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Kombucha - How long odes it last?


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At this point in the game, there is NO WAY I can drink an entire bottle of Kombucha at once, let alone over the course of one or two or three days!

How long do you keep drinking from the bottle? I opened one over the weekend and decided to have some last night and when I opened it, there was floaty stuff at the top! :o I couldn't drink it....ewwww

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The floaty stuff may be the mother, the active fermenting agent. I drink the floaty stuff all the time, but am not very sensitive to such things. I drink 16 ounces in one sitting, but don't see any reason why a closed bottle in the refrigerator would not remain good for a week or even longer.

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The floaty stuff is just a new SCOBY (symbiotic colony of bacteria & yeast) forming. The SCOBY is what actually creates the kombucha. Kombucha always has bacteria and yeast in it, and it continues to ferment and sometimes creates a new visible SCOBY. All that means is that your kombucha is still alive, which is a good thing. Refrigerating kombucha slows down the fermentation process, but doesn't completely stop it. So SCOBYs can still form in the fridge.

I make my own kombucha, and I scoop out any forming SCOBYs after I've bottled it and any that makes it in to my glass. Not a fan of drinking slimy things. I currently have bottles of kombucha that have been in fridge for 3 weeks now (because all three of my 1-gallon jars decided to be ready at exactly the same time despite being started weeks apart), and they're still fine. Kombucha will become less sweet over time, as the fermentation process continues, and if left long enough will start to taste a whole lot more like vinegar, so I consider that it "lasts" as long as I still like the taste.

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SCOBY looks like snot! :o I'll try drinking more of it but it won't be easy! Good to know about the flavor changing and that it can last longer than a few days because I have a feeling two bottles could last me 2 months! :lol:

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SCOBY looks like snot! :o

You should see it when you make your own -- a layer, sometimes thick, of solid white "stuff" forms across the top, sometimes with long dangling pieces. Kind of like someone plopped a jellyfish on top. The first time I made it, I left a cover on for 2 weeks and then checked it -- and then frantically checked websites to see if this was the way it was supposed to look or if it had just gotten moldy! :blink:

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You should see it when you make your own -- a layer, sometimes thick, of solid white "stuff" forms across the top, sometimes with long dangling pieces. Kind of like someone plopped a jellyfish on top. The first time I made it, I left a cover on for 2 weeks and then checked it -- and then frantically checked websites to see if this was the way it was supposed to look or if it had just gotten moldy!

So true. I am doing CB method right now. The original SCOBY has decided to live at the bottom of my vessel and the baby is at the top. The baby is scary looking.

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I now have a jar fermenting on top of my fridge, 6 bottles in my fridge, 3 waiting to go in and a scoby hotel in the cupboard

Holy smokes Kirsteen. I hope we don't read in the paper that your home was taken over by zombie SCOBYs.

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