FAQ

What’s kombucha?

Kombucha is a fermented and naturally-carbonated drink brewed from four ingredients – tea, sugar, natural kombucha culture and water. Brewing kombucha is an ancient practice, dating back all the way to the Tsin Dynasty in 221 BC.

What ingredients do you use?

All our kombuchas are made from the same four ingredients – organic tea, filtered Amsterdam water, organic beetroot sugar, and our living kombucha culture. We’ll never use artificial flavours or preservatives because we want the tea, and only the tea, to be the star of this show.

Organic Tea
The teas in our Essential kombuchas come from master tea blenders in China, while the teas in our Single-Origin kombuchas are sourced from single estates in West Bengal in India and Neluwa Gardens in south-west Sri Lanka.

Filtered Amsterdam Water
Amsterdam’s water is of excellent quality, but we pass it through an extra filtering process so it’s really (really really) pure.

Organic Beetroot Sugar
Our sugar is sourced from organic suppliers in the Netherlands and Germany.

Kombucha Culture
We have been nurturing this living culture for three years. It’s the magic ingredient that naturally carbonates our kombucha and keeps it alive. You might find a little bit of it in your bottle, don’t worry, that’s a good thing, and it’s totally edible.

How do you brew your Kombucha?

The goal of our brewing process is to interfere as little as possible, giving the tea and mother nature the freedom to develop their own delicious flavours. First the water, sugar, tea and kombucha culture undergo an initial fermentation. Then we bottle the kombucha, chill it down to 4°C, and age it for five weeks so it can carbonate naturally and develop in complexity. After that aging process the kombucha is stable and ready to drink, but can be stored at 4°C for up to a year, where it will continue to develop in flavour just like wine.

What does your name ‘Leave Your Sword’ mean?

Our name was inspired by tradition of Japanese tea ceremonies. We see it as invitation to leave behind any preconceptions you might have about how kombucha should be created and consumed.

How should I store Your kombucha?

Our kombucha is unpasteurized, which means it needs to be stored in the fridge at a constant 4°C. After an hour above that temperature the kombucha will start to ferment again, changing the flavor and dangerously increasing the pressure on the bottle.

What’s that weird thing floating in the bottle?

That’s a tiny piece of living kombucha culture. It’s a sign the kombucha you’re drinking is totally unfiltered, unpasteurized and alive. Don’t worry, it’s totally edible and safe.

What sizes does your Kombucha come in?

Our kombucha comes in 75cl bottles. Why nothing smaller? We believe it should be shared with your favourite people, just like a good bottle of wine.

Is your kombucha pasteurized?

We don’t pasteurize our kombucha, because we want it to stay alive and continue to age and develop complex flavors after bottling.

How do I try your Kombucha?

If you’re a cafe, bar, restaurant or store curious about stocking our kombucha, conatct us to arrange a tasting at your place or our brewery.

If you want to buy our kombucha you’re in luck – we’re available in over 20 of Amsterdam’s best stores, cafes, bars and restaurants. Find one of our stockists here, or purchase directly from us on our online store.

We also run regular tastings, events and parties at our brewery – follow our instagram for updates on all that good stuff.

How should I drink Leave Your Sword kombucha?

Think of our kombucha as a great bottle of wine, or high-end mixer. Serve it chilled in wine glasses, in place of ginger ale or sparkling soda in your favourite cocktail, or just raw.

How long does your kombucha last?

Unopened and stored in the fridge at a constant 4°C, our kombucha has no expiration date. The oldest vintage we have tasted so far was one and a half years old, and it had evolved in complexity much like a wine.

Once opened, keep your bottle of kombucha closed and stored at 4°C, and consume within a week. After that it will start to noticeably oxidise and lose its natural carbonation.

Are your bottles recyclable?

All our bottles have a deposit of €1, which can be refunded by returning your bottle to the place of purchase, or Cafe de Ceuvel, Sterk, T, Black Gold, or our brewery. Please please please return your bottles, as it helps us close the loop on our sustainable production process.

How sustainable is your Kombucha?

Fermentation is one of the more sustainable methods of food production, because it requires very little energy to turn a few simple ingredients into something delicious. We use organic tea and sugar, strive to create as little waste as possible, reusing our bottles, composting what’s left from the brewing process, and delivering our products in returnable crates rather than cardboard boxes. In the next few years we hope to start capturing rainwater for the bottle-cleaning process, and use green energy to power both our brewery and delivery vehicles.