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The Best Kombucha Starter Kits
Reviews & Buyer’s Guide

Written By: Paul

Editor's choice

GetKombucha delivery service

GetKombucha

#2nd Best choice

The Kombucha Shop delivery service

The Kombucha Shop

#3rd Best Choice

Joshua Tree Scoby kombucha delivery service

Joshua Tree SCOBY

If you're looking at getting started with kombucha, one of the easiest ways to begin is with a kombucha brewing starter kit.

Contrary to popular belief, brewing kombucha is simple and fun. To help you hit the ground running, we've scoured the interwebs and come up with a selection of the eight best kombucha starter kits. These contain everything you need to make your own nutritious and delicious kombucha at home.

Better gut health is just a few brew steps away...

Our Top Kombucha Starter Kits

1. GetKombucha (Editor's Choice)

  • Best match for: Gluten-free kombucha brewers who also want to avoid GMO elements.

GetKombucha's nifty little starter kit is our number one choice for several reasons, not least because of the company's easy, no-nonsense approach.

The little black and white packaged kombucha kits contain everything you need to make your own kombucha, with the exception of jars.

Plus GetKombucha is dedicated to organic, non-GMO ingredients.

The company's starter kit is USDA Organic fair trade approved, GMO-free, gluten-free, and raw vegan friendly.

We also like the lifetime support offered. 

If you run into any issues with your kombucha kit, just get in touch and help is at hand.

GetKombucha delivery service

PROS

  • Gluten-free and no GMOs
  • Fair-trade teas included
  • Green and black tea options
  • Organic cane sugar
  • Scoby and starter liquid included

Cons

  • It's not a big hassle but you'll need your own jars

2. The Kombucha Shop

  • Best match for: Brew lovers who also want to feel like scientists.

If part of the appeal of brewing kombucha is the process, you'll enjoy The Kombucha Shop's Deluxe Starter Kit.

From the rubber band to the pH test strips and the specialized strainer, there are enough accessories here to make you feel like you're bridging the gap between scientist and fermented drink enthusiast.

The Deluxe kit contains everything you need, including the main jar you'll use to brew and six additional jars to bottle your finished product.

We like the kit's sleek and professional look too, it's a good choice if you're buying the starter kit as a present.

The Kombucha Shop delivery service

PROS

  • pH test strips included
  • Comprehensive set that contains everything you need
  • Makes brewing a batch of kombucha feel like a science experiment
  • Great customer service

Cons

  • Some customers report issues with scoby quality

3. Joshua Tree SCOBY

  • Best match for: Customers after the kombucha basics and great value.

With the Joshua Tree starter kit kombucha is made easy. Instead of oodles of largely unnecessary accessories, this kit keeps basics at the fore.

You get a scoby, a jar, and starter liquid. For newbies on their first-ever batch, this might not be enough. But for more experienced brewers it's an affordable choice.

You will need to source your own black tea, organic cane sugar, and pH testers (if you want them).

A big ups to Joshua Tree for making high-quality and fully organic scobies.

Joshua Tree Scoby kombucha delivery service

PROS

  • Fully organic scoby included
  • Among the most affordable kits
  • Joshua Tree's scobies get great reviews
  • Brewing guide included

Cons

  • Not the best option for people on their first batch of homemade kombucha

4. Northern Brewer EverBru

  • Best match for: Stylish brew masters after a premium kombucha starter kit.

Are you the kind of person who has matching stainless steel and chrome kitchen gadgets?

If so, the Northern Brew EverBru kit will appeal. Not only does it contain absolutely everything you need to make batch after batch, but it will look sleek on your kitchen bench.

This is a premium starter kit, and accordingly, it has a premium price to match. But it's not all about looks, customers report excellent results and great-tasting brews.

We appreciate the included thermometer, something many other kits don't feature.

Northern Brewer Everbru kombucha delivery service

PROS

  • Kit includes a rubber band, cane sugar, black tea, and everything needed
  • Stylish stainless steel carafe with tap
  • Make batches bigger than 1 gallon (1.75)
  • Perfect for experienced brewers and those on their first batch alike

Cons

  • The premium price tag won't suit all customers

5. Standing Stone Farms

  • Best match for: Kombucha concocters after plenty of extra resources .

A shout out to Standing Stone Farms for their kombucha starting kit because the additional resources are spot-on.

Discover recipes and tips and tricks online in the company’s resource center.

But back to the kombucha kit itself. It contains nearly everything you need to make kombucha at home. The only extra you’ll need to bring to the brew is a large jug or jar.

We also like the paired back natural packaging in this kit, it’s pretty enough for a present.

Standing Stone Farms kombucha delivery service

PROS

  • Online resources and recipes among the best of the kits reviewed
  • Packing is au naturale and sleek enough to gift the kombucha kit
  • pH strips included
  • Kit includes organic tea and sugar
  • Simplifies kombucha brewing
  • Customers liked the booch’s flavor

Cons

  • BYOJ (Bring Your Own Jar) kombucha kit

6. Fermentaholics

  • Best match for: Kombucha brewing masters who want to diversify their brews.

It's not black and it's not regular green tea kombucha. Instead, it's all about the jun tea in Fermentaholics' kombucha starter kit.

While regular kombucha is made with a scoby that feeds off sugar, in jun kombucha, you'll use green tea and a scoby that feeds off honey.

Often called the "champagne of kombucha" jun proponents think it's the best tasting brew of them all.

Fermentaholics' jun kombucha brewing kit contains everything needed to make this special drop at home.

The scoby is healthy and robust and the company takes pride in its FDA approval rating.

If you're after a different type of kombucha kit, this could be it.

Fermentaholics kombucha delivery service

PROS

  • Jun tea kombucha is delicious
  • Kit takes the guesswork out of jun kombucha brewing
  • FDA approved and tested kit
  • Good online resources available
  • High-quality scoby

Cons

  • After one batch you'll need to buy more ingredients

The Health Benefits of Kombucha

Kombucha has been around since circa 220 BC. Originally from northeast China (then known as Manchuria), the fermented tea drink offers up a broad range of health benefits. Just like tea, it contains several antioxidants, but in addition to these, it also has probiotics that are super useful for gut health.

The link between gut health and overall health is still being examined, but recent research is showing that a healthy gut can have a dramatic effect on other bodily systems. A healthy gut can boost the immune system, contribute to a healthy heart and brain, and may even help prevent cancer and autoimmune disease.

Here are some evidence-based health benefits of kombucha:

  • Kombucha can kill some bacterias such as Candida
  • Reduces bad LDL cholesterol and promotes good HDL cholesterol
  • Kombucha may help with type 2 diabetes as it slows the digestion of carbs, reducing blood sugar levels
  • In test-tube studies, kombucha slowed the growth and spread of cancer cells
  • Kombucha contains probiotics and antioxidants, both of which have their own positive health benefits

Is Kombucha Alcoholic?

As we've seen, drinking kombucha can confer a range of positive health benefits. But brewers should be aware that kombucha can be alcoholic, it is a fermented drink after all. If left to brew for too long, homemade kombucha can contain around 3 percent alcohol. To put that in perspective, a light beer contains around 4.2 percent alcohol. 

Using a commercially made starter kit and following the instructions carefully can help ensure that your morning kombucha is not, in fact, a morning alcoholic beverage! If you want to know more, we've also asked ourselves the question on everyone's minds: can you get drunk off kambucha?

FAQS

What is the best kombucha starter kit?

Our pick for the best kombucha starter kit is GetKombucha's Kombucha Starter Kit. We liked the pared-back style, the taste of the brew, and that the kit contains nearly everything needed to brew kombucha at home. It's also a gluten and GMO-free kombucha kit.

Can you use store-bought kombucha as a starter?

Yes you can. However, it is a much more labor-intensive process than using a dedicated starter kit such as the ones we've reviewed above. There’s also more potential for things to go wrong when using store-bought kombucha.

What is the starter for kombucha?

In your kombucha kit, you'll receive two key elements: a scoby and a starter liquid. A scoby (or SCOBY) is a Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast. These jiggly little beasts are alive and when added to sweet tea, the scobies feed off the sugar and ferment the tea. The result is gut-friendly kombucha.

What equipment do I need to make kombucha?

If you buy a kombucha starter kit, you'll need very little. Some starter kits contain everything you need while others require you to buy a few extra things. If you're starting from scratch and you don't have a starter kit, you'll need to find:

  • A healthy, alive scoby
  • Tea
  • Sugar or honey
  • Kombucha brewing jug
  • Jars or bottles for your finished product
  • Covers or lids for your brew jug
  • pH strips to test the brew
  • Thermometer (optional)

Kits make it easy to get started brewing your own kombucha at home. Most kits contain comprehensive instructions to ensure you don't end up with an undrinkable mess.

King of the Kombucha Brewing Kits

That concludes our in-depth look at the best kombucha starter kits. Our favorite is the GetKombucha kit for many reasons, including the great-tasting results. We're also a big fan of The Kombucha Shop's scientific-looking Deluxe brew kit. Ready to start brewing? All the best on your kombucha journey and cheers!

GetKombucha delivery service

GetKombucha

Our #1 Recommendation

  • Gluten-free and no GMOs
  • Fair-trade teas included
  • Green and black tea options
  • Organic cane sugar
  • Scoby and starter liquid included

Hi, I'm Paul. Welcome to my website! I, along with my cronies, are leveraging our years of working in the food industry to review meal and drink delivery services. We review. You eat happily ever after.

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