This is our list of the three best kombucha brands for this year. We really love this brewed tea’s exotic taste, along with the health benefits it offers. Its “culture”, be it mushrooms, scabies and others provide us with antioxidants and other cleansing advantages.
When we were creating our top 3 list, we tested several brands. This means we had to drink loads of kombucha. And a few weeks after our test, we started noticing some improvements to our bodies and in how we felt. Plus of course, we learned about the lengthy process of how to make this drink as we extensively researched it.
Brewing kombucha takes quite a long process, so we decided to enlist the help of several of our friends, family members, and colleagues that we can do it with, instead of just brewing the drink by ourselves. After we were done with the brewing process and drank our delicious kombucha, we gathered the opinions of several of our testers and listed down their preferred kombucha brands as well as the pros of each product. Please note that our list of the top 3 kombucha products this 2021 isn’t sponsored by a particular brand. So here’s a summary of what resulted from our time and effort:
Best Kombucha Brands Review Center
| Image | Kombucha Brand | Rating |
|---|---|---|
 | #1 - The Kombucha Shop Kombucha Starter Kit
| 96% |
 | #2 - Fermentaholics Kombucha Twelve Starter Culture
| 90% |
 | #3 - Get Kombucha Kombucha Starter Kit
| 90% |
Want to learn why we chose these products as the 3 best kombucha brands for the year? Just go through our detailed reviews below. And once you’re ready, just hit the yellow button to get the best prices at Amazon today!
#1 – The Kombucha Shop Kombucha Starter Kit
The Kombucha Shop Kombucha Starter Kit is a product made for kombucha fans, by kombucha fans. This product is called the best-selling kombucha kit for nothing — In fact, it has been called as such for the past three years. This is because their never-ending commitments to excellent customer service, great products, and easy-to-understand instructions have earned them plenty of loyal fans everywhere. This kit offers a more detailed guide to brewing kombucha than any other kombucha-brewing product out there, which is helpful if you’re doing this for the first time.
- SPECIFICATIONS
- PROS
- ‘VIDEO’
- Cultures grown in a Wisconsin brewery
- Packaging has a measurement of 10.9 x 6.5 x 6.5 inches
- Weighs 3.99 lbs.
- Comes in two variants: Regular, and deluxe
- Product has its own post-brewing guide and brewing instructions
- Can make up to one whole gallon of kombucha
- Got any questions about brewing kombucha? Not to worry — Just send their staff an email, and they’ll be ready to answer your queries.
- Ensures that the company will send you a kombucha replacement kit in case your first brewing is unsuccessful.
- Product makes an excellent present due to its lovely packaging.
- Kombucha bottle is constructed from thick American-made glass. It also comes with a Temperature Gauge and pH Test Strips which can help you monitor the whole brewing process.
- Makes brewing kombucha fun for first-timers.
#2 – Fermentaholics Kombucha Twelve Starter Culture
The main objective of Fermentaholics and their products is to make sure that you can grow your very first jar of kombucha successfully. This is the reason why their twelve-starter culture contains some concise yet thorough instructions, all placed together by a group of experts who enjoy drinking, brewing, and learning more about this fermented drink. Fermentaholics is comprised of a group of fermentation fanatics, who all support each other with their experimentation with all sorts of various kombucha flavors. By purchasing their products, you will become a member of their growing community of fermenting and brewing addicts.
- SPECIFICATIONS
- PROS
- ‘VIDEO’
- Each kombucha pellicle has a measurement of around four inches in diameter, and 1/8 inches thick — However, the size of each pellicle varies
- Can brew around 12 ounces of kombucha
- Contains a step-by-step instruction manual, 1.5 cups of mature liquid starter tea, and a starter pellicle
- Weighs 9 ounces
- Product measures 6 x 3 x 9 inches
- All of the products that Fermentaholics uses for their brewing kit are USDA-certified and 100% organic.
- Product is also kosher.
- You can email the Fermentaholics team if you have questions and curiosities regarding kombucha, and they’ll answer you straight away.
- Definitely more affordable compared to other kombucha brewing kits.
- Got friends or relatives who are into kombucha or want to know more about kombucha? Invite them over for a brewing party.
- Product also makes a great gift.
#3 – Get Kombucha Kombucha Starter Kit
This kombucha-brewing kit ensures that making this fermented drink is as easy as possible. Get Kombucha’s kit actually contains the biggest kombucha culture in the US, as well as the most amount of starter liquid needed for brewing. You won’t have any problems when it comes to brewing kombucha when you purchase this kit. Get Kombucha has been around since 2006, and they have a very large community of over 400,000 kombucha fans who are ready to learn and share their knowledge about their favorite drink.
- SPECIFICATIONS
- PROS
- ‘VIDEO’
- Contains the following: A brewer’s handbook, four botanical packs, two reusable muslin bags, tea blend, 5 pH strips, organic cane sugar, SCOBY mushrooms, cloth covers, rubber bands, and gloves
- Can make a whopping five gallons of kombucha
- Measures 6.5 x 6.5 x 6.5 inches
- Weighs 2.44 lbs.
- Products are organic, GMO-free, gluten-free, and vegan.
- Get Kombucha is the only kombucha company to have its own forum, filled with plenty of kombucha drinkers like you.
- The SCOBY mushrooms that Get Kombucha uses can withstand hot and cold weather.
- If the kit arrives at your doorstep damaged, then you can send it back to them and they’ll give you your money back.
- Comes packaged in a clean-looking and beautiful box.
Kombucha Buyers’ Guide
We ranked the kombucha brewing kits that we tested according to price, the taste of the kombucha after it’s been brewed, it’s packaging and the overall quality of the products. Kombucha drinks all offer similar health benefits, so we didn’t consider that for our list. And the same can be said for the whole brewing process — Kombucha is brewed in a singular standard method, so we didn’t really focus on this aspect. But the whole advantage here is that we all got to try out this fermented drink and improved the condition of our bodies.
What Makes A Kombucha Suitable For Your Exact Needs?
- It has to be raw — Since kombucha is acidic, it doesn’t have to go through a pasteurization process until it’s safe enough to drink. By ‘acidic’, we don’t mean that it has a similar taste and effect on the body like wine or coffee do. Pasteurizing kombucha will kill all of the good bacteria that live inside the drink, and it’ll lose its health benefits — Having similar qualities as the average soda drink. Pick a raw kombucha brand if you want to try out the real thing.
- It must be brewed in a glass jar or bottle — This is important. If you end up fermenting kombucha in stainless steel or plastic, the material can seep through and have an impact on the taste and health benefits of the drink. And bottling is not enough — You have to brew it in a glass jar as well.
- Kombucha must be fermented naturally — When shopping for kombucha in a grocery store, you need to look for phrases such as ‘never force carbonated’ or ‘naturally fermented’. Make sure that you’re only getting the authentic version of kombucha, which hasn’t gone through too much processing. Converting sweet tea to kombucha through natural fermentation is a rather lengthy process, so those kombucha brands that sell genuine versions of the drink will have that on their product’s label.
- It should not contain a probiotic count — When checking out the label of kombucha, it should never list down all of the probiotics and good bacteria inserted in the product. Having that sign means that some foreign probiotic supplements were added in. It also means that this particular bottle of kombucha has gone through a different brewing process, and it’s not as natural and as healthy as they advertise it to be. Great kombucha should take some time to make, because of the yeast and bacteria that’s been added in the drink.
- Good kombucha should include four ingredients: Culture, tea, sugar, and water — Yes there are some flavored kombucha found in the market today — Some having infused with fruit juice, herbs, and all sorts of flavors. That’s completely fine, but great kombucha must have those four important traits for it to be considered genuine. Lacking even just one of these things does not guarantee that what you’re drinking is real kombucha. Sugar is an important ingredient for kombucha’s fermentation, which is why you will never find sugar-free variants of it.
- Check the packaging — One of the great things about kombucha is the number of probiotic contents that help digestion. There is the reason why kombucha is sometimes packaged in darker glass bottles — To protect the bacteria and probiotics against sunlight, as exposure to it can kill them. Fermentation of commercially-sold kombucha will also require the company to inform the buyer if their product has alcohol or not. Non-alcohol kombucha should only have 0.5 percent of alcoholic content.
Kombucha FAQs
What does kombucha taste like?
Kombucha has a rich, earthy-like flavor. The intensity of the drink’s flavor all depends on how long the brewing process takes — Which can last for one week up to a whole month. If you don’t want your kombucha to taste too strong, then you must only ferment it for one week. Kombucha that’s been brewing for a whole month will tend to taste vinegary, with a bold aftertaste as well.
Can you drink kombucha every day?
Drinking kombucha every day can improve your digestion, thanks to the probiotics included in the beverage. The whole fermentation process can create a compound that detoxifies your body, and as a result, kombucha has loads more antioxidants in comparison to other teas. However, there are plenty of incidents of toxicity when you drink too much kombucha in one day, so it is recommended that you only chug down one glass. Drink it in small doses to lessen the risk of toxicity, especially if you decide to brew it at home.
Is there a disadvantage to drinking too much kombucha?
Unfortunately, drinking kombucha does have a number of side effects. For one, commercially-produced kombucha usually contains 120 calories per bottle, not to mention the excessive amounts of sugar in the drink. Of course, one sip won’t harm your waistline but too many calories can result in weight gain. Drinking too much kombucha every day can also result in bloating and gas because it is a carbonated drink.
My batch of kombucha has developed mold. What am I supposed to do?
Contaminated water is often the reason why kombucha has mold in it, or if you forget to add in the starter tea or sugar. Sometimes mold is also caused when you don’t rinse your glass jar thoroughly and there’s a bit of soap residue left in it. Once mold begins to grow in your kombucha, you need to throw away the whole jar, including the culture. Blackened scobys are a usual sign that the kombucha is also contaminated.