Fermented Probiotic Drink - Kombucha

We've been serving you fermented probiotic drinks (kombucha) for a decade now. I often find myself explaining how we craft these beverages. Here's a piece that should have gone up a while ago - the craft, the why, the humble beginnings, and why we think we're special.

Kombuchas are prepared by feeding a SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast), sweetened (we use sulphurless sugar) black tea. The living culture consumes the sugar and transforms it into a complex, tangy, and probiotic-rich beverage known as kombucha. The longer it ferments, the more acidic and less sweet it becomes. Kombuchas are known to be rich in:

• Probiotics that support gut health, digestion, and immune functions.

• Antioxidants & enzymes which supports detoxification.

The botanicals we infuse with are all home-grown herbs.

Raw vs pasteurized For a kombucha to sit in a shop, it is pasteurized or preserved (killing the SCOBY). The advantage we have of serving you straight from the farm is that the kombucha you receive is alive and active. Unpasteurized (raw) kombucha offers superior gut health benefits due to live probiotics, enzymes, and higher antioxidants, promoting digestion & immunity. They also have enhanced bioavailability (better nutrient absorption) and complex and vibrant flavours. In fact, you may even find floating bits of SCOBY in our hooch (kombucha).*

Raw kombucha, from a health perspective, is great for the consumer. Bringing this to you adds a layer of complexity for us, the producer. It means:

1- We prepare kombuchas in small-batches only.

2- We have to hit the golden time frame - that is, mature enough that the sugars are consumed (slightly tangy) and not overmature that you're tasting vinegar!** And this is the craft, with several steps needing to fit into this golden window:

i- fermentation

ii- botanical infusion

iii- natural carbonation

iv- reaching it to you!

From start to bottling, each batch takes about 3 weeks to prepare. 

Kombucha SCOBY hotel close-up by Vrindavan farm

Kombucha SCOBY by Vrindavan farm

Kombucha first fermentation by Vrindavan Farm

Bottling the botanically-infused kombucha by Vrindavan farm

Hibiscus kombucha by Vrindavan farm

Kombucha flavours by Vrindavan farm

*Kombucha brewers end up with a LOT of SCOBY, thus birthing SCOBY parties - an opportunity for brewers to share their starter culture, spread it amongst friends, discuss the craft and share ideas, or even make fun SCOBY snacks.

**While we often get the golden window right, there are enough times that we don't. Entire batches of kombucha vinegars never leave the farm.

Why do we think our kombucha is special? A friend and traveler visited the farm. "This water" he'd commented, "I wish you could share this with people". He was right. We'd hosted visitors from across the globe, and never had anyone suffered GI issues from the water. More than that, it truly feels life-giving. And for this life-giving water, we have Mr. Anil Bhatia to thank, a story that warrants singular attention that I'll save for another day. The bottom line, for us, the brews are a way to share all the goodness of fermentation housed in the ecosystem of Vrindavan Farm. It is also a way to share the all-important core ingredient, water.

How did we start crafting kombucha? Kotz was visiting in the early 2000s. Back then, Kavita Mukhi's was the only farmers market in Bombay. Shubham tried to spread the beautiful concept by bringing Bombay it's next farmers market, Better Foods. We believed in the idea and participated. Vrindavan brought it's produce and friends. Kotz the fabulous musician he is, brought his guitar. The markets never made much money, but the hosts and producers always had an incredible time, sharing produce with each other and building life-long relations. At the market, Kotz had rather casually purchased a couple of kombuchas. Drank one, and brought one back to Vrindavan, where, again, rather casually, he fed it. Thus beginning our journey with kombucha. Today, we've done the same for other farms, keeping alive the 'rather casual spirit' of spreading the brewing culture!

Hot tip Some of the best kombucha I have tasted is those I forget in the fridge for a couple months. Being alive and active, they slowly mature, bringing out some flavour depth and extra fizz.