Concentrate is produced by fermenting kombucha for a long, long time - usually around 6 months. This produces a liquid with no sugar, zero alcohol and high levels of acidity (making it a stable product a bit like vinegar, but also making it completely undrinkable!).
There are a few key reasons why some producers use concentrate.
Firstly, it guarantees zero alcohol. The traditional brewing method can result in low levels of residual alcohol in the finished product (but almost always under 0.5% which is still considered 'Alcohol Free' in the UK).
The second reason is for profit. You can take the concentrate, add water, flavouring and sweetener et voila - your kombucha is ready to go! You could make a batch, bottle it and sell it all on the same day. Traditional brewing takes time - usually the fermentation process alone can take 14 days, sometimes longer. Using concentrate is a real short cut.
The third reason is to help scale production. Traditional brewing can't immediately scale overnight due to the 'starter liquid' being required from a previous batch. You're naturally limited to how quickly you can increase production. Using concentrate would allow a startup company produces thousands of litres of kombucha in their first batch.
The final reason is consistency - trying to make a standardised flavour profile that is the same bottle after bottle, like a cola. For me that's not Kombucha - you have to accept there will be small variations in flavour due to the natural and unique process for every fermentation.
Guttzee is lovingly produced in small batches with care and attention, respecting the traditional methods of fermentation to produce an authentic, quality and natural product.
For me, using a concentrate goes against everything that Kombucha stands for. It's big scale commercial production. It makes Kombucha more like a fizzy soft drink. I love the fact it takes two weeks to turn sweet tea into a new batch of booch, I'm not looking for hacks, cheats and shortcuts. For me that's what concentrate is, and for that reason you'll never see a drop of concentrate in a bottle of Guttzee!
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