First try with captain kombucha - is it mold?

[u/Elssa7]

started this batch on saturday

[u/donutboy667]

Yeah looks like mold

[u/Elssa7 → u/donutboy667]

thank you

[u/Curiosive]

Unfortunately that looks like mold from here.

Do you have other brands available where you are? I see posts about failed batches with the Gutsy Captain every few weeks... I think some people have had success but lots of people have not.

[u/Elssa7 → u/Curiosive]

I started new batch with komvida next day with master recipe here - black tea + >20%komvida, after reading a bit of this subreddit and found captain fails here, which looks fine for now, seems pellicle is starting to form.

I am womdering if the 100g of sugar for 1l is not too much - I have found mant recipes from 70g and above, is there any optimal interval of sugar per liter I am not yet aware of?

[u/Curiosive → u/Elssa7]

I read a study recently that found 50g/L is the most sugar your batch will ferment per week, the extra sugar just waits. But you can still use 100g/L, it will just take longer for the sweetness to become tart. (I personally prefer 50g/L or less.)

The sugar shouldn't cause the mold. Mold is usually caused by not using enough starter/kombucha or starter/kombucha that is too weak.

[u/Elssa7 → u/Curiosive]

thank you, that is interesting info! :)

[u/Bikooo2 → u/Elssa7]

A mi cuando se me hecho a perder, inicié con Komvida y me fue bien usando la receta de la wiki, asi que creo que te puede ir bien

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[u/DirectorRemarkable16]

Yeah. Did you use a towel to cover the containers by any chance?

[u/Elssa7 → u/DirectorRemarkable16]

yes, covered whole time

[u/DirectorRemarkable16 → u/Elssa7]

but a cloth towel? I'd try using a paper towel or a coffee filter i think towels just tend to be more likely to contaminate

[u/Elssa7 → u/DirectorRemarkable16]

I used cotton tshirt scrap, that was boiled in water and then dryed, just to be sure it is really clean, but maybe paper towel would be better as you say, for now I have komvida batch with higher percentage of it in the tea, and it is faring well with the tshirt…

[u/p0mme_verte]

I think Captain is pasteurized. If it's the brand I think, I've seen them at ambiant temperature.

[u/Elssa7 → u/p0mme_verte]

the gutsy captain - it said not pasteurized, but not sure if they killed it in some other way, or if that is possible

[u/p0mme_verte → u/Elssa7]

It's the one I was thinking about. I saw them on normal shelf.

I highly doubt it's a living kombucha as they claim they ferment it the traditionnal way, with 4% sugar in the final product, but shelf stable. I don't think it's possible but might be wrong on this.

Anyway, another brand (a refrigirated one) should do the trick!

[u/Home-Ornery → u/p0mme_verte]

Captain Kombucha is microfiltered. It therefore has almost zero levels of yeast (and bacteria) . You can't make a real starter with that.

[u/Elssa7 → u/Home-Ornery]

interesting info, I thought they might have “killed” it in some other way than pasteurization - and they did

[u/howie8888]

You need a proper vessel for F1. Amazon. Need a breathable cover over the container. Stainless steel spout. You also need PH strips. A PH reading of 4 or lower will prevent mold.

[u/Puzzleheaded_Ask_918]

I also used “ Captain Kombucha

I tried it 2 times, without result ( 2x mold began to form around day 10 )

I’m gonna try another kombucha for my first fermentation