A while back, the kind folks at Millenium Products sent me coupons for free bottles of their Synergy Kombucha. What’s kombucha? From the Synergy website: It’s a living culture of beneficial microorganisms, and in Kombucha’s case, the whole is infinitely greater than the sum of its parts! Our Kombucha is delicately cultured – some liken it to fermentation – for 30 days. During this period, essential nutrients form, like active enzymes, viable probiotics, amino acids, antioxidants and polyphenols. All of these combine to create an elixir that immediately works with the body to restore balance and vitality.
I know people who have grown the culture at home, most often in tea, but despite my willingness to make my own yogurt, I have to say that I’m perfectly content to leave the kombucha brewing to the pros — especially when it tastes as good as Synergy’s!
The first flavor I tried was the ‘Botanic No. 3′ kombucha, with lavender and elderberry, and I have to admit that it wasn’t my favorite. But that’s my fault — I should have known better. I like elderflower cordial (I’m not really sure what the flavor difference is between the flowers and berries), but lavender as a flavor doesn’t really appeal to me. Hmm, so maybe I shouldn’t have chosen that one, eh?
From then on, I stuck with the berry flavors of the Synergy drinks (95% kombucha, 5% fruit juice). Of these, strawberry and raspberry were my favorites. Because I’ve been usually drinking kombucha from a little glass mug, I get not-quite-three servings from a bottle. Once, when I was finishing off a bottle of cranberry, I topped off the cup with fruit punch that was in the fridge (a decidedly less healthy beverage!), and the result was a kind of amazing. I also tried the grape and ‘Trilogy’ (raspberry + lemon + ginger), which were both good, but not quite as big a hit with me as the straw-, rasp-, and cranberry flavors.
For me, kombucha is slightly habit-forming. If it’s in the fridge, I want to drink it, although I enjoy it best with a meal. And here’s something silly: because I drink alcohol so infrequently, I can actually get the tiniest bit of a buzz off kombucha, thanks to the fermentation. Really, though, it’s more of a nice, feel-good effect.
I’ve still got a couple of coupons left, and I’m thinking I have to try the mango and guava flavors. If you’ve tried Synergy Kombucha, what are your favorites? Have you ever tried growing the culture at home?
I just can’t muster up the interest for kombucha. It may be the tastiest thing on the planet, but I can’t get past the fact that it had a MUSHROOM growing in it. Yeah, I know, it’s not really a mushroom, but STILL. I hate mushrooms.
That said, I’m glad you like it!
I am critically and irrevocably addicted to the Trilogy, Cosmic Cranberry and Gingerberry flavors. Divine Grape is purdy good, too.
At the Whole Foods @ Lincoln & Rose in Los Angeles, they serve Synergy Kombucha on tap. As if it were beer. But it ain’t.
I’m jonesing for some Trilogy right now!!!
I love the GingerAid and Trilogy.. I think I have tried the Cranberry and one other… they are all good so far! They sent me some free coupons too. I wish I could drink it every day but $3.49 a pop is a little much for me so its a once a week thing for now.
To be able to drink it everyday, I have decided to brew some of my own. I am still in the process of growing the first “mushroom”… it has been a little over 3 weeks (pretty long but when its cold out it takes longer they say)..it should be good to go in a few days then the real brewing starts. Can’t wait!
Ehh … I like the grape one because it seems to best mask the underlying fermenty weirdness. But then I get that bonus bit of slime that seems to come in every bottle in my mouth and it’s game over, man, game over.
I have never tried storebought kombucha, but I have been making my own here at Acorn Cottage for the last four years. A friend gave me a kombucha “scoby”* as a housewarming present, along with some of his homegrown kombucha, and instructions for how to grow it myself. It is pretty easy to do, and it lives in a big jar in the kitchen, turning tea and sugar into kombucha for me.
* the live culture that makes kombucha is not actually a mushroom
I thought that raspberry would be my favorite, but it’s a bit tart for me. I can’t think of another flavor that I don’t like, but my favorites are Trilogy and Super Fruits.
I started drinking kombucha almost daily in September and I’ve avoided the five cold/flus that came into the house. My husband is a convert now too.