After brewing several back-to-back batches of kombucha, the question of what to do with extra SCOBYs inevitably arises. Each batch you make will grow a new pellicle on the surface, eventually leaving you with a jar full of pellicles and no space for kombucha!
What do you do with all those SCOBYs?
First, for the sake of correctness, I’d like to define what a SCOBY is .
Definition of a SCOBY
SCOBY is an acronym for Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast. They are the living microbes in kombucha responsible for the fermentation and health benefits in our beloved brew. The microbes are named such because they are microscopic, in other words, not visible to the naked eye. This key fact is important when it comes to defining the pellicle.
What is a pellicle?
A pellicle refers to a membrane or skin. During kombucha fermentation, the bacteria create a cellulose membrane on the air-liquid barrier, which grows thicker with time. This little (or sometimes very big if left alone) pellicle has become the face of kombucha, sometimes referred to as the mother, mushroom, baby, or simply SCOBY. As you can see, referring to the cellulose membrane as the SCOBY, is not exactly a correct definition. While the pellicle is saturated with microbes by being immersed in the brew, it is not actually alive, and thus cannot be the SCOBY. The pellicles, despite their un-relation to the SCOBY, have given us somewhat of a way to communicate with that which we cannot see. We know you’re in there!
Now that we’ve cleared that up, let’s get to what to do with all those pellicles. There are a few options to choose from, varying in range from how attached you get to your pellicles as you spend time with your brews.
Want to keep them all? Create a SCOBY hotel! Not attached at all? Toss ’em!
What is a SCOBY hotel?
A SCOBY hotel is a popularized idea for preserving pellicles in a jar of kombucha. The kombucha will keep the pellicles safe and happy as long as they are submerged under the liquid. You can save them for whatever you wish–give to a friend, use in cooking, make dog treats, make SCOBY leather or jewelry, admire them as a feat of science.
How do you create a SCOBY hotel?
Maintaining a preservation tank for your pellicles doesn’t require much more than an extra glass jar and a bit of basic knowledge. Think of the kombucha as a pickling liquid. As long as the pellicles remain underneath the liquid (kombucha) they are safe! As kombucha ferments, it essentially becomes vinegar, never really expiring and creating a very safe environment. With time, some of the liquid will evaporate so you’ll want to keep an eye on the levels here and there. If the pellicles are allowed to dry out, they become susceptible to mold. A simple top off of sweet tea here and there keeps the SCOBY active and helps maintain a healthy level of liquid in your hotel.
Do you have to keep the extra pellicles?
Nope. You’re not a bad person if you throw away a pellicle. As brewers, we can get quite attached to the little buggers after watching them grow up. However, if you don’t want to maintain a SCOBY hotel, you don’t have to! After all, if you wish to extra pellicles in the future, just keep brewing kombucha, and you’ll have all that you can dream of with time!
Click here to learn more about pellicles!
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[…] and start over. This is when a SCOBY hotel becomes a clutch addition to your fermenting toolbox. Check out my post on how to make one if you don’t know what a SCOBY hotel […]
Should the Scott hotel be left out like the brewing kombocha?
Hi Jeanette,
Yes, the SCOBY hotel should be left out at room temperature. For best results it should be between 75-85 degrees, just as your brewing kombucha should be.
Cheers!
[…] You can also use stronger starter tea, from a hotel or older brew. The stronger the tea, the more developed and effective it is at fermenting. Having a SCOBY hotel comes in handy once again! If kombucha is something you’re really getting into, add a SCOBY hotel to your ferment squad, you’ll thank yourself when it comes time to use it. More on SCOBY Hotels here. […]
Is there a practical age limit to a Scoby? for instance, I’m, on my four batch and now have more SCOBYs than I know what to do with (created a hotel but can foresee needing a high rise hotel in the future LoL) , since I’m using a large mouth brewing jar, the original purchased one is a shrimp compared to the new ones – should I retire the original one? do they where-out or become less potentate? .
Hey David!
No, they don’t really wear out because they are really just made up of cellulose! With each batch, the scobys marinate in the kombucha, which is filled with microorganisms that transfer on with the scoby pellicle. So with each batch of kombucha comes fresh new microbes that will hang out on your scoby. The scoby might get stained with tea but it wont really “die” because it isn’t actually alive–just the mircobes living on it are and they will repopulate with each batch that you brew :)
If I start a SCOBY hotel, do I use the mom to start another brew, or one of the babyâs?
Hey Pam, You can actually use either!
Can I use tomato juice, or other veg. Juice in my 2nd fermentation?
Yes, absolutely! I have a bloody mary kombucha that Ive been working on. I will post the recipe sometime on here :) Let me know if you try it!
I would love to have that bloody mary kombucha recipe.
sure, thing! I will post soon :)
I would also love the Bloody Mary recipe…
Here ya go! https://fermentaholics.com/bloody-mary-kombucha/
do i discard the other SCOBYs in my SCOBY hotel if the top one got mouldy?
Hi Sheila,
It is probably best to discard them all, unfortunately. Anytime that top layer gets dried out, it becomes vulnerable to mold and you don’t know how far the mold has spread so it’s better to be safe than sorry. To avoid this in the future, you can just swirl the jar or dunk the SCOBYs under the liquid periodically so that the SCOBYs are protected by the acidity of the kombucha.
Hi weâve just attempted our first SCOBY itâs 13 days old and I think it looks healthy but itâs not really connecting yet. Any advice?
Hi Stephanie! Its okay if not much happens SCOBY-wise during a brew. Have you tasted it? This will give you a better idea of if it is ready. It should have a slight vinegary tone to it by 13 days.
Can you use v8 juice to make tomatoe kombucha
Hi George! Yes you can absolutely use V8 juice to make tomato kombucha! Stay tuned for a tomato kombucha post soon and I’ll go over this in more depth.
I created a hotel and neglected it for two months, not with is just one big multilayed SCOBY (8″ think). The top is dry but the bottom is moist. don’t see mold. should I just throw it out and get a new one or is it safe to salvage the bottom layer.
thanks for any advice
Dave
PS – nice redesign on the web page
Hey Dave!
It’s safe to use as long as you don’t see mold! Use some of the liquid in there as your starter tea (~1-2 cups) and then when you brew some more fresh sweet tea, put a little in your hotel to cover the SCOBYs
How often should you feed your hotel sweet tea? Once a week? Monthly?
You really just want to make sure that there’s enough liquid covering the pellicles because whatever is sticking out from the liquid is susceptible to mold. I’d check on it once per month to see how much has evaporated and if you need to add a little do it then, if not it’s safe until next time.
Can a Scoby be “trimmed” or is it best to leave it in tact as it originally formed?
Hi David. The pellicles that grow on the top are actually just made of cellulose and so if you cut or trim them, you’re not hurting anything at all! In fact, I would recommend thinning them out often because they end up just taking up space, eventually you’ll end up with more pellicle then kombucha!
I put my scoby in a Tupperware in the fridge while gone and not brewing (where did I read this?) It looks fine, and appears that the mother had a baby, which is attached underneath, is more firm like a pancake. Now that I am going to start another batch, should I separate them, use one in my new batch and return one to “the hotel”?
Hi Jolene,
Yes, you can separate them as a regular practice just to keep your jars less cluttered, leaving more room for kombucha.
Ruthie
hi i put a lid on my jar with my scoby and baby. will it be okay? its been in there for about 3 days and i have checked it to see for mold but i didnt realise had to keep it breathing as i thought it would be like brewing and i wasnt ready for a next batch. How will i be able to tell if it is okay or not?
Hi Celeste, It should be fine if it was just 3 days! The fermentation needs air but there was likely a lot of dissolved oxygen in the liquid already, and in the headspace of the jar. Even if there wasn’t, as soon as you let the lid off it could get to work.