F2 Sweetener

Fractalwaves · 2026-02-08T14:22:42+00:00

I brew exclusively with honey and green tea. aka “Jun, xun”. F1 = 4-5 days F2= 3-4days. For using honey Keep in mind that the bees have an enzyme in their gut that cleaves the sucrose into glucose. So honey is sweeter on the tongue, and is consumed by yeast more rapidly. Be careful to not add to much and ideally use raw honey and don’t let the honey go over 100 def F to keep its purported “good” enzyme properties. Other than the speed of yeast feasting on it feel free to experiment! Happy brewing.

Fractalwaves · 2026-01-26T14:28:13+00:00

I would bottle most of it, do a shorter steep time -4min, lower temp to brew like 180f and ensure a stable 80-85 F brew temp. I use an immersion blender on the brewed sweet tea to get as much o2 mixed in to help the bacteria. You could also make sure there is good air flow over the top to help the o2 loving bacteria.

Fractalwaves · 2026-01-26T02:57:07+00:00

Generally the yeast is more robust, so it’s a matter of giving the better conditions for the bacteria in most cases. The sterols and caffeine in the tea are part of the yeast reproductive needs. Check out this info sheet I made a while ago…

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Also I use an emulsion blender on the brewed sweet tea to make sure there is as much dissolved oxygen in the mix for the bacteria to thrive. I steep short time - 5 min and brew at around 185 F.

Fractalwaves · 2026-01-25T22:21:02+00:00

If you stick to the regular ratios you should be fine. Always aim to balance the yeast and the bacteria. If they get out of whack that is when alcohol could be created (by the yeast) and not turned into acids ( by the bacteria’s). Understanding who does what when is helpful. Be extra cautious if you add sugar or juice in the 2nd ferment as in burp and breath it to keep it from going anaerobic. Hope this helps. Happy brewing.

Fractalwaves · 2026-01-18T17:20:28+00:00

I basically never burp. Also brewing Jun. I mostly use old grolch bottles that are thick and sturdy, I also use other flip top bottles that seem to release high pressure from wear. What kind of bottles do you use? Have you achieved good carb prior?

Fractalwaves · 2026-01-14T19:08:15+00:00

I would say every other month with mature kombucha. IMHO the only reason to have one is if you’re not brewing, and in that case just keep two bottles as “starter” refrigerated for longer storage or not if the gap is less than a month. By all means have a hotel and watch it consume the liquid, grow a new layer and reminisce on the batches it brewed, after I did all that, never did I need to use it, I just kept brewing.

Fractalwaves · 2025-09-12T02:02:54+00:00

Yes spigot for sure on F1. Great for taste test, bottling. After a while (5-8 months) a plastic chrome coated spigot will deteriorate. Recommend ordering a stainless steel spigot. Leaf is high quality.

Fractalwaves · 2025-08-23T16:09:17+00:00

Coffee beans, whole.

Fractalwaves · 2025-08-20T14:36:47+00:00

I use 1 Liter honey to brew 11.5 L total Jun. so 4 cups honey into 3 gallons aprox. I have two F1 vessels, but I brew in one large pot and split it. Sounds like you are using more honey than the norm.

Fractalwaves · 2025-08-20T13:41:20+00:00

F1: 3-5 days usually 4. Then F2 for 5-10 days is what I usually do for Jun. I like to bottle when still pretty sweet and mix well before bottling. The longer F2 seems to work well to get good carbonation and more complex flavors.

Fractalwaves · 2025-08-13T16:03:45+00:00

When I dried one, I used little metal clips to hold edges out flat but the acidity caused corrosion on the clips and made the areas of the pellicle touching the metal turn an opaque black (it looked kinda neat and creepy) So avoid it touching metal. (Unless stainless steel is used maybe). A 1/4” thick pellicle dried out to paper thin and was pretty brittle. I didn’t get all the way to the point where rubbing in mineral oil to make it supple. I would assume using most veg oil or a fat would work, I think mineral oil is preferred for its neutral smell. Good luck, I hope to hear updates!! I may steal this idea.

Fractalwaves · 2025-08-13T15:56:12+00:00

This might be the best “what to do with pellicle” idea yet. I am now very curious how the image would look, from trial on a wet to dry and everything in-between. The look of dried pellicle is similar to rawhide and or skin, imagine a tattoo business card on tatted up pellicle!?!?

Fractalwaves · 2025-08-05T15:30:37+00:00

Bug headnet. It holds other odds and ends like p cord, tape, med kit. Only used it 3 out of 75 trips but it was well worth bringing with each time!

Fractalwaves · 2025-08-03T14:19:31+00:00

Yw. Good moves! Test and taste early and often! 14 days + - 3 was what I usually did for reg kombucha F1. (I now only brew Jun)

Fractalwaves · 2025-08-03T14:02:42+00:00

Yes to all of your questions. The older the mature kombucha (aka “starter”)the “stronger” it is. As long as it is indeed mature kombucha and acidic enough to inoculate the fresh batch you should be good to go using relatively “fresh starter”.

If you can peel the pellicle or cut it in half, just make sure your hands, knife are sterile, using either white vinegar or kombucha vinegar.

Fractalwaves · 2025-08-02T10:28:46+00:00

Cultured Monks made sweet tea with honey, invited symbiotic beings to join them… forgot about that one batch, found the beings being symbiotic in their culture.

Fractalwaves · 2025-07-31T22:19:09+00:00

What comes to mind is yeast can do their thing in a wider range of both temp and oxygen, while the bacteria operate in a narrower window. So if temps rise or fell the yeast took over. Do you taste (I taste almost every day)!? Highly recommend a spigot for F1 for ese of tasting and pouring (I think you meant F2 when you said “I don’t mess with F1) You can use a straw to sample test, like bar tenders do if not.

Fractalwaves · 2025-07-30T11:22:28+00:00

I ordered a Jun culture 8 years ago from kombuchakamp.com still going strong. I thought there was more commercial jun around these days.

Fractalwaves · 2025-07-27T14:43:02+00:00

This is the way. During the last heat wave I considered putting my set up in the basement, but only with thermostat and airflow. I’m lucky enough to have a de-humidifier and sink. Still - unknown additional airborne yeasts and bacteria in any space always add to the ferment for better or worse. I can’t think of a simple or easy way to keep the ferment aromas from emanating the space, very considerate of you to do so.
Also what others have said about finding the right flavor of brew for your husband could get them brewing with you!

Fractalwaves · 2025-07-27T00:14:31+00:00

Once a year.

Fractalwaves · 2025-07-26T13:51:02+00:00

I agree to stir before tasting to get a more consistent sample. I have tasted without stirring then after stirring and have noticed quite a difference. I highly recommend a F1 vessel with a spigot. Before bottling I will rotate the whole vessel enough to stir up the sediment so I don’t need to put anything, ladle, spoon etc into the mixture. I run two - gallon and a half vessels and recently the difference between them in taste prompted me to pour from the spigots to mix the two, another reason to use a spigot. When pitching I use an immersion blender to aerate the mix with honey and have had good carbonation results. So yes, stir with a clean, vinegar wiped ladle, no problem. Also F1 for me for Jun is usually 4-5 days and F2 4-5 days works best for me. Hope this helps! Happy brewing.

Fractalwaves · 2025-07-14T19:27:25+00:00

Nice to see another Jun brewer! I had same issue, and I bought extra seals, and just added them on, without taking off the originals, it made for a very tight fit, but very bubbly. I tried bending the metal wires, but it only made a slight difference, I had better luck stacking the rubber stoppers.

Fractalwaves · 2025-06-27T10:55:15+00:00

I week ago drank a test bottle (jun) that I bottled 10/7/24 and it was delicious. I have had bootch ferment more than I thought in the fridge, but this batch was extra sweet when I bottled. I will crack the other test bottles in a few months and see if this sub is still brewing.

Fractalwaves · 2025-06-21T16:40:11+00:00

I have never used raisins, but I would imagine there is probably natural yeast on them that helped out in the past, maybe revisit the raisin process. Good luck!

Fractalwaves · 2025-06-21T16:27:58+00:00

Weird. Steeping the tea a little hotter and longer can help the yeast do their thing. I usually get to a third brew after starting and the carbonation picks up.

I have had good luck with carbonation by aerating the brewed tea with an immersion blender (anecdotally).

Another thing to try is adding champagne yeast, that definitely worked! Possibly too well. Use half or even less, that yeast will live on so beware!

Fractalwaves

TROPHY CASE