Ingredients
1 gallon water
1 cup white sugar
6 bags black tea / 2 tbsp loose tea
1 cup Kombucha & SCOBY
Instructions
Boil water, and add it to a clean pot. Dissolve the sugar into the water, and add the tea. You will want to use a tea bag or tea infuser if using loose tea.
Remove the tea once steeped to your liking and allow the liquid to cool to room temperature.
Add the tea to your fermentation jar, as well as the SCOBY and starter liquid. Cover everything with your breathable cloth and secure it with a rubber.
Let your Kombucha ferment in a warm, dark place, for anywhere between a week and a month. You can check the Kombucha in the meantime to see when it is ready. The time depends on the exact ratios, temperature and your SCOBY. Make sure not to contaminate the Kombucha when you test it.
Once finished, you can bottle the Kombucha. Furthermore, you can do a secondary fermentation if you like, I’d recommend it!
Transfer at least a cup of Kombucha with the SCOBY to a clean glass or plastic container. This will act as starter liquid for your next batch. Clean your fermentation jar thoroughly, before repeating the process from the start.
Notes
It is recommended to first grow with SCOBY with black tea, before trying something like green tea. My personal favourites are Darjeeling or Ceylon. You should avoid flavoured teas such as Earl Grey when making Kombucha, as the additives can produce undesirable flavours or even harm the SCOBY during the fermentation.
Make sure to keep everything as clean and sterile as possible when doing fermentations like Kombucha. Contaminations can harm the SCOBY, cause mould, and be dangerous!
You should really try secondary fermentations when making Kombucha. It opens up a world of new, exciting flavours.
If you are living in a place with great quality tap water, this should be fine for making Kombucha. Otherwise, you should consider using filtered or bottled water.