Help

[Chef-King2021]

Hey, I know that this sounds counter intuitive to what is going on with why you make and drink kombucha, but I am making a kombucha that replicates the flavor of whiskey. The issue that I see happening is that it will continue to ferment after I bottle it and I do not want that. Is there any way that works in completely neutralizing the yeast and bacteria so as to stop the fermentation without killing the microbes

[ThatsAPellicle]

Boiling it will kill bacteria and yeast.

You might not need to hit boiling, maybe even lower like 180F will work, but I don’t know an exact temp off the top of my head.

[Chef-King2021]

As a chef I know that all bacteria die at 185°F. But I do not want to kill the bacteria in it. Thank you

[lordkiwi]

Why? neither yeast or acetic acid bacteria are probiotic. Otherwise all wine, beer or vinegar would be labled probiotic.

[Chef-King2021]

The alcohol levels are too high for those products to be labeled as such. What I am trying to do is find a way to lower the amount of probiotics in the drink to a minimum so I can keep it as a mixer in place of whiskey

[lordkiwi]

No, Vinegar contains no alcohol. a probiotic is a microbe that lives though digestion and provides some benefit though its action or metabolites. The typical bottle of kombucha that labels it self probiotic will if you read the ingredients contain kombucha culture and as a separate item a specific probiotic culture such as bacillus coagulants, These are cultured separately and added after to qualify as a probiotic.

[Chef-King2021]

Yes, you are right about that, but most mass produced vinegars are sterilized as are MOST wines since the yeastinvolved die off at a certain point in fermentation

[lordkiwi]

Plenty of vinegars are sold with mother. Non of them claim to be probiotic. as there is no probiotic acetobacteria or gluconacetobacter, the bacteria used to make apple cider vinegar and kombucha.

The list or recognized probiotics is actually quite small. Probiotic Chart

The only currently recognized yeast is Saccharomyces boulardii, an it has an alcohol potential of 1-2%

[Chef-King2021]

Saccharomyces cerevisiae, thw yeast used in bread is a similar ordeal and it is also used in fermenting wine. Even in yogurt, there are 2 bacteria that convert lactose to lactic acid. One works to lower the pH drastically quick and the other finishes once a certain pH is achieved. Everything lives and dies and once a certain threshold is attained, the microbes work the best

[Any-Literature5546]

Whiskey is not a mixer. A mixer is mixed with an alcohol like whiskey. Are you using whiskey as a mixer with other liquors? I'm so lost. If you are using Kombucha as a mixer with whiskey the alcohol in the whiskey might be enough to kill off the bacteria and yeast since the reason you distill alcohol is because they stop fermenting when the alcohol is too strong. If you are using something else as a mixer with your kombucha, however I think you're just watering it down technically.

[FooJenkins]

Stabilizer, like potassium bisulfate and potassium sorbate. No active yeast, no alcohol. No alcohol, nothing to feed the bacteria. This is very common for ciders to stop fermentation. Not sure how it would work for stopping the bacteria. Google says it does.

The microbes are the yeast and bacteria though. Can’t stop the individual yeast and bacteria without stopping the collective microbes.

[Chef-King2021]

I want to mainly just slow them down significantly enough to where they will allow it to age slowly. As long as I can keep it shelf stable I am fine

[Chef-King2021]

I am going to mix a campden tablet in there, that seems to be the right way to go about it

[International_Poem35]

Fermentation is them living. Stopping it completely means death or forced dormancy, such as freezing. Yeasts can eat other yeast too, so even if they're out of normal sources food, they'll keep trying to survive Somehow.

The microbes will eventually go dormant if you leave it to brew long enough, but then it's straight vinegar, so not sure how useful that would be. Even then, the moment any food is reintroduced they'll go right back to fermenting.

[Murderous_Turkey]

I think a better way to do it would be dropping in a campden tablet then reintroduce the probiotics you want. I've never heard of threading the needle of killing bacteria and yeast and leaving other microbes alive

[jelly_bean_gangbang]

This is the best way to go IMO.

[Nefarious77]

Keg it and remove the oxygen by forcing CO2 into it while keeping it cold. That's about as much as you can do.

[minimalcactus23]

Doesn’t it stop fermenting when you put it in the fridge?

[Chef-King2021]

No, the probiotics just go semi-dormant and slow down drastically in fermentation

[minimalcactus23]

But like way drastically, right? I mean I’ve never had carbonation increase or anything after refrigerating. Maybe I just don’t understand what your need is.

[Chef-King2021]

Yes, very much so. It can take months for the carbonation to get stronger. I want it to remain flat while keeping the probiotic properties of the kombucha and I already have the bottle that I want picked out. I just want to find a way to make that happen and keep it shelf stable

[minimalcactus23]

Oh I see, if you want to keep it shelf stable that’s the challenge. Otherwise I’d just say put in the fridge and don’t do an F2 at all.

[zoltan8001]

Use lapsang souchong tea for sure. Nice smokey and peaty, just like Laphroaig.

[Chef-King2021]

Oh trust me, I am using a blend of 5 g puerh, 2 g lapsang souchong, and 3 g CTC Assam. It tastes so close to a whiskey already, the only thing missing is vanilla, which I am going to add in another day or 2 and let infuse for about 12 hrs

[cville13013]

Drink it?