A Guide to Kombucha. What is it and why should we drink it?
What is kombucha and where has it come from?
This is the question on many lips as people look to the natural food market for alternatives to mass-produced options.
Widely known in the past and re-discovered today, the exciting qualities of 'superfood' kombucha are gaining recognition the world over. Natural health practitioners across Australia, USA and Great Britain among many other counties are recommending this ‘elixir’ as a vital part of preventative healthcare.
Kombucha is a fermented and sweetened tea (usually made with black, green or Pu-erh tea). The magic of the beverage is that it contains vitamins, amino acids and other nutrients associated with core health benefits.
The process of preparing kombucha involves a double fermentation process. A SCOBY (it might be a new word for you - a pancake-shaped symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) is placed in a tea mixture and sweetened with raw cane sugar. The brew is left to ferment at room temperature. At the optimum moment, the bottled kombucha is placed in a cool environment to pace the carbonation and fermentation journey. This is artisan food-making and if you invest both love and dedication to the entire process - the taste will reap the results!
Now for the good stuff. Numerous scientific studies have shown that kombucha tea helps populate the intestines with helpful probiotics (friendly bacteria), supports the immune system, fights against deadly pathogens and sends love to our precious vital organs.
Just like kefir, kraut, or kimchi, kombucha contains healthy bacteria in the form of lactobacillus acidophilus and a few other probiotic strains. The wonder food also harbours a great collection of organic acids, enzymes, minerals (such as: Magnesium, Zinc, Iron, Copper, Phosphorus and many other) and vitamins (particularly C, B1, B2, B3 B6, B9 and B12) that provide the body with energy and help process fats and proteins. Our livers can benefit from drinking Kombucha and, amongst other testimonies, evidence of relief from arthritis symptoms have shown by its consumption.
Kombucha reportedly first appeared around 220 B.C. in ancient Manchuria, China and revered for its healing properties. The exotic name comes from Dr. Kombu, a Korean doctor who brought the fermented tea to Japan as a new medicine for the ailing Emperor Inkyo. Japanese warriors considered the properties of the 'fungus' to be so invigorating that they took it into battle in their hip flasks! From the ‘empire of the sun’, the tea made its way via oriental merchants to the courts of Europe. In Imperial Russia it was known as Kvas and in Germany as Kombuchaschwamm. We love the idea of fur-coated Russian Cossacks drinking from pewter cups in smoky taverns while sheltering from the snows. The romantic journey continued across the continent where the fermented tonic became all the rage in Italian high society at the turn of century before falling victim to the rationing of WW1.
Now for a new chapter, it’s the perfect refreshment when you’re looking for an alternative to sugary soft drinks, a flavourful non-alcoholic tipple, or an imaginative mixer. The perfect and healthy thirst quencher!
Looking to buy kombucha? We hope you will enjoy Mighty Brew as much as we do!
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