Water Kefir Grains | DIY Fermented Probiotic Drink Powder for Stronger Gut Health | Heirloom Starter Makes Limitless Supply | Non-GMO Dairy Free Vegan Sparkling Water with Enzymes

I should start this out by saying I’m not new to active cultured foods. I currently maintain several starters such as sourdough, kombucha, milk kefir, sour cream and lots of fermented veggies. So I’m aware that good quality dechlorinated water and the right kind of sugar are important. However, this was my first try at water kefir. I chose this brand because they seem to have a good reputation, I’ve purchased a sour cream starter culture from them in the past. I was pretty shocked though at the price of the water kefir starter, but I figured as long as I only have to buy it once, it’s worth it. I received the culture, made sure it came to room temp, and followed the detailed instructions on the packet, as well as the companies tutorial video to get started. By day 3, the kefir grains had somewhat rehydrated, though they didn’t look like plump translucent grains that I’ve seen before. They’re just brown mushy grains that have clearly disintegrated. I strained them anyway and put them in fresh sugar water to find that they’re fully disintegrated. What a mess. I’ve contacted the company to see if they’d help me troubleshoot, but so far I’ve heard nothing. I occasionally sell some of my starter cultures to people locally, and would never just leave them to figure it out in their own, and I charge a small fraction of this price. So I’ll be extremely irritated if Cultures for Health ghosts me on such a ridiculously priced product. I’ll be sure to update my review if I ever hear back.

I have so far purchased three packets of water kefir grains over the past year. The second one was a replacement for the first getting contaminated with fig seeds and the third was to increase my production capacity. The grains as received are dehydrated and usually appear very dark brown. But, after following the rehydrating procedure, they flesh out and become pearlescent and translucent. Each batch fills two liter Weck juice jars which can be found here https://smile.amazon.com/Weck-Juice-Jars-35-9-Ounce/dp/B00DHNSKAO My go-to recipe consists of adding the following to a gallon glass jar: 1/3 C of raw, unrefined sugar dissolved in 2 C of boiling filtered water; 6 C of cool, filtered water to bring the overall temperature to ~80°F; a dozen drops of Concentrace; 1 packet of rehydrated water kefir grains; and 1 fresh lemon, cut in half, NOT squeezed The top of the gallon jar is covered with a coffee filter secured with a rubber band. It is then placed on top of the fridge to keep warm. In the winter, my apartment is frigid and I haven't had difficulty maintaining kefir fermentation while on top of the fridge. The batch is then allowed to ferment up to 3 days. Over this time you'll see the water start clear and become cloudy as the kefir grains metabolize the sugar. Once the first ferment has progressed as far as I like, I proceed to the second ferment. I add 2 T of raw, unrefined sugar to a pitcher large enough for the 8 cups of liquid. I then remove the lemon halves and squeeze the juice into the pitcher, through a strainer. After cleaning the lemon guts out of the strainer, I pour the liquid into the pitcher through the strainer to catch the grains. After stirring to make sure the sugar has dissolved, I pour the batch into the carafes, cap them and place them on top of the fridge for a couple days for the second ferment. At this point, you can place the carafes in the fridge or simply leave them out on the counter. The nice thing with the Weck jars is that while they seal, I've found that the seals aren't _that_ good, meaning you're not going to have an explosion from an overactive ferment! As I watch the second ferment, I see a steady stream of bubbles rising through the liquid, so I know activity is high. Lately though, if I put the carafes in the fridge for a day or two, when I drink them, they have been totally flat! It doesn't make sense. However, if I leave them at room temperature and then pour the kefir over ice, the drink is nicely carbonated and cool. Of course, this isn't the only way to make water kefir and you can use whatever flavorings you like. These grains are an easy start to making a healthy drink that will add more probiotics to your diet! Highly recommended!!

They're dead. I'm on my 8th cycle and still nothing. Even the QR code on the package links to a site that doesn't exist.

Nice, plump kefir grains. This is the first time I've tried dehydrated grains. I bought fresh kefer grains from a seller on Amazon a month or so ago. I want to make more kefir, so ordered more grains. Thought I'd try the Cultures for Health dehydrated type. The instructions were easy to follow and I had my first jar of water kefir after 4 days. It's very easy to rehydrate. Put 1/4 cup good quality sugar in a quart jar with warm purified water. I use organic sucanat sugar for my water kefir. Let the sugar totally dissolve, then add the kefir grains. Wait 3-4 days until the grains have gotten big and translucent. Then strain off the grains, put the kefir in the fridge and start a new batch by repeating the 1/4 cup sugar in a jar of water process again. Every 48 hours, you'll have a new batch of water kefir. This is such a healthy, tasty, refreshing drink; full of natural probiotics! I understand that many people put the finished kefir into a 2nd ferment by adding fruit or fruit juice and letting it ferment another day or so. You can flavor it any way you want. The second ferment makes fizzy kefir and resembles soda. I haven't tried this yet, but plan to give it a try. These Cultures for Health kefir grains are much bigger than my other water kefir grains. The kefir tastes slightly different, but equally good. I was making milk kefir on a regular basis, but felt I was putting on weight because of the full fat milk. I switched to water kefir and I like it better because it's not so filling. Also, making water kefir is easier and cheaper than making milk kefir. Water kefir only needs "harvesting" every 48 hours, as opposed to milk kefir which ferments in 24 hours. If you're considering making your own water kefir, I highly recommend these grains.

the kefirs never worked right. they came to me looking like a white dust and they've stayed that way the whole time I've fed them and followed instructions. In the videos they look like golden color jewels that are dried and then they turn into even bigger hydrated big golden jewel looking grains - that never happened. 100% white dust from start to finish lol

Like many other buyers, this product did not activate after following the instructions to the letter. Very disappointed

best u can get but they don't grow as rapidly as it should may be everything we eat here is full of insecticides and pesticides and finally few months after these microcells will finally stop growing and will die.

The grains did not activate. They are just mush

Followed instructions. After 3 days, no change. No plumping, no translucency. So DOA. I would like to try this one more time. One.

L'on m'avait dit que les grains de kéfir achetés n'étaient pas fiables, que je devais trouver quelqu'un qui faisait déjà du kéfir et que cette personne m'en donnerait des vivants. Cependant, il n'est pas évident de trouver quelqu'un qui en fait. Eh bien, c'était une erreur. Il est vrai que ceux qui font du kéfir donnent des grains (j'ai finalement trouvé après avoir reçu mes grains achetés), mais ceux achetés ont aussi très bien fonctionnés. Il faut simplement bien respecter le temps d'activation des grains (au moins 48 heures) car ils sont vendus déshydratés.