Ya! Kombucha Tea

About seven years ago a friend of Ya gave him a kombucha culture, and he decided to brew the ancient tea. He was hooked for life.

To be sure, a kombucha culture is something most would not find a pleasant gift; it is a slimy, flesh-like semi-hard blob made of yeast and bacteria.

But oh boy, it is mighty good for you! Or so says Ya.

This exotic lacto-fermented tea has been used for thousands of years throughout the Far East.

Ya said his “Ya! Kombucha Tea” helps flush toxins out of the body, boosts the immune system, balances yeast infections, fends off chronic diseases, increases efficiency of digestion, balances the body’s pH level, balances the chi and, listen to this, increases libido, among many other benefits.

There’s a catch, though. Its vinegary taste is not for everyone, especially the faint of heart.

“You either like it or you don’t,” Ya said. “My wife hates it. My kids tolerate it, and will drink it most times.”

Because kombucha tea is a live drink, each batch is different, he said. Sometimes it’s sweeter, other times it has more of a vinegary taste to it.

Ya sells his prized health concoction in bulk. He said you should keep it out of the fridge, and drink it every day. The live drink ages and changes taste each day. When you like the way it tastes, put it in the fridge and the taste will hold.

You can buy “Ya! Kombucha Tea” at Small Town Coffee in Old Kapa‘a Town, or contact Ya at YaKombucha@yahoo.com, and he’ll meet you at the coffee shop with a gallon bottle, cheaper than you can imagine.

1/8 gallon of kombucha culture

1/8 gallon of kombucha tea

Seven bags of green tea

Seven bags of black tea

One cup of white sugar

Strong heart

Fill 3/4 of a wide-mouth gallon-size jar with both teas (brewed, ofcourse). Add one cup of white sugar and let it cool at roomtemperature. Add the kombucha culture and tea. Now cover the jarwith a cheese cloth — live food must breath — and let it sit in adark, silent place for 12 days.