This book is the product of two passions that have been with me throughout my life. First, I have had a love of writing since I was published and won a writer’s prize when I was only ten years old. Second, I have searched for the secret to perfect health since I was misdiagnosed by orthodox medicine at the age of fourteen.
My lifelong interest in health led me to research and write the first edition of this book in the 1990s. At that time, some truly remarkable people provided me with knowledge about the kombucha culture and kombucha tea, and I want to offer my very special thanks to my 1990s kombucha gurus: Waltraut Schaffer, Wal Kneifel, Murray Mitchell, Alex Lauder, Sandra Poulton, and Peter Theiss. For this second edition, I want to acknowledge the people who have provided new and exciting insights, including Suzanne Stoeckle, Sergi Rollan, and Chantale Houle, all of Kefiplant. And last, but not least, I give my thanks to Matthew Breech of TallGrass, a distributor of kombucha products based in Vancouver, British Columbia, that’s quickly conquering the Canadian health food market, for allowing me to sample all of his medicinal kombucha products.
All of these individuals contributed meaningfully either toward the “brewing” of the first edition or the “rebrewing” of the second edition of this book. Furthermore, the first edition was made possible by kombucha lover and former publisher Siegfried Gursche, while this updated version exists thanks to my new publishers, Cynthia and Bob Holzapfel, and their staff at Book Publishing Company. As always, my wife, Gabriele, who is constantly interested in what I’m up to, diligently supported my efforts, and our beautiful cat, Samedi, curled up at my feet and kept me company for hours on end.