Kombucha

                                                                             

                                                                        KOM.BU.CHA

            A Japanese drink made from fermented tea.
I was first introduced to this unusual drink by my friend
Roxanne, who makes her own. After buying a few from Safeway for $2.99 per small bottle I thought I might try and make my own.

I mentioned to Roxanne, the last time I saw her, that I'd like to give it a shot at brewing the tea. Roxanne sent me instructions and a starter kit (I'll explain that later) today. 
If Donna is seeing this, I am sure she is laughing her ass off right about now. I've never been real good at following directions and these are pretty specific. Most of the time while assembling a Christmas gifts to Jason, I'd just say to Donna..."just tell me what to do, ok"! One false move and I'll be growing mold instead of tea...that would be bad

I start by heating a gallon of water with about 10 green tea bags. You can use black tea or green, although the black causes more carbonation than green tea, so the choice is yours. I'm not high on carbonation, which would account for my drinking maybe 5 or 10 sodas a year. I start by heating the water, boiling is not necessary.

One cup of cane sugar added to the brew.

This is the starter kit I got in the mail from Roxanne today. It is a SCOBY in vinegar. SCOBY is "symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast", not a mushroom as some may call it. Just a brown, slippery mass of yeast and bacteria that floats on the surface and blocks oxygen from seeping in.

After cooling the tea, it is put into my jar where I will grow the brew. From this brew, I can take small samples to grow more bottles and change flavors as I see fit.

Here the starter SCOBY is mated with the tea I brewed.

Bacteria and yeast replicate themselves by binary division. Two become four, four become 16...so on and so on. When you introduce a small amount of previously fermented Kombucha tea containing living cells, before a day has gone by there will be billions of colonized bacteria and yeast.
Some benefits of the tea, although the FDA says it won't approve them are.
As a probiotic for your body's healthy bacteria.
Liver detoxification
Improved digestion
Energy boost
And many more claims that really can't be, but it has to be better than downing 4 or 5 sodas a day!
Many thanks to my friend for getting me involved.