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Saturday 6 February 2021

New kombucha "pet"

We have a new pet! Last week my neighbour invited me and another friend over to see her kombucha. It was fascinating to see the SCOBYs and taste the different brews. There was so much information to take in, and I've been googling recipes and tips ever since. 

When we left, we each took with us a SCOBY, so I've now officially ventured into the realm of brewing and drinking kombucha. Basically, kombucha is fermented sweet tea. The challenge is to keep the SCOBY healthy, and to learn how to feed and care for the kombucha. 

So, having started the SCOBY off in a one litre jar of starter, I've set up my first 3 litre jar of brew. As my next step, I hope to set up continuous brewing, as soon as possible.  

The recipe I used is from these sites:

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/how-make-kombucha 

http://kombuchahome.com/how-to-make-kombucha-a-complete-beginners-guide/

https://www.kombuchakamp.com

I'll be checking back on these and several others, for further instructions and tips. 

So now, my kombucha is sitting on a quiet corner, away from bright light, and where the temperature is,  hopefully, reasonably even.

 It's so cold outside at the moment, on average about -15C for the last weeks, and no-one knows when it will get warmer. Thanks to a combination of high and low-pressure areas in the atmosphere, the Siberian High or Siberian Anticyclone - a massive collection of cold dry air - is sitting firmly placed over Norway. The last time this happened was in 2010, when the cold was even more extreme, dropping to an all time low of -33C... 

  

 


Summer in May



The weather was amazing all month. In Voss, the water rose well above normal, flooding areas around the lake that would normally be dry. The water is, as always, freezing, but irresistible to the kids.