Guide to Kombucha Second Fermentation Process Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Guide to Kombucha Second Fermentation Process Recipe? ›

You'll want to fill your vessel up with 80%-90% kombucha and add 10%-20% flavoring. All you need is 1-3 tsp of my herbal kombucha flavoring to make delicious kombucha. You will want to leave 1-2 inches of air space at the top of the bottle between the liquid and the cap.

You'll want to fill your vessel up with 80%-90% kombucha and add 10%-20% flavoring. All you need is 1-3 tsp of my herbal kombucha flavoring to make delicious kombucha. You will want to leave 1-2 inches of air space at the top of the bottle between the liquid and the cap.

The usual amount of sugar is about 4 or 5 grams, or a level teaspoon, of brewing sugar per pint or 500 ml bottle. When scaling this measurement up for a 5-gallon barrel, you will need 160g-200g of dextrose for secondary fermentation.

If you want carbonated kombucha, you need to add a form of SUGAR to your second fermentation kombucha bottles. Otherwise, there is nothing that you need to add—it is just a matter of picking the flavors you want.

Once your kombucha has finished fermenting, remove the desired amount and add it to a jar with a lid. Add fruit to the kombucha, screw on the top and let sit for two days to a week - depending on the flavor you like.

That yeast is what helps build up carbonation. If you're not getting good fizz, it may just be because you're cleaning too much yeast out of your brew.

Temperature. Kombucha is happiest fermenting in temperatures between 72° and 84°F (22° and 29°C), and secondary fermentation works best especially in the warmer half of that range. If it's too cold in the room where you are fermenting your bottles, it may take longer to ferment and build up carbonation, if at all.

While it's safe to add sugars at any time in the process, adding them late can be very beneficial to your cause. This is because of two reasons. First, yeast can get lazy if offered simple sugars up front, and stall out early or ferment slower than normal once they have to convert more complex sugars.

Burping is essentially just opening your bottles ever so slightly during the second fermentation process to release air or “excess pressure” in the bottle. Many brewers recommend burping bottles every day, or every other day while your bottles are fermenting at room temperature.

Yes! During each ferment, the mother scoby (the one you added) will produce a baby scoby. Every scoby can be used four times before it gets too old and needs to be discarded. With each batch of kombucha a baby scoby is produced and the process starts again, you will have a fridge full of scobys before you know it.

Can kombucha mold during second fermentation? ›

If you've been able to produce a successful batch of first fermented kombucha and you've gone over a week without any mold in your brew vessel, it's very unlikely that you'll develop mold during second fermentation in the bottle.

Add sugars – If you find that your alcohol content is a little lower than you'd like, you can add additional sugars when putting your beer into secondary fermentation. It can be corn sugar, brown sugar, honey, or dried malt extract… any fermentable ingredient can be used to boost gravity.

Yeast has this habit of settling down at the bottom of our brew vessels during first fermentation. So if you don't stir your kombucha liquid before you bottle, that yeast won't be evenly distributed throughout your liquid or throughout your bottles.

“We add the fruit and wait just long enough for the sugars to ferment to get full extraction of the fruit color, aroma ,and flavor,” Perkins says. Secondary fermentation is the ideal time for fruit additions, and about a week is long enough to extract flavor.

Create endless flavor combinations and even recreate your favorite store brand flavors at home. It's easy and fun to bottle and second ferment your kombucha with frozen fruits! And, you'll get lots of fizz and bubbles!

Herbs and Spices – Cinnamon, cloves, ginger, thyme, mint, lavender, rosemary, etc. Works well in a combination with fruit, however if using alone, add 1 tsp honey per 1L during second ferment to reactivate beneficial bacteria.

Batch Size: To increase or decrease the amount of kombucha you make, maintain the basic ratio of 1 cup of sugar, 8 bags of tea, and 2 cups starter tea per gallon batch. One scoby will ferment any size batch, though larger batches may take longer.

Steps to follow to store a kombucha scoby at room temperature: Place the kombucha and, if you like, the film, in a jar (about 10% of the volume of your next recipe).