How to Make a Kombucha SCOBY

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Let’s talk more about kombucha. I recently wrote about how to Make Your Own Kombucha at Home and wanted to dive a little deeper into how to make a SCOBY (kombucha starter) yourself. If you have never brewed, the above post is a great place to start. If you’re just wondering how on earth to make a SCOBY then keep on reading.

First Off, What is a Kombucha SCOBY?

SCOBY stands for Symbiotic Culture Of Bacteria and Yeast. Kombucha is just fermented sweet tea, so you of course need something to ferment that tea. A SCOBY is just really strong acidic kombucha that’s been fermenting longer than the stuff you would typically drink. It’s your starter. This includes both the liquid and that gorgeous gelatinous blob that forms on top called the pellicle.

SCOBY or Pellicle?

A big misconception floating around the internet is that the SCOBY is just the pellicle or Blobby which looks like a big booger. Similar to the “mother” of ACV. The pellicle is technically a biproduct of the whole process and will grow and grow as time goes on. However it’s not the star of the show, it’s just part of the package. The pellicle is a sign of a healthy culture and it is very sponge-like, so it will hold a good amount of liquid with yeast and bacteria in it. The thing is, the liquid is actually the most important part for brewing. You can throw the pellicle away anytime you want and just use the liquid. Read here and scroll to the SCOBY section for my full explanation if this is new information. If not, keep going!

Why Make a Kombucha SCOBY?

I can come up with several reasons you might want to make your own SCOBY:

• It’s incredibly easy to do!
• You bought a SCOBY and it wasn’t the quality you hoped for or was completely dead.
• You already brew kombucha but you got mold and have to start over.
• You can’t find one from a friend or family member nearby.
• Having a SCOBY shipped is an issue.
• You have a favorite brand of kombucha and you want to use their exact cultures.
• You don’t want to spend a lot of money.
• You like to do things yourself

Ordering a SCOBY online is a perfectly acceptable thing to do but some of the reasons above can make it not the most ideal option. It is a living colony of organisms so there are challenges.

Pros and Cons of Making a SCOBY

Pros- Very easy and cheap to make.

Cons – Finding raw, fresh, unflavored kombucha can be difficult. It’s a slow process (about a month.)

Making a Kombucha SCOBY is SO Easy

Like when I say easy, I really mean easy. There is no complicated process whatsoever. BUT, and it’s kind of a big but, we can’t produce one out of thin air like we do with sourdough. It’s a little more complicated than that. I suppose you could theoretically but I’m sure it would not be easy at all to get the right yeast and bacteria.

I imagine the original kombucha SCOBY was a happy accident but it’s still kind of a mystery of how it originated. I’ve read some wild stories. One day I’ll look into all of this more and do some experiments in the name of science. Until then, we’re doing it the following way.

Steps to Make a SCOBY

Are you ready for this. ALL you need to make a SCOBY is:

• A bottle of raw store-bought kombucha.
• A clean jar.
• A clean tightly woven cloth or a few coffee filters.
• A rubber band.

Now all you have to do is dump your bottle of kombucha into the jar, cover it with the cloth, and secure with the rubber band. Leave it alone at room temperature for about 4 weeks. It really is that simple. You don’t even have to add anything to it. I swear, that’s it. That’s all you do.

Store the jar of kombucha in a warm spot out of direct sunlight. Just like for brewing kombucha, you will want it to be somewhere between 65F-85F. It will ferment faster when it’s on the warmer end. Some light is fine, you don’t have to have complete darkness. Direct sunlight can kill microbes and we just don’t want that.

Taste a little from the jar at 4 weeks. It should be mouth puckering sour. That’s exactly what you want. You now have a SCOBY you can brew kombucha with. A 16 oz bottle should give you enough starter to brew about a gallon.

A baby pellicle will usually form on the surface and that’s a good sign your microbes are live and active.

Maybe you’re not as mind blown as I was when I discovered that’s all I had to do to make a kombucha SCOBY. I was just really surprised it was so simple. There’s no need to add sweet tea.

Important Notes

The most important detail about making a kombucha SCOBY is to make sure you have a good quality, raw, fresh bottle of booch from the store. It has to be unpasteurized or there will be no living microorganisms to work with. You also don’t want a bottle of kombucha that’s been sitting on a shelf for 2 years. Although if that’s your only option it might still be worth a shot. Honestly, you almost can’t screw this up.

Flavored or Unflavored

Unflavored kombucha is ideal but in reality it’s actually kind of hard to find. Seriously, I can never find plain kombucha anywhere. As in not once have I seen it in my travels. I guess it’s just not that popular. Other sources might tell you to never use flavored but you can get around it. Ginger is a pretty safe bet.

Read the ingredients and try to avoid anything with fruit or fruit juice, as it can encourage mold growth. Otherwise I think you’ll be fine. I’ve spoken to and seen hundreds of other people post in groups about successfully making a SCOBY with ginger flavored kombucha. I imagine something like this Brew Dr. Kombucha might be fine too, but I haven’t tried it myself. It has some herbs but no fruit.

My Personal Experience

I’ve never bought a SCOBY or gotten one from a friend. I always make a SCOBY with store-bought kombucha. I’ve done it several times now with GT’s Gingerade which actually has a little bit of kiwi juice in it. I’ve never had mold and I’ve always gotten live active cultures.

Edit to add: I recently used a flavored brew from a local brand and it worked perfectly. It was lavender lemon something. Again just try to stay away from really fruity ones and it should be fine.

I highly recommend this method if you have a little patience and want to do it on the cheap. If you’re in a rush, getting it from a friend or purchasing one online is the better way to go.

Let me know how it goes in the comments! As always questions are welcome.