The Best Kombucha, Khust

Kombucha from Khust

The Best Kombucha is a small craft kombucha producer in Khust, also known online as "Kombucha Khust". It appears on the official list of Zakarpattia's craft producers on the regional tourism portal, alongside cheese dairies, apiaries and wineries. In a region used to wine, palinka and brynza, a live fermented tea drink is an unexpected, refreshing find that suits the modern food scene of the Khust area.

Why look for Khust kombucha

Kombucha is an alternative to sugary fizzy drinks and alcohol: refreshing, slightly tart and naturally sparkling, it is great after a walk around town, a hike or a trip to the Valley of Narcissi. The producer does not advertise tours or tastings, so The Best Kombucha is more of a tasty find for the road than a place to visit. The easiest way is to arrange a purchase in advance: call or message the Facebook page, ask which flavours are available and agree where to pick up bottles in Khust. If you are staying in town for a few days, it is handy to keep a chilled bottle at hand.

What to try: a live fermented drink

Kombucha is made by fermenting sweetened tea with a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast — the same "tea mushroom" many Ukrainian families kept for decades in a three-litre jar on the windowsill. During fermentation the sugar turns into organic acids, so the finished drink is less sweet than ordinary lemonade, with a wine-like tartness and natural fizz. The producer stresses that fermented foods are rich in vitamins and minerals and that their probiotics support healthy gut flora. The Best Kombucha bottles its drink in glass with a branded label; check current flavours and batches directly with the producer.

Fermentation is an old part of Transcarpathian cooking: people here pickle cabbage and cucumbers, make soured milk and brynza and age wine in cellars. Kombucha carries this tradition on in a new form. Drink it chilled — it goes well with light dishes, cheese platters and fruit — and open the bottle carefully, like sparkling water, as live kombucha keeps fermenting.

Practical information

• Where: Khust, Zakarpattia region; the production address is not published — check by phone where to collect the drink.
• Phone: +380677826933; e-mail [email protected]; Facebook page "Kombucha Khust".
• Hours and prices: not published; ask in advance.
• Getting there: Khust lies on the Mukachevo–Rakhiv road on the Tysa. Khust railway station has trains from Uzhhorod, Lviv and Kyiv, and buses run from Mukachevo, Uzhhorod and Rakhiv.
• Storage: keep the bottles in the fridge and never leave them in a hot car.

Please confirm by phone before your trip.

Website and social media: facebook.com · instagram.com

Photos: zaktour.gov.ua; instagram.com.