[Avodah] kombucha

[Yisrael Medad]

Can anyone tell me if this is kosher l'pesach?  quick like?


*Kombucha* is the Western name for sweetened
tea<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea>that has been
fermented <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermentation_%28food%29> by a
macroscopic solid mass of microorganisms called a "kombucha colony," usually
consisting principally of *Bacterium xylinum* and
yeast<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yeast>cultures.
 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Kombucha_culture.jpg>
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Kombucha_culture.jpg>
The kombucha culture looks a bit like a large pancake. A healthy, new
culture is light in color, and will generally darken with age.

 Biology of kombucha *See also: Tibicos<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tibicos>
*

The tea contains a symbiosis of yeast
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yeast>species and acetic
acid bacteria <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acetic_acid_bacteria>,
mostly *Bacterium
xylinum*. Species of yeast found in the tea can vary, and may include:
*Brettanomyces
bruxellensis <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brettanomyces_bruxellensis>*,
*Candida
stellata <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candida_stellata>*, *Schizosaccharomyces
pombe <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schizosaccharomyces_pombe>*, *Torulaspora
delbrueckii <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torulaspora_delbrueckii>*
and *Zygosaccharomyces
bailii <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zygosaccharomyces_bailii>*. The culture
itself looks somewhat like a large pancake, and is often mistakenly referred
to as a mushroom <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mushroom>.
Kombucha tea

Kombucha is a pleasant tasting, powerfully effective health drink / food
supplement which you can make at home for next to nothing.

The taste can vary depending on how you make it but the basic recipe, which
most people use, will produce a slightly sparkling drink that tastes like an
apple cider or dry white wine.

Though there is alcohol in it, it is normally so low that commercial
producers can sell Kombucha as "non-alcoholic". You can expect less than 1%
by volume alcohol content.

Sugar is used as part of the recipe but it is not used as a sweetener. The
sugar is broken down and converted into different components of the finished
drink.

It has been drunk for many generations. In fact, it has been around so long
that we are unable to tell where it was originally discovered or when.

Kombucha is a fermented drink made from sweet tea and a Kombucha mushroom or
Kombucha culture as it should more properly be called.

The culture is live and is a co-dependant blend of healthy bacteria, yeasts
and other micro-organisms.

Though, it may appear complicated at first, Kombucha is actually very easy
to make.

This website contains all the information you need to start making Kombucha
in your own home and answers many of the questions that you may have.

We should clear up the confusion and difference between Kombucha Tea and the
Kombucha Culture before going much further.

*Kombucha tea*

Kombucha, or Kombucha tea is the actual health drink, which we make from
sweet tea and a Kombucha culture. It is known by a number of different names
around the world including - Cainii Kvass, Kombuchakvass, Tea wine and
Teekvass.

*Kombucha culture*

The Kombucha culture is the live substance which is put into the sweet tea
to ferment and convert it into Kombucha tea. The culture is probably best
known as a Kombucha mushroom, though this is an incorrect definition.

The Kombucha culture has been known as a mushroom, a lichen and many other
things but the best and most accurate definition we have today is a
"symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast".

This is just a scientific term for a co-dependant live mix of bacteria and
yeast. That definition sounds a little complicated, though it is where we
get the more friendly term "SCOBY" from.

The culture has been given many names, Günther W. Frank, in his book -
"Kombucha, Health beverage and natural remedy from the Far East" lists 70
different names for the culture including - Combucha, Brinum-Ssene (Latin
for miracle fungus), Champignon miracle and tea fungus.



-- 
Yisrael Medad
Shiloh
Mobile Post Efraim 44830
Israel
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