Comments on Ilana G.'s review of Organic Raw Kombucha
25 Reviews
3.5 star rating
Organic Raw Kombucha
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Description: Organic and raw drink, available in 4 flavors.
Mushrooms=drugs
Kombucha is made of mushrooms, folks. Funny mushrooms. When I drank half a bottle of this stuff I was left unable to physically focus on a point for more than a second or 2, and I was at work. Not a good combo. This lasted for a couple of hours. When I wrote the company they had ZERO compassion for me, only suggesting I try a smaller amount next time. JUST SAY NO! I would give it NO stars if I could.
UPDATE: OK, maybe they're not officially/illegally funny mushrooms, but it sure felt funny to me!
Ilana G.'s keywords: kombucha, raw, fruit juice
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Chris J. says:
I can't argue with your negative experience with kombucha, but I disagree that kombucha is made of mushrooms, and hence kombucha = drugs. With just a quick search on the web, I found two different sites that clearly state that, although a kombucha culture is often perceived and described as a mushroom, it isn't. Sites: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kombucha, http://www.veetea.com/site/articles/Tisane-Listing-2.
From the second site: "'Kombu' is a type of seaweed, 'cha' is Japanese for tea, and most people will tell you kombucha is a 'mushroom tea.' In fact, seaweed, tea, and mushrooms are entirely unrelated to kombucha production. Kombucha is a Western misnomer for a drink made of a tisane that has been sweetened, and then fermented by bacterial slime, known as a zoogleal mat. The zoogleal mat creates a solid mass known as the 'mushroom.'"
Jay G. says:
Funny I really like GT'S Kombucha. Have never had anything but positive experiences with it. Is it possible there was something else you had eaten? Sorry they didn't have good customer service, though. It's really important to be responsive to customer concerns. Otherwise you can get bad reviews!
Anne S. says:
yeah seriously, in case you forgot 'funny mushrooms' are illegal hallucinagens. I highly doubt they can market a product with an illegal ingredient.
Jenn A. says:
Hi Ilana - I recently took a class on fermented foods and here's what I found out: since kombucha is essentially fermented tea (not a mushroom, technically!) -- you can sometimes end up with a batch that went a bit too far in the fermenting process.
What happens when you ferment things? You get booze - beer and wine and sake are all fermented. Some people are more sensitive than others, and if you drink more than 1 serving at a time (usually there are 4 servings in a bottle) -- and especially on an empty stomach, be prepared for a bit of a buzz.
Ilana G. says:
Regardless of scientific explanations, there is no reason why the customer service person couldn't have been nicer, sent me free coupons, offered a refund, etc. I did add some artificial sweetener and the Kombucha folks recommended stevia instead (in the email reply), but the bottle doesn't give any contraindications.
I am just telling it like I felt it.
Jenn A. says:
Hi Ilana -
Did you ask them if they could give you some coupons for a "second chance"? Maybe you could call them again - explain your experience with the product and with their customer service - and then ask if they could comp you via some coupons... perhaps an e-mail linking to this review?