Jun Kombucha
Jun
Green tea and raw honey, cultured into a light, floral, softly sparkling tea.
Jun is a cultured drink made from green tea and raw honey, brewed with a culture of its own. It runs faster and cooler than kombucha and tastes lighter and more floral, with only a mild vinegar tang.
Sensory profile
You should taste
How it unfolds
Where it sits
That is 12 mg in one serving (8 oz glass), a concentration of 5.1 mg per 100 ml. The scale above ranks whole servings, and servings differ in size, so a larger drink can sit further right while being weaker cup for cup.
Editorial estimate, not a laboratory measurement
Compare it against
Related gear
| Brewing method | Glass jar with a Jun culture |
|---|---|
| Brew ratio | 1:10 |
| Starter & batch | 100g → 1000g |
| Grind size | Whole loose leaf |
| Water temperature | 176°F / 80°C |
| Target brew time | 3-7 days in the jar, then 1-3 days in bottles |
| Serving | 8 oz glass |
What you need
- 4 g loose-leaf green tea
- 100 g raw honey
- 800 g filtered water
- 100 g Jun from a previous batch, as starter
- One Jun culture
Required gear
- Wide-mouth glass jar, 1.5 to 2 liters
- Clean cloth or coffee filter, and a rubber band
- Pot or kettle, for the tea
- Scale accurate to 1 g
- Thermometer
- pH strips (range 2.5 to 4.5) or a pH meter
- Pressure-rated glass bottles with tight caps, for the second stage
- Funnel and fine strainer
Step-by-step protocol
- 0:00Bring 250 g of the water to 80°C and steep the green tea for about 4 minutes.
- +4 minStrain out the tea, stir in the honey until it dissolves, and add the remaining 550 g of cool water. Let it cool to room temperature, below 30°C, before anything else goes in.
- +1 hPour into a clean glass jar, add the starter, then slide the Jun culture in with clean hands.
- +5 minCover the jar with a clean cloth or coffee filter held by a rubber band, and keep it out of direct sun at 18 to 24°C.
- Day 3+Taste from day 3 with a clean spoon. It is ready when it is lightly tart with the honey still showing, and the pH reads between 2.5 and 4.2 if you check.
- Day 4+Lift out the culture and keep it with 100 g of Jun as the starter for the next batch. Pour the rest into bottles, leaving 2 to 3 cm of headspace.
- +1-3 dFor more fizz, seal the bottles and keep them at room temperature for 1 to 3 days, then refrigerate.
- ThenChill the bottles before opening, and open them slowly over a sink: a sealed, carbonated bottle can be under real pressure.
Troubleshooting
What it may be good for
How strong is it?
We list about 12 mg for an 8 oz glass, from a batch made with 4 g of green tea per liter. A typical 8 oz cup of green tea has about 28 mg, and the figure moves with how much tea goes into the jar and how long it is steeped.
Keep it cool
Jun does best at about 18 to 24°C, a little cooler than kombucha. A warmer room speeds it up and pushes it toward vinegar, and a cooler one stalls it, so taste from day 3 and chill it while the honey still shows.
What to watch out for
- Jun is a live, acidic drink that contains some caffeine, and home batches often hold more alcohol than kombucha, around 1 to 2 percent. If you are pregnant or nursing, have a weakened immune system or are prone to acidosis, check with your doctor first.
- Brew in glass or another non-metal, food-safe container, since the acid can pull metals out of glazed ceramic and metal. Keep everything clean, and throw out a batch that grows dry, fuzzy mold.
Jun is a cultured drink made from green tea and raw honey, brewed with a culture of its own. It runs faster and cooler than kombucha and tastes lighter and more floral, with only a mild vinegar tang. Many people call it the champagne of kombuchas.
Origin & Story
Jun comes with a beautiful story: Tibetan monks, a secret culture carried across the Himalayas, honey in place of sugar, and a thousand years or more of quiet brewing. It sounds right for a drink this delicate. The trouble is that nobody has found the source. The fermentation writer Sandor Katz went looking and found that books on Tibetan food, and even a specialist book on Himalayan ferments, do not mention Jun at all. His conclusion is that it is a fairly recent branch of the kombucha family tree.
What can be said with confidence is what is in the jar: green tea steeped gently, raw honey, and a culture kept for Jun. Honey is a different fuel from cane sugar, and the cup shows it. Jun tends to be lighter, more floral and less vinegary than most kombucha, which is where the nickname champagne of kombuchas comes from.
It keeps a quicker, cooler rhythm, too. Jun guides give 3 to 7 days at roughly 18 to 24°C, against about 7 to 10 days and a warmer room for kombucha, so there is less waiting and less time for sharpness to build. Taste from day 3 and stop when the honey and the tea are still in balance.
That speed comes with a footnote. Home guides put Jun's alcohol at roughly 1 to 2 percent, above the usual kombucha figure. In the United States a drink that reaches 0.5 percent at any point is regulated as an alcoholic beverage, so Jun is best thought of as a lightly alcoholic drink rather than a soft drink.
Steep 4 g of green tea in 250 ml of water at 80°C for about 4 minutes, stir in 100 g of raw honey, add 550 ml of cool water, let it reach room temperature, then add 100 ml of Jun from a previous batch and the Jun culture and leave it 3 to 7 days at 18 to 24°C.
Reading the Flavor Profile
| Axis | Score |
|---|---|
| Sweetness | 65/100 |
| Acidity | 80/100 |
| Bitterness | 15/100 |
| Body | 55/100 |
| Aroma | 88/100 |
These values are comparative editorial positions within our own catalog, calibrated so entries can be ranked against each other. They are not laboratory measurements.
How much caffeine is in Jun Kombucha?
One serving, 8 oz glass, contains approximately 12 mg of caffeine.
What temperature should I use for Jun Kombucha?
Steep the tea base at 80°C (176°F), then let it cool to room temperature before adding the culture, because heat kills it. Warmer rooms ferment faster and taste more sour; cooler rooms slow everything down.
How long does Jun Kombucha take to make?
Timing: 3-7 days in the jar, then 1-3 days in bottles. Method: Glass jar with a Jun culture. Ratio: 4 g green tea, 100 g raw honey and 100 ml starter per liter. Grind or leaf format: Whole loose leaf.
Why does my Jun Kombucha taste bitter?
A bitter or harsh ferment usually traces back to the base, such as tea steeped too long or too hot, or to fermenting past its peak. Steep the base more briefly, let it cool before adding the culture, and taste early. Sharp, vinegary sourness is a different problem: it means the ferment ran too long or too warm.
Is Jun really from Tibet?
Nobody has shown it. Sellers often tell a Tibetan monastery story, but Sandor Katz found no trace of Jun in books on Tibetan food or Himalayan ferments and regards it as a recent offshoot of kombucha. Take the legend as a legend, and enjoy the drink for what it is.
Can I make Jun with a kombucha SCOBY?
A kombucha culture can be moved onto honey gradually, but the two cultures differ. A Jun culture is adapted to honey and tends to carry more lactic acid bacteria, which gives a milder cup. For true Jun, start with a Jun culture and keep it on green tea and raw honey.
Is Jun sweeter than kombucha?
It often tastes sweeter and softer, because it is brewed shorter and cooler and the honey shows. The yeast keeps eating the honey, though, so the longer a jar sits the drier and tarter it gets.
Who should avoid Jun Kombucha?
Jun is a live, acidic drink that contains some caffeine, and home batches often hold more alcohol than kombucha, around 1 to 2 percent. If you are pregnant or nursing, have a weakened immune system or are prone to acidosis, check with your doctor first. Brew in glass or another non-metal, food-safe container, since the acid can pull metals out of glazed ceramic and metal. Keep everything clean, and throw out a batch that grows dry, fuzzy mold. This information is educational and is not medical advice. If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, managing a cardiac or gastrointestinal condition, or taking prescription medication, discuss caffeine and botanical intake with a qualified healthcare professional before making changes.
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