DIARY OF A SHOPKEEPER

This is an excerpt of an article by Duncan McLean (Kirkness and Gorie) “Diary of a Shopkeeper” posted in The Orcadian Newspaper [orcadian.co.uk] on 06 February 2025.

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“…Not that food and drink can only be made well in the place it originated. Take kombucha, for instance. This sparkling tea drink was created somewhere in China sometime in the 1800s, before spreading west through Russia and into Europe. It took about a century to reach the UK, and finally made it to Orkney last week.

Kombucha comes in various forms, but at base it's a drink made by fermenting sweetened tea until it's fizzy and quite un-tea-like in flavour. What it does taste like depends on the preferred style of the brewer, and whether they choose to add flavourings like fruit and spices.

It's made using symbiotic fermentation — meaning two substances working together — in this case, bacteria and yeast. Brewed vinegar uses the same method, and there's always a vinegary tang in good kombucha.

The newly launched Golden Slipper Brewing Company's versions are superb examples, the best I've ever tasted: flavoursome but with a perfect balance of fruity sweetness and refreshing acidity.

They're making two bottled versions — semi-sweet pineappleweed flavour, and bone-dry sea kelp — as well as a hoppy version in a can. It's naturally alcohol free, and much superior to any no-alcohol beer I've tasted. The packaging is beautiful, and the prices reasonable; a great new Orkney product, available in lots of local outlets.”