Green Tea Kombucha Recipe: 5 to 31 Gallons
Lighter in colour and body than black tea kombucha, with a grassy, citrusy edge. Steep cooler so the tea doesn’t turn bitter.
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Green Tea Kombucha at a glance: Lighter in colour and body than black tea kombucha, with a grassy, citrusy edge. Steep cooler so the tea doesn’t turn bitter. Pale gold, light and crisp, with a softer acidity than the black tea version.
Bräu Supply recipe · Kombucha
Green Tea Kombucha
First ferment · for 5 gal
| 4.28 gal (16.2 L) | Filtered water | |
| 40 g | Green tea, loose | 8 g/gal |
| 2.09 lb (0.95 kg) | White sugar | 190 g/gal |
| 0.6 gal (2.3 L) | Starter liquid: plain kombucha from your last batch | 12% |
| 1 | SCOBY |
Second ferment: flavour and fizz
| 7.5 tbsp | White sugar | |
Process
- Steep: 175°F (80°C) for 10–15 minutes, then dissolve the sugar
- Cool: below 85°F (29°C) before the culture goes in
- Culture: starter and SCOBY; pH below 4.6, ideally 4.2 or lower
- First ferment: 78°F (26°C), open under a cloth, 7–10 days, to pH 3.0–3.5
- Second ferment: 75°F (24°C), sealed, spunding valve at 12 psi, 2–5 days
- Cold crash: 36°F (2°C) for 1–2 days
- Carbonate: 2.8 volumes: about 13 psi at 36°F
Make it in
Per US gallon of finished first-ferment kombucha. Water allows for the room the sugar takes up and the water the tea holds back. Sugar in juice and fruit varies: taste, and watch the gauge in the second ferment.
How to make it
- Fill the fermenter with the full batch of filtered water, heat it to 175°F and steep the tea in the basket for 10–15 minutes. Lift the tea out and stir in the sugar.
- Cool the batch below 85°F, through a counterflow chiller or overnight with the lid sealed.
- Add the starter liquid and the SCOBY. Check the pH: below 4.6 right away, ideally 4.2 or lower.
- Ferment open to the air under a tight cloth at 78°F for 7–10 days. Taste from the sample valve from day five; it’s ready when sweet and tart balance, around pH 3.0–3.5.
- Dump the yeast from the cone and save starter liquid and the SCOBY for the next batch.
- Add the second-ferment ingredients through the top, seal the lid and set the spunding valve to 12 psi. Hold 75°F for 2–5 days, tasting as you go.
- Crash to 36°F for a day or two, then set CO₂ to about 13 psi to reach 2.8 volumes, or keg it and carbonate in the keg. Strain out fruit and herbs before kegging.
Making a different amount, or your own flavour? Open this recipe in the kombucha calculator: it scales the tea, sugar and starter, and works out the second-ferment sugar, carbonation pressure and alcohol.
Tips
- Steep at 175°F (80°C), not boiling. Hotter water pulls bitterness out of green tea.
- Green tea kombucha usually ferments a day or two faster than black tea. Start tasting on day five.
- Sencha, gunpowder and plain Chinese green teas all work. Matcha does not: the powder stays in the batch.
Frequently asked questions
Can a SCOBY live on green tea only?
Yes. Green tea has the nitrogen and caffeine the culture needs. Some brewers feed it black tea every few batches to keep it strong, but it isn’t required.
Why is my green tea kombucha so pale?
That’s normal: green tea gives a pale gold colour. The SCOBY that forms on top will be lighter too.
Is there alcohol in homemade kombucha?
A little. The first ferment usually leaves 0.2–1% ABV, and every gram of sugar per litre that ferments in the second ferment adds about 0.065%. In the US, 0.5% ABV or more is regulated as alcohol, so if you sell kombucha, crash it cold, keep it cold, and test every batch. The kombucha calculator shows how much your second ferment can add.
Related
How to make kombucha in a stainless fermenter, the kombucha calculator, ginger lemon kombucha, raspberry hibiscus kombucha, pineapple mint kombucha.