Make Your Own Kombucha at Home

This post may contain affiliate links. See full disclosure page here. Your support is much appreciated and helps keep this site running. Thank you for being here!

This “Make Your Own Kombucha” guide has been a long time coming. I’m almost ashamed that I have a website with kombucha right in the name and I have yet to post anything about it. I’ve been painfully editing this post for months and I just finally went ahead and clicked the publish button. Better late than never right? So here it is! How to make your own kombucha at home.

How To Make Your Own Kombucha at Home

Read through this guide and then you can jump to the recipe for the shorter version at the end when you’re ready to go. I am basically taking you through what is called batch brewing, which I suggest if it’s your first time. Continuous brewing is another method that I may cover later.

I am going to try to keep this as simple as possible and write corresponding mini guides and FAQ separately so it doesn’t get overwhelming. It’s not hard to make kombucha at home but there is a lot of information to take in.

If you have any questions, I’m happy to help! Leave a question in the comments section below. I’m usually quickest to respond on Instagram if you want to send me a message. I also have helpful kombucha highlights and videos over there.

Brewing kombucha is actually pretty easy, I swear, but it can be intimidating at first. I probably read everything I could and thought about it for a full year before actually trying it. Hands on is really the best way to learn, so just go for it. Ask questions as you go. It only takes a couple of brews to feel confident you’re doing it right. Mother nature will do her thing. Sometimes she throws curveballs though.

What is Kombucha?

Kombucha is just fermented sweet tea. That’s it. It can be flavored, or not, but bare bones it is just tea, SCOBY, water, sugar. It makes a refreshing drink with a number of reported health benefits but I don’t want to get too hung up on that right now. We’re here to learn how to make kombucha at home.

Optionally kombucha can be combined with fruit, juice, herbs, and other flavorings in a second fermentation. We’ll get to those details further down.

What is this SCOBY Thing?

SCOBY is an acronym that stands for Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast. It is in your starter, your “mother” for kombucha. Remember kombucha is just fermented sweet tea. Fermenting anything usually requires bacteria or yeast, whether naturally occurring or intentionally added, and it feeds on the sugar, and tea in the case of kombucha. So the SCOBY is all of those little microbes working together.

Some resources will describe the SCOBY as a mat or pellicle. I like to call that part the Blobby. The pellicle or mat is not actually the SCOBY although it is sort of part of it, it’s kind of a byproduct of the fermentation process. This is really important to remember: The SCOBY has to have starter liquid to brew with it. The most important part of the SCOBY is in the very strong kombucha liquid. That Blobby pellicle guy isn’t all that important for brewing. It is mostly made up of cellulose and looks thin, whitish, and waxy when it first first forms. When a pellicle forms it is the sign of a healthy culture. Blobby is the result of an active healthy SCOBY, but it is not THE SCOBY on it’s own. Sorry to get crazy with emphasis, but this isn’t always very clear around the internet. Even a book I checked out from the library on fermentation, much to my horror had a recipe for brewing kombucha with zero starter liquid and just Blobby which they called the SCOBY.

I repeat, that Blobby is not THE SCOBY.

You don’t want to brew kombucha with only Blobby. You need the liquid. In fact, you really don’t even need Blobby at all. It’s your choice if you want to keep Blobby in your brew or not. Blobby might make your kombucha ferment a little faster but you don’t really need it. Some people brew with it, some people don’t. This is very subjective and everyone has their own preference and they aren’t wrong. Blobby is kind of like a kombucha security blanket. The fun part is a new baby Blobby will form no matter what. Blobby will eventually get so big you have to get rid of at least some or it will take up half your brewing vessel. Blobby is excellent for compost and a treat for chickens, or so I’ve heard. I don’t own chickens (yet.) Here is a video I made about blobby if you need a visual.

I have brewed both with, and without the original blobby, and there has been no real noticeable difference that I can pinpoint. When I don’t brew with Blobby, a new one forms anyway. If I do, it just gets bigger. Sometimes it sinks to the bottom and then I end up with 2 Blobbies. That’s around the time I just chuck the big one into the compost bin. Or play with it for Instagram pictures and gross people out.

Blobby is not the most appetizing looking thing in the world. It’s kind of like a big booger.

I think the above information is one of the more confusing parts for beginners. If someone hands you a Blobby calling it a SCOBY and it has no other liquid, it’s not much use to you although you might get lucky. The first time I made kombucha at home the instructions said only to use the Blobby and a cup of regular kombucha for starter. It did work, but it’s not the best way to go about it. Blobby acts like a sponge and will hold some SCOBY liquid so that’s probably how I got away with it. Normally the brew will not be acidic enough if you don’t have the right amount of starter, and you will very likely get mold if you just use Blobby. It also will take way longer this way if you end up with fermented kombucha at all. I got very lucky and it eventually fermented with out mold.

I see it time and time again in brewing groups. They get their SCOBY, their kombucha doesn’t ferment, and they’re not sure why. It’s because they were just given a Blobby without any extra liquid.

Some people like to collect their Blobs in what’s called a SCOBY hotel. The liquid they sit in is really all you need.

Getting Started

Ok now that we know what kombucha and the SCOBY actually is, here is what you need to start making kombucha at home.

Supplies to Make Kombucha

1. A non reactive brewing vessel – like a gallon glass jar or ceramic crock, with or without a spigot.
2. A tightly woven cloth – or several coffee filters. Don’t try to use cheesecloth, the holes are too big.
3. A rubber band – to secure the cloth tightly.
4. A pot to heat water – it can be as fancy as an electric kettle or just use a regular steel pot on the stove.
5. A tea ball or reusable mesh bag if using loose leaf tea.
6. A large stirring spoon – preferably not wood as it can harbor unwanted bacteria or mold.
7. A medium or large funnel
8. Fine mesh strainer
9. Bottles – pressure rated for carbonation. They must be meant for carbonated beverages or they can and WILL explode.

You don’t need any fancy vessel for your kombucha, but I really love using a gallon glass jar with a spigot. I scored a few at Five Below over the summer and they make life so much easier and less messy when bottling. Amazon has a lot of options, you just might want to replace your spigot at some point to be safe. There is some debate about kombucha leeching from certain plastics, glues, epoxy, and metals. The acidity can erode coatings that you don’t want ending up in your brew. KombuchaKamp has two kombucha safe spigot options available.

If you don’t want to worry about that right now, and you definitely don’t have to with batch brewing, just use plain glass jars or crocks. I started with plain old wide mouth half gallon mason jars.

Make sure everything is squeaky clean for your first run. If using dish soap, make sure it’s mild, and rinse extra well with hot water so there’s no residue left. I just use my dishwasher. You can also use a food safe sanitizer like Star San for brewing but it is totally not necessary like with brewing beer or wine. A vinegar rinse works well too. You won’t need to clean your brewing vessel after this if you continue to brew, in fact it’s better not to. Your pot will naturally be sanitized when you boil your water for tea so no worries there.

Kombucha needs to breathe but the cloth will keep other gross stuff out, like fruit flies and dust. Cheese cloth doesn’t work for this and fruit flies will get in and lay eggs. Seeing maggots on top of your pellicle is never a fun sight. You should not use a regular airtight lid on your brewing vessel. It needs some air flow.

Ingredients for Kombucha

1. Filtered water or bottled water
2. Sugar
3. Black or green tea
4. SCOBY

There a little bit of wiggle room with ratios and types of teas. There is not only one right way to brew, but I would say keep it simple if it’s your first time. The non negotiable and key part is using enough starter tea, the liquid SCOBY, which I’m sure you’re sick of me saying already. Most people use regular black or green tea but you can use other teas like rooibos for example. One of my favorites to brew with is oolong. The kombucha ends up with a mild fruity and floral flavor.

You can use fancy expensive raw brown sugar, or plain refined white sugar. I use cheap white sugar. The culture eats the sugars so there’s not much left in the end product. I find the cheap stuff ferments well. Honey is used for making JUN tea which is a little different. We’re sticking to sugar in these instructions.

Kombucha Brewing Chart

Brew Size	Water	Tea	Sugar	SCOBY/starter
1 Gallon (128 FL OZ)	14 cups	8 bags or 8 tsp loose leaf	1 cup	2 cups
1/2 Gallon (64 FL OZ)	8 cups	4 bags or 4 tsp loose leaf	1/2 cup	1 cup
1 Quart (32 FL OZ)	4 cups	2 bags	1/4 cup	1/2 cup

You can make a smaller amount, just use the same ratio. Anywhere from 4 to 8 tea bags per gallon is standard. I always use 8. The sugar/starter ratio is pretty similar across the board. Some people use a little more or less water. I’ve had success with this ratio over the years so I stick with it.

Where to Find a SCOBY

You have a few options to get started. The fastest being to get a SCOBY from a friend who already makes kombucha at home. Also you can poke around online groups and find someone willing to send you one or meetup. Reddit has r/findascoby. I recently did a SCOBY giveaway on Instagram.

You might prefer to just buy one and make sure you’re getting a good, living culture. I suggest buying here. Kombucha Kamp is a very reliable source for a SCOBY and brewing equipment. It won’t be free but it will be worth peace of mind knowing you have the right stuff to start. Their reputation is outstanding and they have excellent customer support.

There are lots of options on Amazon in different price ranges. If you start shopping around you might see someone selling a dried SCOBY. Don’t buy it. For the reasons I mentioned above, you need starter liquid and you can’t just rehydrate a blobby. Chances are the microbes will be completely dead in this case and you will not make kombucha, but sweet moldy tea. Don’t chance it and waste your time and energy.

Make Your Own SCOBY

You can also make your own SCOBY pretty easily with some patience as it’s not the fastest method. It’s pretty simple though. You just need a bottle of raw store bought kombucha.

Read more about how to make a SCOBY here for full instructions.

You also don’t want to keep your SCOBY in the fridge. Always keep it at room temperature out of direct sunlight. Same goes for kombucha that is not ready to drink. Cold temperatures make the microorganisms go dormant and inhibit the fermentation process.

Brewing Temperature for F1

You can brew kombucha anywhere from 60F-85F, the sweet spot being around 78F. The colder it is, the slower it will ferment. My house ranges from 65F in the winter to 72F or warmer in the summer, so I don’t worry about it much.

Some people like to use a warming mat or sleeve. If your house is very cold then it’s not a bad idea. Check different spots in your house, you may find something warmer, like on top of the fridge. You can purchase heating wraps or pads here and here.

I stick my brew in a cabinet next to the fire place. We don’t actually use the fireplace but the vent pipe from the furnace runs through it which warms the brick. That cabinet stays consistently 68F in the winter.

Fermentation Time

Fermentation time can and will vary, and the temperature is one factor as mentioned. It has a pretty large range, anywhere from 5-25 days. I have been making kombucha for a few years now, and I’ve had strong brews that were almost ready in 3 days when it was very warm in my house. It is rarely that fast. Generally it’s 7-10 days for me.

How long it takes is not that important, it’s how it tastes. It can take as long as 30 days and there is nothing wrong with that necessarily. You’re going to taste it along the way. The longer it goes, the more acidic it gets. It also loses sugar as it ferments. Try not to worry if your brew is still too sweet after 10 days. It doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong. It just may need more time. As long as you don’t see mold just let it sit longer and check every few days.

Tasting Progress

Start tasting your brew at day 3 and take notes. You don’t want to contaminate it though. This is where the spigot I mentioned earlier really comes in handy but you can use a straw. Dip the straw into the kombucha to the side of the pellicle (if there is one) and hold your finger over the top of the straw, then remove it. Taste the liquid from the bottom of the straw without putting your mouth on it in case you need to dip again. You can see what I mean here in this awkward reel I posted on Instagram.

Possible Problems When Making Kombucha

There are some problems that can arise and if it a brew is taking an extra long time it does become susceptible to mold. If conditions are right, you follow my instructions, and used a good SCOBY, you should be fine.

If you’ve done everything exactly and if your tea is still sweet after more than a month, there are a few things that could be wrong.

• Not enough starter, or the culture is dead. If you got your SCOBY starter in the mail it could be old, or just damaged from extreme heat or cold. That’s why it’s important to get a fresh SCOBY from a trusted source like a friend nearby or somewhere like Kombucha Kamp.
• Too cold. Cold temps slow down fermentation. If your storage area is colder than the average room temperature, try moving it to somewhere warmer or use a heat wrap.

About Mold

Mold isn’t common if kombucha is brewed correctly, but it does happen. Mold is fuzzy, white, and sometimes green or black. When first starting it can be hard to tell the difference between normal pellicle stuff, and mold.

Kombucha already looks weird from the SCOBY Blobby, and can look especially weird as new layers form on the surface. You might see cloudy slime, frothy bubbles, tiny white dots, brown clumps of yeast, and other strange things. Notice in the picture above there are bubbles, and slime. Those parts are normal. When you look closer toward the top you can see the fuzz and that is mold.

Below is a picture of a new layer forming on a healthy brew. There is no mold but it might look concerning to the new brewer. It’s perfectly normal.

Here is another video of mine showing a healthy SCOBY. When I first started I found it helpful to go through google images and look at as many photos as possible. A normal SCOBY pellicle can look perfect and white, or like a freaky alien.

Let’s go! Fermentation Number 1 (F1)

Ok here we go, time to brew.

1. Bring water to a boil on the stove.
2. Once boiling, remove from heat and add your tea bags or loose leaf
3. Let tea steep for about 15 minutes. Sometimes I just leave them until the tea cools but the tea can get some bitterness that way.
4. Remove tea bags or infuser with your big spoon and discard (hopefully to compost!) If you used loose leaf without an infuser, scoop as much out as you can with a fine mesh strainer.
5. Add your sugar and stir until until it dissolves.
6. Let your tea cool to room temp (around 85F or less.) It can still be warm but not too hot to touch or you will kill your SCOBY.
7. Pour your sweetened tea into the brewing vessel. If you used loose leaf without an infuser, pour it through a fine mesh strainer.
8. Add your SCOBY with or without blobby.
9. Cover your brewing jar with the cloth or filters, and secure tightly with the rubber band.
10. Store your jar out of direct sunlight. It does not need to be in complete darkness.
11. After 5 days you should begin to taste your kombucha. It should start getting sour and lose sweetness.
12. You might notice a new SCOBY layer forming on the surface. That’s a great sign.
13. When you are satisfied with the flavor, it is ready to drink or flavor in the next steps. It should be tart and range from slightly sweet to almost completely dry. This part is personal preference. This can take anywhere from 5-20 days depending on room temperature.
14. If you will be flavoring your kombucha skip to the next step. If you like your kombucha plain and flat, pour into bottles, or a pitcher, and store in the fridge. Make sure to reserve some for your next brew! Either pour it in a separate jar or leave 2 cups in your brewing vessel, cover it back up with the cloth, and return it to where it was at room temp. You can leave it up to a few months and should be a minimum of a week or two to strengthen the culture to brew again. It will continue to get stronger, and tart. This is your starter SCOBY for your next brew.
15. If you like fizzy, flavored kombucha, get ready for your 2nd fermentation and read on.

Flavoring and Bottling your own Kombucha

The second fermentation is when you’re going to flavor and bottle your kombucha. This is also when you’re going to achieve carbonation if you want it. F2 takes from 3-7 days on average. It can be as low as 2 days or long as 10.

What About Fizz?

When you bottle kombucha in an airtight, pressure rated bottle, it will continue to ferment. F1 doesn’t get fizzy because it isn’t air tight. When you bottle, CO2 will build up and that’s how you get carbonation.

If you want to bottle your kombucha plain but still carbonate it, you can. Sometimes the residual sugar is enough to continue fermenting in the bottle and you will eventually get fizz. Or you can just add a little bit of sugar.

Types of Bottles

Don’t skip reading this unless you just don’t plan on bottling. Some people do what’s called a continuous brew which is pretty much what it sounds like. You can take what you want to drink and add sweet tea back into your vessel every so often. I’m going to explain this better in a future post, for now lets stick with the batch and bottling process. If you plan on bottling your kombucha, you HAVE to use bottles specifically pressure rated for highly carbonated beverages. Do not use any kind of square bottle. Do not use mason jars.

You have a few choices. You can reuse bottles from store bought kombucha. The caps will eventually wear out but they work great for quite a while and replacements are cheap. So if you’ve been drinking kombucha already and saving those bottles, you’re in luck. You know they’re safe for kombucha because well, that’s what was in them in the first place.

Another option is the green or brown Grolsch style beer bottles you may have seen before. These are called swing top bottles. Any bottle that was meant for beer or something highly carbonated will work for kombucha. Either buy the actual beer and reuse the bottles or you can take your chances ordering on Amazon but I can’t vouch for any in particular as I haven’t tried them myself.

I’ve had great luck reusing sparkling lemonade swing top bottles from Aldi, and the green swing top ginger ale bottles from Trader Joes.

If you are not sure about a bottle being pressure rated, it’s best not to use it. Watch out for decorative bottles. I’ve also heard bad things about Ikea bottles. I have seen some serious explosions in Facebook groups, it’s not something you want to deal with. An explosion is not just messy, it’s dangerous. It can happen at any time and seriously hurt someone in your house. At best you will be cleaning up glass and your ceiling forever.

Flavoring

Now to the best part, flavoring! This is where you get to be creative. You can keep it simple too. Flavor options include fresh or frozen fruit, fruit puree, juice, jams, syrups, extracts, and herbs. Ginger root and turmeric are popular choices.

Some of my favorites things to flavor with are strawberries, blueberries, mandarin oranges, pineapples, peaches, apples, ginger, lavender, mint, and different combinations of those. I also absolutely love syrups, like my homemade elderberry syrup or rose syrup. Sometimes I like it a little spicy and have used jalapeno and Thai chili peppers.

Experiment and have fun! I have seen some downright gross flavor combinations but hey, it’s not about what I think is gross, it’s about what you like.

When I first started I mostly just used fruit. You can use any fruit you like really. Chop into small enough pieces to fit in your bottles, and use about 1 TBPS of fruit per 8 oz (cup) of kombucha. You don’t need to fill up half your bottle with fruit. All you’re going to do is make a bomb. If you really like your kombucha fruity and sweet, mix it with some juice right before you drink it.

Fermentation Number 2 (F2)

Ok let’s get to it. You’ve got this too.

1. Make sure your bottles are squeaky clean and sanitized.
2. Add flavorings of choice to each bottle.
3. Use a funnel if your brewing vessel doesn’t have a spigot. Give your vessel a swirl or stir, and pour your kombucha into each bottle. You might have to remove the SCOBY pellicle if it’s in the way.
4. Fill almost to the brim, leaving a tiny bit of headspace, about half an inch.
5. Make sure you save around 2 cups of kombucha in your vessel. This will be your starter for the next batch.
6. You can discard your pellicle or just leave it in the brewing vessel for later.
7. Store bottles at room temperature for up to a week, and then move into the fridge.
8. Open your kombucha carefully, strain, and enjoy! More on this below.

More Information about F2

How do you know when your kombucha is ready to drink? This part is a little tricky. You can estimate but really have no way of knowing if carbonation has built up if you use flip top bottles. Here are some tricks!

Use one plastic bottle as a guide. I know some people who use a small soda bottle. The bottle will get hard and start to bulge when carbonation builds up.

I always use at least one bottle with a plastic cap. Same idea as above, the cap will start to bulge as it carbonates. I like to keep an eye on it. If the cap isn’t rounded even a little bit I know it hasn’t fermented long enough.

Sometimes, for whatever reason, you just won’t get much carbonation. Usually its because the seal isn’t tight on the bottle. I run into that problem occasionally.

For safer storage when outside of a fridge, keep your bottles in a box or cooler. This is just in case you do spring a leak or have an explosion. It hasn’t happened to me yet, but it’s still not a bad idea. If for some reason you do have an explosion, it will be contained and easier to clean up.

For me, 5 days is usually plenty of time for carbonation, and flavors can continue to infuse while it’s in the fridge if you’re not ready to drink it just yet.

How to Open Over-Carbonated Bottles

With twist off bottles, you can open the cap slowly, a small turn every few minutes until it has burped enough to open it without foaming out. This is kind of pain if you are not a patient person, which I am not, and brings me to the next trick.

For flip top bottles try first putting it into a large bowl or pot. Throw a zip baggie over the top and then pop it open. Most of it will be contained even if it explodes and at least you can salvage what you catch in the bowl and still drink it. You can do the same with a twist off.

You can also just open the bottle outside and let it shoot everywhere like champagne in a rap video, but you won’t have much left to drink. I’m sorry, my age is showing. I used to be a fun person and now the thought of wasting my precious kombucha fills me with horror.

How to Drink Kombucha

Congrats, you made your first batch and now you’ve earned a drink! I like to strain out the fruit and enjoy it cold. You can drink kombucha as-is or make cocktails and mocktails. Be as creative or simple as you want to be.

If for some reason you over-ferment and you don’t like the strong taste, there are all sorts of other things you can do with your kombucha. Use it like vinegar and make kombucha pickles. It also makes a great marinade and salad dressing.

What Next?

Hopefully you didn’t forget to reserve a cup or two of kombucha from your first batch to brew again. This becomes your new SCOBY. If you’re not ready to brew right away that is perfectly fine, your SCOBY will get even stronger. I just keep mine right in the brewing vessel because it’s easy.

If you want to take a longer break it’s recommended you feed it a small amount of sweet tea once in a while.

I also recommend saving some extra kombucha separately for a backup SCOBY. If you want to experiment and something goes wrong, you’ll have something to start over.

If your blobby has gotten huge or you just want to get rid of it, fish it out and give it a good squeeze to save that precious SCOBY liquid it’s holding. It’s great for compost, the microbes love it. You can also make fruit leather and do all sorts of other rather strange things with it. I just stick with the compost.

If you made it this far, thank you for reading! I hope this was helpful and I’m happy to answer any questions in the comments.

Feedback is also much appreciated, if something isn’t clear or you think I should add anything. I want to hear what you think! Happy brewing.