Fermenting in Winter

Winter has suddenly hit here in Sydney and even though the sky’s are still blue, the cold temperatures are making me miss Summer already!

3 Tips for Brewing in Winter

1. 
   

Your house doesn’t have to be super hot for your brews to ferment. Most drinks ferment well at about 24-28C. If you do use heating to warm your house, you’ll probably find your ferments brew like normal. I find my usual brewing spot is quite cold though, so I’ve been moving mine to the shelf near my water heater. If you can’t put yours near your heater, you can also purchase a brewing heat belt inexpensively online.

1. 
   

Expect Fermentation to take a little longer. Just like Summer can give you Kombucha in just 5 days or Water Kefir in 12 hours, in Winter, the cooler temps make fermentation slow down a little. I like to leave my Kombucha for up to 10 days for example. My number one tip here is to taste your brew daily and in the case of Tepache and Kefirs, stir it vigorously every day to encourage a successful ferment.

1. 
   

Enjoy the different taste which develops in Winter. I find the flavour of my fermentations change slightly as the weather changes. This is just another reason I love fermenting drinks at home- they’re always unique! Also think about the types of fruits and spices used for second fermenting- I love flavouring seasonally also (more to come on this soon).

Blackberry and Mandarin Water Kefir

#Guide #winter