Beyond Kombucha Ale

Mava Roka 7% kombucha ale.

Interview with Sprio of Beyond Kombucha podcast

Until recently we associated the word "kombucha" with "health food". But our concept of this mysterious beverage was altered and our interest was considerably piqued after we were introduced to the Mava Roka, made by Beyond Kombucha. It's a 7% ABV "Maple Vanilla Rooibos Kombucha Ale" regularly on draught at the Queens Kickshaw. On first taste we knew that it had much more in common with lambic beer than anything like wheat grass juice!

1-barrel system.

You may be wondering, "what exactly is kombucha, and what does it have to do with beer?" For the detailed history and an in depth explanation, you can refer to the very informative What Is Kombucha? page at Beyond's website. It's also addressed in the podcast. But, in short, kombucha is a raw, fermented, probiotic, and naturally carbonated tea. Like lambic beer, the beverage is fermented by different strains of yeasts and bacterias. It has been brewed in China since at least 220 BCE. Most kombuchas are very low in alcohol (.5% to 1.5% ABV), and are touted for their health benefits.

We spoke to Spiro Theofilatos, the founder and brewer of Beyond Kombucha, about his brewery. He started brewing in Astoria, near Steinway and Broadway, in 2010, and no less than two days after founding the company the federal government made an industry-shaking decision that would dramatically affect his business plans. The government decided that it would treat kombucha makers who brewed beverages with more than .5% ABV -- one half of one percent -- the same as brewers of beer. The choice was either to change his carefully constructed recipe, which created a beverage of .8% ABV, or get a brewer's license. Spiro went all in, got licensed, and, according to the QEDC and the Greater Astoria Historical Society, became the first brewery in Queens since Prohibition!


Obtaining the brewer's license allowed Spiro to, indeed, go beyond kombucha. He devised a recipe for a guten-free, sorghum malt based, 7% ABV, naturally carbonated beer. He named it Mava Roka. The beer has a dedicated line at The Queens Kickshaw, and it drinks more like a sorghum lambic than anything else! The name is an abbreviation of its ingredients: MAple syrup, VAnilla, ROoibos tea KombuchA.



Its creation begins with a finished kombucha, which is used in place of water in the mashtun and for sparging. The beer is made from high quality sorgham extract provided by Briess Malting, vanilla, organic maple syrup from upstate N.Y. and three varieties of hops -- Challenger, Legacy and Cascade. Obviously, the probiotic aspect of the brew is eliminated after boiling the wort, but all the wonderful qualities of the kombucha -- such as the sour flavors -- are imparted to the beer. It is by far and away the best tasting sorghum beer we've ever had (and we generally have an immense dislike of sorghum beers).

B,R., Spiro, and Bob.

Spiro is working on a few new all-grain kombucha ales, including one called Y.P.A., an I.P.A. inspired bitter pale ale using his Yerba Mate kombucha in the brew. He's also soon to release his Lovers Saison, which uses his Love Potion kombucha, and is brewed with Belgian aromatic malt, Santium hops, New York City honey, and nine different aphrodisiacal herbs. 

Some noted breweries to have experimented with kombucha include Goose Island, which makes a Belgian Style pale ale called Fleur, brewed with hibiscus and kombucha tea, and Dogfish Head, which brewed Fungus Tea’Mungus for the one of the Beer Advocate Extreme Beer Fests. 
 
There are a few other American kombucha-beer brewers include Unity Vibration (Michigan), Deane's Kombucha (Minn.), Invisible Alchemy (Oregon), and CommuniiTea (Washington).

Inside an oak fermenting barrel.

Beyond Kombucha operates a one-barrel brewhouse, for brewing both the kombucha and ales, using electric heating elements in the brew kettles. Spiro considers himself a staunch environmentalist, and his brewery operates on 100% solar energy, provided by photo-electric solar panels on the brewery's roof. He said that even when his brewery is operating at it's peak level of energy consumption, he's generating surplus electricity which is sold back to the grid! 

Small batch fermenting.

Beyond Kombucha is available on a limited basis in bottles, and also on tap at places in New York like Pure Food and Wine, the Todd English bar Olives in the W hotel, The Queens Kickshaw, Eastwood, The Strand, Colicchio and Sons, Tandam Bar, and This And That.

60-gallon barrels.

5-gallon test casks.

Sixtels of Mava Roka.

Soon to be released kombucha saison.

Inconspicuous entrance to Beyond.

Sixty gallon barrel.

Delivery truck.

Warehousing room.

Straight up kombucha products.

  [link to podcast page]

Queens Kickshaw

  [link to podcast page]
Interview with Ben and Jen of Queens Kickshaw podcast
We were drawn to this quirky little Astoria bistro for their second anniversary party a few months back, and, having been thoroughly impressed, we knew that a repeat visit was inevitable. Looking through the tiny storefront window at the entrance to the Queens Kickshaw, you'd expect to find a narrow rail-car sized joint, like Proletariat in the East Village, but instead, it expands into a high-ceilinged, long, open, inviting space, with a cozy warmth enhanced by exposed brick, worn wood and a rusty, rustic, archaic industrial decor.

This will extinguish your thirst!

Soon after wife and husband team Jen and Ben moved to Astoria, they wanted to add to the tantalizing, diverse culinary landscape that Queens has become known for. They were contemplating a coffee bar, but if they couldn't set up a brick-and-mortar business then they planned on launching a coffee truck mounted on an auto-rickshaw. Right away they had a name in mind -- Kickshaw, which conveniently means a small delicacy, aside from being a cute play on "rickshaw".

But they did find a space, and so quickly expanded their concept beyond gourmet java. Regardless, their coffee is top notch, supplied by Coffee Labs of Tarrytown, offering a variety of brews, including some very smooth cold-brewed coffees. But they also have a full dining menu which is simple & solid and yet quirky & creative. "Comfort food with a twist," as Ben describes it. Almost immediately, they became reputed for their decadent grilled cheese sandwiches.

Bob, B.R., Jen and Ben.

And more importantly, at least for us, is Kickshaw's central concept: a well thought out beverage program, centered around the best craft beer and cider that they can find. Granted, they're open very early every day, peddling tasty caffeinated cups to the morning set. But it's at evening time when you'll want to visit QK to take full advantage of the carefully crafted beverage menu.

Gruyère grilled cheese with caramelized onions, and endive salad.

Ben told us that he puts a lot of time and effort into curating their beer offerings. Typically, they have four beers on tap, with cider, kombucha and brewed coffee taking up the other three lines, complimented by an extensive bottle list. Jen says that she's more into the cider, and with about 30 craft ciders on the menu, there's a lot to be into!

You didn't just pour the strongest espresso on the sweetest ice cream? Oh yes you did...

One thing which sets them apart from almost all other craft beer and cider dispensaries is their ability to sell large format bottled beer by the glass. They utilize a system developed for champagne which re-fills the head space of opened bottles with carbon-dioxide, and then re-pressurizes them when resealed, so that a patron need not buy an entire 750ml. Ben says that they can open and re-seal a bottle three times without diminishing the quality of the beer. Their device was custom made to accommodate the proper carbonation for beer, which is about half that of champagne.

The kitchen.

Queens Kickshaw gets their kombucha -- which is a low-alcohol, fermented, carbonated tea beverage -- down the block, from Beyond Kombucha. In addition to the barely alcoholic (≈3%) healthy, fizzy, somewhat tart/sour teas, they also produce a very unique ale. The 6.5% a.b.v. Mava Roka kombucha ale is frequently found on tap at Kickshaw. I think that we need to look into this a bit further!

Located conveniently one block from the Steinway stop on the R-train, at 40-17 Broadway, in Astoria, directly across from a Queens Library branch, there's really no good reason not to add Queens Kickshaw to your list of regular haunts. And if you actually live in Astoria... well, you'd be a masochist if you didn't frequent this joint on a weekly basis, at the least!

Bricky.

The backroom.