BENGALURU: Homebrewers are brewing kombucha and selling it in Instagram-ready packaging. This fermented tea drink, usually flavoured with fruit juices or spices, is now a fad. Not just as a drink on its own, but Kombucha also makes a good mixer for cocktails and mocktails. Soumya Kuthadi, a Hyderabad-based dietician, says: “Today’s generation is on the lookout for a beverage that is low in sugar and has beneficial properties.”
Kombucha is fermented black or green tea, made by combining brewed tea with a ‘mother’ or scoby (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) sugar/jaggery, and sometimes with added flavours. Over the course of a couple of weeks, the sugar feeds the bacteria and yeast and the drink ferments into a tangy, slightly fizzy beverage. Shahryar Hamza, a golfer and MBA student, says, “It is more geared towards people who have a taste for sour flavours.”
The beverage is known to appeal to health-conscious consumers. Sangeeta Raju, a nutritionist, says she lost two kg when she included the drink in her diet, and her skin has improved over time. Sudeep Kathuri, 23, a digital marketing specialist, says it has become a substitute for his morning green/black tea. Vaishnavi Dupaguntla, 26 recovering from a gut issue was recommended to take probiotic fermented drinks. She says, “I have improved energy levels and notice better gut health.
” VS Sivaji Raju, a businessman, and Annapoorna PK, 26, an MSc student both feel the drink is a good alternative for soda.“Its popularity is driven by its supposed benefits of probiotics. The probiotics help with diarrhoea and irritable bowel syndrome,” says Shanti Priya T, senior dietitian, Gleneagles Global Hospitals. However, she cautions that too much intake may lead to side effects such as nausea, dizziness, headache, hepatotoxicity and metabolic acidosis. It is not advisable for pregnant, breastfeeding women or those who have compromised immune system or pre-existing ailments. “Avoid excess consumption as evidence supporting its health benefits is lacking,” she adds.