When getting a group of family or friends together, it’s important to set the vibe for the event as soon as possible. This can be done with a carefully cultivated playlist, themed decorations, or a fun and inventive activity — like a kombucha tasting, for example.
A kombucha tasting party is an exciting spin on a wine or beer tasting. While most of your friends probably know what to expect from wine and beer flights, kombucha is simultaneously quite new and age-old. So old, in fact, that it is actually estimated to have first been invented around 220 B.C.
Although people have been indulging in kombucha for millennia, it could still be some of your friends’ first times trying this delicous drink.
10 Tips for a Fizzy and Fun Kombucha Tasting Party
Write a Description for Each Booch
The process of setting up for your kombucha tasting party should be almost as fun as the get-together itself. Think about it as your opportunity to set the vibe for the night ahead of time.
Do you want it to be savvy and sophisticated, or as light as kombucha itself? Plenty of tone setting can be done through writing a thorough description for each flavor of kombucha.
Use these descriptions as an opportunity to let your guests know what to expect, especially if they’re new to kombucha in general.
Should they expect fruity notes, or perhaps aromatic notes like hibiscus? How do the ingredients of this booch contribute to its flavor notes? With the right mix of entertaining language and factual information (and maybe a few well-chosen images), your guests can pick up a wide variety of kombucha knowledge.
Make Some Delicious Hard Kombucha Cocktails
There’s a hard kombucha cocktail out there for every palate — a successful tasting is just a matter of having enough variety to cater to different people’s interests. For those who prefer something citrusy, earthy, and delicious, consider making a Grapefruit Rosemary Smash.
To make this cocktail, start by muddling rosemary in a cocktail shaker. Next, pour in an ounce of vodka, a half ounce of grapefruit juice, a half ounce of honey syrup, and ice. After shaking and straining into your choice of glass, top it off with our Grapefruit Thyme Hard Kombucha.
Cocktails like this work wonders to introduce the uninitiated to the wonderful world of hard kombucha by combining it with tastes that they’re already familiar with (and they’re a crowd-pleaser for booch pros, too).
Prep Some Tasty Hors D’oeuvres
Food helps bring out the best in beverages, and vice versa. Going the extra mile by putting forethought into the hors d’oeuvres and snacks that you prepare can elevate your kombucha tasting party even more. Consider foods that complement the different flavors of kombucha and kombucha cocktails that you’re serving.
For instance, spicy flavors like Pineapple Chili Hard Kombucha excite the palate but call for a light snack to ground them. Citrus flavors pair well with spice, as do proteins like shrimp. A ceviche appetizer or a citrus bruschetta could be the perfect start to your evening.
Be mindful about what you’re serving, what your guests enjoy, and how different flavor combinations will pair with one another to create a cohesive experience.
Take Time To Savor Each Drink
It’s important to remember that the goal is not to drink as much or as quickly as possible during a kombucha tasting party. Instead, you want your guests get the most out of each drink and enjoy them to the fullest.
Some might only need a taste or two to understand the complexities of a beverage. Meanwhile, others might find themselves going back for seconds. Take breaks in between each drink to let your palate settle, and take your time as you sip.
Add Some Hard Seltzer to the Mix
The key during a tasting party is to keep the palate guessing, and there’s no better way to do that than by switching up your offerings. The addition of a crisp hard seltzer can rejuvenate your guests, getting them ready for new tastes and reminding them to expect the unexpected.
Cleanse Your Palate Between Sips
Without taking the time to cleanse your palate in between samples, you could have previous flavors interacting with new ones. While this is an interesting way to discover flavor combinations, that is not always the goal of a tasting party.
Instead, try cleansing the palate with a classic snack like a cracker or a light herb.
Encourage Friends To BYOB (Bring Your Own Booch)
A kombucha tasting party is an opportunity to try new things, even for the host. Encouraging your guests to bring their own favorite kombucha means that there will be surprises that even you didn’t expect.
Who knows? You might even find a new favorite.
Sample Some Special Release Kombuchas
The kombucha you drink should be as special as the event itself. By treating the partygoers to different and exciting kombuchas, you’ll get to bond even further over this unique experience.
Introduce Your Friends to Hard Kombucha
If you want to do some light learning or teaching during your tasting, introducing the concept of SCOBY is an excellent place to start. SCOBY stands for symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast, and it is an integral part of the kombucha brewing process. This combination of bacteria and yeast interact to create the drink’s signature sharp flavor.
From there, you can choose to go more in-depth regarding what fermentation is, or you can leave it to your guests to go on their own journey of discovery.
Flying Embers engages in an innovative double fermentation process in order to get the most out of our booch. We are also one of the only kombucha brands that uses our own naturally-occurring carbon dioxide (CO2) to add carbonation to our drinks.
Essentially, a great deal of personalization and creativity goes into kombucha production. Understanding this will allow your guests’ appreciation of this delightful beverage to grow significantly. After all, enjoying a delicious drink is all well and good, but having the historical and scientific context rounds it all out deliciously.
The kombucha tasting can serve as a backdrop for the night, or it can be the primary event. What’s best for you will depend on your guests, as well as the overall feeling of the night. However, as long as you’re armed with this information and surrounded by the wonderful company of family and friends, your kombucha tasting party is sure to be a blast.
Sources:
Kombucha 101: Demystifying the Past, Present and Future of the Fermented Tea Drink | Forbes
Effectiveness of Palate Cleansers | The Ohio State University