How to make sour kombucha
The process from a fermented tea drink to a delicious vinegar isn't complicated. If you produce too much kombucha, it doesn't have to be thrown away. With a little patience, your tea drink will turn into delicious vinegar in four to ten weeks. Without any additional spices, it tastes similar to apple cider vinegar. Here, too, the sky's the limit when it comes to flavors.
How is kombucha vinegar made?
First, you simply set up a new fermentation batch. For fermentation newbies, the detailed steps are explained here.
The kombucha fungus now also serves as the mother of your vinegar. Kombucha is made from a so-called starter liquid, tea, sugar, and with the help of a kombucha fungus (a symbiotic relationship between yeast and bacteria cultures). Acid is produced during fermentation. The longer the fermentation, the more acid is produced. The added sugar ferments more and more over time. To make vinegar from it, it simply has to ferment for much longer. Since this process can extend over several weeks, you'll need a bit more patience than with the usual fermentation of 7 to 14 days. Normally, proper vinegar maturity is reached between 4 and 10 weeks.
When is your kombucha vinegar ready?
As with kombucha, there's no general rule. We recommend fermenting for four weeks initially. After that, you can fine-tune the fermentation. The liquid should reach a pH of around 2. To achieve this, you can add a tablespoon of sugar every two weeks over a period of six weeks. This helps the kombucha fungus ferment, and you'll achieve the very acidic environment more quickly. Of course, you can always taste the vinegar with a small spoon to see if it's tasty.
Refine kombucha vinegar with spices
Add even more flavor to your vinegar with spices! The sky's the limit when it comes to flavors. We recommend storing the refined vinegar for another 2-3 weeks in a sealed bottle in a cool, dark place.Possible ingredients for refining:
- thyme
- mint
- oregano
- basil
- Garlic
- onions
- shallots
- lemon peel
FAQs
Can the used SCOBY be used for a new kombucha batch after making kombucha vinegar?
The tea fungus can then be used without any problems for the fermentation of further kombucha.
How long does bottled vinegar last?
Like kombucha, homemade vinegar won't spoil in the refrigerator. However, we recommend storing it for no longer than two years and using it up before then.
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2 comments
Hallo Yvi,
das geht einfach, wenn der SCOBY auch im Glas ist. Liebe Grüße!
Hallo!
Wie genau ist das Zugeben von Zucker im 2 Wochen-Rhythmus gemeint? Soll der Scoby vorher abgegossen werden nach 4 Wochen und dann “gefüttert” oder noch während der Scoby drin ist?
Vielen Dank fürs schlauer machen 😉
LG