Kombucha mixer at the lab

Last night, it was all about scoby’s, fermentation, and getting ourselves ‘cultured’ for a cause.

The kombucha cause, that is. We welcomed into our space Jacqueline Jennings from VEST Projects, and Christina Culver from Culver City Salads set up shop and taught us all about the kombucha fermentation process, caring for our scoby’s, and all the small details involved in culturing a fermented drink.

Upon arriving, a variety of tasters were handed out – we headed straight into the hard stuff (straight up kombucha – not for the faint of heart) – and then went into fruit blends with freshly juiced pineapple and ginger, apple and berries, and finally discussed mixing our kombucha with a lighter iced tea for variations of the typical kombucha drink.

Jacqueline and Christina led us through the  process of fermentation and how the scoby is involved in the overall cycle. The scoby was broken up into pieces, and everyone went through the steps of a starter kit to take home. Professional tips included: Giving your scoby the name of a pop diva (i.e. Mariah, Madonna, Celine, or Shania), and play it lots of hip hop. Also (and perhaps more scientific) keeping your scoby in a cool dark place, and ensure you’re never using metal instruments to handle the scoby.

Everyone who attended left with 2 starter kits – a scoby, some sweet tea, and some starter kombucha – just to get their processes started from home. With encouragement to play around with flavours and mixing options, Jacqueline and Christina left everyone full of kombucha taste testers, and some great jars full of potential for delicious homemade kombucha.