The Brew That Is True

Thanks for all the style advice.  So far I've loved everything you've all picked out.  I'm hoping to travel to a neighboring city with more shopping in relative near future.  So you might get to hear about my shopping expeditions at some point.
Today, I wanted to share with our new refreshing summer drink: Water Kefir!  As you've probably realized, make your sodas are totally a thing right now and I can see why.  Who wouldn't want to come home from a long day to a nice cold, bubbly, refreshing drink?  Water kefir is a healthy alternative to sodas and even soda stream type drinks.  It contains lots of probiotics which are good for your guts and my family enjoys getting to have a "special" drink several times a week.
Here is a quick demo on how it works.  Please do not use this as a full-blown recipe. This is meant to be a super quick overview.  If you decide you want to make your own, do some further research.  This website gives a more in depth look at the water kefir making process.

First you start with some kefir grains which is also called a SCOBY.  A SCOBY is a symbiotic relationship of bacteria and yeast.  I know, way cool, right?  You can either use the grains to make a refreshing drink or save them for a science fair.  I've never tried to eat my grains but the texture reminds me of a gummy bear.   I bought my grains and since they multiply quickly, I've had the pleasure of giving some to friends.

Add the kefir grains to purified or mineral water along with some sugar and let them sit for several days.  The grains will eat the sugar and ferment the water. 

Let it sit for at least 24 hours.  The longer you let it sit, the less sweet it will be.  The temperature also has a lot to do with how long the fermentation takes so you just need to play around with it until you get it to where you like it.   

Strain out the grains and save them for your next batch.  At this point, you can go ahead and drink it or let it sit for another day or two and get nice and bubbly.If you put the kefir water in an airtight bottle, it will carbonate itself.  Swing top glass bottles would work best for carbonation but I haven't gotten around to dishing out the money for some.  You can add fruit, juice, raisins, ginger, vanilla, or whatever your heart desires for flavoring at this point.  My favorite is lemonade.  All you have to do is add some freshly squeezed lemon and you have yourself some sparkling lemonade.  Aaron prefers it when I just add some of his favorite juice or cut up blueberries.  

I hope that someday you're brave enough to give it a try!