossly misrepresented (even if unintentionally so for the most part).

[@BloodAsp]

You don't need a scoby to make kombucha, it will work if you inoculate the vat with starter culture, the liquid from a prior kombucha ferment. Doing this also helps initially lower the ph, which gives mold less of a chance to grow.

[@Draymorden]

Starter liquid - which just so happens to also be a SCOBY in the technical sense of the word. Kombucha fanatics like to call the cellulose mat a pellicle. And then some also believe that the bacteria and yeast do not live in the pellicle and that it is just a mat of lifeless waste (it isn't, the video is correct that it is also a SCOBY)

[@genaromoreno4356]

In Mexico we have something similar. It’s called “Tepache” and it’s a fermented pineapple drink. Great video!

[@ACSReactions]

Thank you! Yes, I think tepache goes through basically the same process, but you use the natural bacteria and yeast on the pineapple rind to ferment the drink instead of a SCOBY, and you stop the process before bacteria have a chance to turn all the ethanol into vinegar. Fun fact: the bacteria in tepache produce bacteriocin, an antimicrobial protein that might keep the drink from spoiling.

[@Csartreweghhgf]

Tepache is way faster to do and delicious too

[@Iamheretolearn]

In US we have something similar to Mexico. It’s “Utah”, it’s a state with people that live in it

[@mdfind]

What you guys are referring to as the SCOBY is actually called a pellicle. The SCOBY is simply the finished kombucha, aka "starter tea". This is an incredibly common misconception. You do not need a pellicle to make kombucha, though one will form with subsequent batches.

[@salahsedarous7616]

I was planing to do similar experiments. But my focus is on the scopy material properties. Excellent work, thank you,

[@djyul]

I laughed a lot! Thanks!!! P.S. where do i find scoby?

[@ImagineGTAVI]

Great video, saved me an idea!

[@noufal7507]

Such fun random stuff you guys make

[@andrewka]

Great idea! Next time you can try making the same "Will It Kombucha" video, but combining the already fermented kombucha with everything else during the second fermentation! It will be much safer to drink, and really interesting to know which flavors worked well!

[@LeslieRuskin]

I'm curious, you seemed not to enjoy the coffee kombucha. But that is actually a "real" thing. I make coffee Kombucha all the time side-by-side with my tea kombucha. For any of my friends like likes to drink coffee they all find the coffee Kom. pleasant and refreshing. So I'm pretty curious, are you also a coffee drinker? If so, I'm pretty curious about how would you describe the taste of your iced coffee Kom? And how long did you allow for the fermentation? I usually go 7-9 days to allow all sugars to be fermented.

[@dl4608]

What process do you follow for your coffee kombucha? I haven’t done much with it yet, but find that it seems better when the coffee is diluted first. As for the sugar, unless you’re using a tiny fraction of the standard amount (50-60g/L), there’s still going to be quite a bit of it left after just 7-9 days. A genuinely complete fermentation of all sugar typically takes up to six *months* to achieve.

[@nzuckman]

"booch" is my new favorite verb

[@amandabrn2523]

Thank you so much for the very informative video! I'm curious about one thing, if the main component that starts the fermentation is sugar, then what does tea provide other than its polyphenols as antioxidant? Does fermentation affect the phenolic compounds in tea or does the compounds in tea affect the fermentation or the scoby itself? Thanks in advance!

[@herbertfrischke7921]

Why dip the pH strip straight into the kombucha?

[@lassehansen1580]

Why not? It's easier and the amount of chemicals, that are released into the liquid are not harmful.

[@jeanajett2719]

I want to see more!! And I really want applebucha now.

[@joelseguin9014]

I think honey-bucha is actually called Jun, traditionally made with green tea instead of black tea.

[@patriciafreundl5220]

Excellent!!

[@blue_champignon5738]

Ok weird question... is SCOBY edible?

[@IanGrams]

Just looked it up, apparently it is. I guess that makes sense since it's just cellulose along with the fungi and bacteria that are safe enough to be in contact with the drink. Found some recipes for different ways to prepare it, too.

[@Schindlabua]

I think cellulose is not digestible by humans though, so I don't see a point in eating it.

[@IanGrams]

@@Schindlabua Yep you're spot on, it's a non-digestable fiber since humans don't have cellulase enzymes in our digestive tract. But fiber is important to aid in digestion so it could be seen as a fiber supplement. Could maybe also be considered a probiotic but there's not much evidence for benefits of probiotics except for people with certain digestive disorders. Also I dig your Culprate avi, cool to bump into other fans :]

[@TurinTuramber]

Sitting here drinking my regular tea whilst watching tea heresy.

[@ACSReactions]

Calm down over there, you Brit

[@TurinTuramber]

@@ACSReactionsIt is as if tea and beer had a love child. I like both of those very much but draw the line at drinking around a soggy polymer biscuit. 🤢

[@SCREENDOORONSUBMARIN]

You mean a travestea?

[@acidbat4441]

im surprised u didnt like the coffee one.. i do it all the time

[@teekotrain6845]

There is a kofucha....like a coffee kombucha. Not a fan yet. But it's a thing. And if you're going to add honey it's a slow and delicate process. It can ruin your brew easily if you don't do it right

[@yesthatsam]

Hey Sam, what’s that awesome Arecibo t-shirt ?

[@ACSReactions]

she got the shirt when she visited the observatory a year ago, but it looks like the observatory is also selling them online: shop.areciboobservatory.org/collections/pulsar-collection/products/arecibo-observatory-pulsar-unisex-fitted-tee

[@yesthatsam]

@@ACSReactions thanks a lot !

[@davideperego8287]

5:07 well, you made mead

[@BeCurieUs]

Pour one out for the great Arecibo t-shirt

[@richarddavis7216]

Isn't that the stuff that got Spock?

[@MrXdeDEdex]

Fermentation is the best.

[@NUDZZZ]

This was fun!

[@adrianrivas5147]

I just fell in love...😍

[@unvergebeneid]

0:33 That spongy biofilm pancake is the grossest thing ever. And also, if it goes full face hugger on you and digests you in your sleep, you _know_ you've had it coming, right?

[@Schindlabua]

Man, how are you commenting on every youtube video in existence. Did you hire an army of monkeys on typewriters?

[@unvergebeneid]

@@Schindlabua 😂😂😂

[@XSpImmaLion]

Full nope. I hate vinegar, so this is just a no go for me. Also, my mom who loves stuff like that has been doing something similar for... probably over 20 years now, perhaps even longer. But it's not this kombucha that isn't kombucha thing. Which is weird... because for as long as I remember, she has been calling it something like "seaweed water", but it's nothing like japanese kombucha, which is made out like matcha but with dried, powdered kelp instead of tea leaves. It's also not fermented at all. We actually had it in Japan, it's just kinda weird.... salty, fishy. Matcha is just better. But her version is more like these jelly-like pellets or spheres, small ones, that you also "feed" with brown sugar. They grow, you separate part of it, and pass it up for someone else who's interested. The culture thing. I just find it disgusting, and it has less to do with fermentation, vinegar taste, and smell, and more to do with it attracting bugs.... fruit flies mostly. Probably because of the CO2 it lets off. As my mom always made this thing in glass jars with a strainer losely set on top, I know there must be a layer of dead bugs on top of it that she either doesn't see or check, or just don't mind. Yuck. I just will never be able to dissociate the idea of that thing from just drinking dead insect juice.

[@iSalameee]

This must be the new GMM just with more education

[@treyobladstudios9845]

SCOBY doo where are you?

[@anamorphicalan]

yes

[@Petch85]

more experiments :-)

[@davidotero3027]

You are what you drink "Amazing 🙉""

[@GeoZoo-official.]

Cool

[@chadwickhjones]

Kombucha is a great drink for a plant-based diet for vegans

[@mountaincrab212WWW]

Kombucha tastes amazing, idc what you say

[@LuinTathren]

Cocobucha? But... But... Why?

[@clindberg1]

Just because you can doesn't mean you should

[@ACSReactions]

Much like Jurassic Park, this is a story of what happens when science goes too far.

[@StarWarrior91]

I don’t know how my wife drinks this stuff lol

[@adamwishneusky]

“Why though?” lol 😂

[@kyokoyumi]

It isn't kombucha. It's just fermented tea. 昆布茶 (konbucha) is Japanese for kelp (昆布/konbu) tea (茶/cha). I'm still not sure how someone saw fermented tea and thought konbucha...

[@ACSReactions]

Sounds like no one is really sure where the English "kombucha" comes from. It's possible that people in the West initially started making kombucha out of kelp tea, which maybe we should get George to taste test for us.

[@joelseguin9014]

It may be because the scoby looks and feels like kelp. Kombucha is likely to have been discovered rather than invented, like wine, beer, vinegar...

[@ranameryemcavdar8042]

Im sorry for you I would not taste stuff that looks yucky and smells yucky

[@ThomasMusings]

I have nothing to add to this conversation, other than ew.

[@seanc6128]

Gross

[@ACSReactions]

Correct