Seattle Kombucha Company is a small-batch kombucha brewery in Tacoma founded by Wayne Greenfield, a former winemaker who developed his recipes from 2014 and opened the company in 2016.
Its flavors are built on named teas, such as organic Earl Grey with English lavender in Lady Grey and green tea with jasmine flowers in Ginger Jasmine, and they ship in 12 ounce shelf-stable cans.
Seattle Kombucha Company is a small-batch brewery in Tacoma run by a former winemaker. Wayne Greenfield, its founder and brewmaster, worked on his recipes from 2014 and started the company in 2016, according to its story page. He has said he loves wine for its complex tastes and unique styles, and the lineup reads that way: each can names its tea, and the flavor is built around it. Everything below comes from the brewery's own pages.
| Flavor | Tea | Flavored with |
|---|---|---|
| Lady Grey | Organic Earl Grey | English lavender, bergamot |
| Ginger Jasmine | Green tea, jasmine flowers | Organic ginger juice |
| Raspberry Rose | Tea, rose hips | Raspberry, rose |
| Blood Orange | Tea, rooibos | Blood orange peel, hibiscus, rose petals, apple, vanilla |
| Mango | Green tea | Mango, calendula |
| Apple Chai | Black and green tea | Apple, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, vanilla (fall and winter) |
Tea first, then flavor
Lady Grey is the clearest example. It is organic Earl Grey, a black tea scented with bergamot, fermented and then finished with English lavender, and the brewery describes it as smooth, full bodied and slightly floral. Ginger Jasmine goes the other way, on green tea with jasmine flowers, and is meant to be mild on the ginger. Raspberry Rose is described as tea forward with a delicate floral finish. Blood Orange leans on rooibos, which is not true tea, alongside hibiscus and rose petals, which is where its deep color comes from.
The brewery says it sweetens with real organic sugar but keeps the sugar low, and that it brews in small, handmade batches. Before the cans, Wayne ran a kombucha bar at Pike Place Market, and the OMG flavor of water kefir soda, which the company also makes, got its name there from customers' reactions.
Cans that travel
All of the kombucha comes in 12 ounce aluminum cans, and the shipping policy says plainly that they are shelf stable and need no refrigeration, so they travel well. That puts Seattle Kombucha on the shelf-stable side of the line the Kombucha Code of Practice draws between raw kombucha, which has to stay cold, and kombucha finished so it can sit at room temperature. Kegs are sold only around Seattle and Tacoma.
A brewery that teaches
Seattle Kombucha also sells SCOBY and starter liquid for home brewers and runs small private kombucha-making classes and brewery tours at its Tacoma plant near the Tacoma Dome, for groups of up to eight. For a brewery of its size, that is an unusual amount of time spent showing people how the thing is made.
Questions
Who makes Seattle Kombucha?
Wayne Greenfield, the founder and brewmaster. The company's story page says he came to kombucha from winemaking and brews in small, handmade batches.
What tea is in Lady Grey kombucha?
Organic Earl Grey tea, with English lavender and bergamot, according to the ingredient list.
Does Seattle Kombucha need to be refrigerated?
Its shipping policy says the cans are shelf stable and need no refrigeration, so they travel well.
Where is the Seattle Kombucha brewery?
In Tacoma, near the Tacoma Dome, where it also runs small private brewing classes.
- Seattle Kombucha Company, Our story
- Seattle Kombucha Company, Shipping policy
- Seattle Kombucha Company, Lady Grey
- Seattle Kombucha Company, Ginger Jasmine
- Seattle Kombucha Company, Raspberry Rose
- Seattle Kombucha Company, Blood Orange
- Seattle Kombucha Company, Mango
- Seattle Kombucha Company, Apple Chai
- Kombucha Brewers International, Kombucha Code of Practice
