22.6 C
Byron Shire
March 29, 2024

North Wall Kombucha: locals only!

Latest News

Blue skies for Bluesfest day 1

If yesterday at Bluesfest was anything to go by, it's going to be an incredible event and with the weather holding, (so far) the Easter weekend's future is looking bright.

Other News

‘Smooth stroking’ Rainbow Dragons earn trophies

Rainbow Dragons (Lennox Head Ballina) won three trophies and had a fantastic weekend of fun, fitness and friendship at Grafton Dragon Boat Club’s regatta earlier in March.

Coveted Wollumbin Art Award open for young and old

Are you an artist in the Northern Rivers? Now is the time to get your art ready and submitted to the Tweed Regional Gallery & Margaret Olley Art Centre’s coveted biennial Wollumbin Art Award.

Man charged over domestic violence and pursuit offences – Tweed Heads

A man has been charged following a pursuit near Tweed Heads on Monday.

Way of the dog

One of the more disappointing aspects of the decline of Byron Bay, and I have a long list, is...

A seasoned bard

Guy Kachel had an idyllic entry to the world of music. Born in Tamworth, he was raised on the banks of the Peel River. The landscape was a fertile ground for his imagination. Seeing this rustic world change, as Tamworth developed into an inland city and friends grew to sometimes troubled adulthoods, provided insights for the artistry that later powered his career as a performer.

Superbowls

Superbowls is your go-to spot for a burst of woodfired flavour! Nestled in Byron Arts and Industry Estate, the...

North Wall Brewing

Simon Haslam

There’s something extra special about enjoying something with the flavour of your ‘home’ town. Marketers trade on this, so adding the word ‘Byron Bay’ to your product’s name can mean little more than being ‘inspired’ by ‘Australia’s celebrity hotspot’ (check out the Byron Bathers Club in Dubai if you want a hilarious example).

But Jake Miller’s ‘North Wall Kombucha’ is the real deal. It’s named after the north wall at Brunswick Heads, a favourite surfing spot; his first customer (apart from his surfing mates) was Old Maids burger place in Bruns and locals know that it’s pretty bloody good! North Wall Kombucha is a small, boutique business, distributing in the local area from Jake’s factory in the Mullum Industrial Estate.

Jake, who grew up in the gorgeous home that would later become the Kiva Spa in Mullum, and who has enjoyed surfing the waves in Bruns for the past 30 years, is a true artisan. He often picks the fruit for seasonal brews himself. He is also the brewer, the bottler (although lately he’s got a mate to help a couple of days a week), the delivery guy and he’s in charge of marketing too!

‘Growing up in Mullum in the 1980s and ‘90s there was always a jar or three of old Kombucha on the bench, but then it disappeared for 20 years. When it came back, and people started brewing it with care and started making it actually taste good, I started home brewing, and I’d home deliver six bottles like an old-style milkman.’

‘When Cassie from Old Maids in Bruns saw me doing it, she tried it and said “I need to get that into my fridge straight away”. So, I went away and made a label for it so that I could sell it.’

North Wall has three core kombucha flavours that Jake developed or his side verandah in Brunswick Heads, but he also gets out to source seasonal ingredients, which become seasonal brews sold in kegs to places like The Source in Mullum/Byron/Lennox, where you can just bring in your bottle and fill up from the tap. ‘This is ideal from an environmental perspective,’ says Jake, ‘as it removes all the single-use elements like labels, lids etc’.

When Davidson’s plums came into season recently, he just went out to Nimbin and collected some. His core group of flavours, which took him years to come up with, are Chilli Pineapple, Apple with Ginger, and Turmeric with Passionfruit, and they are sold in bottles, but the other benefit of his seasonals is that, because they’re sold in kegs only, he can pick the ingredients and have the kombucha on sale in a matter of weeks, without waiting for new labelling etc for bottles.

And, whilst his kombucha tastes nothing like the 1980s version, it is still a very healthy alternative. ‘We don’t use any preservatives,’ says Jake, ‘this is like it was brewed thousands of years ago in China, with wild ferment, or on the kitchen bench. But I stop it fermenting while it still tastes good by refrigeration, I have a huge amount of fridge space in my factory! It just goes from my fridge into our van, and straight into our customers’ fridges.

‘Whilst you can mix it up into a cocktail (for example the Chilli Pineapple tastes pretty good with tequila), a lot of my customers drink it as a way of exchanging for alcohol. Instead of having a glass of wine or beer they will have a kombucha. They will fill up a nice-looking bottle at a refill station, then pour that into their glass at dinner instead of a bottle of wine. Because it’s a natural ferment it has the sort of flavour and character that you could sip at a dinner party, although if you’re really thirsty after a surf It’s easy to chug back a litre!’.


Support The Echo

Keeping the community together and the community voice loud and clear is what The Echo is about. More than ever we need your help to keep this voice alive and thriving in the community.

Like all businesses we are struggling to keep food on the table of all our local and hard working journalists, artists, sales, delivery and drudges who keep the news coming out to you both in the newspaper and online. If you can spare a few dollars a week – or maybe more – we would appreciate all the support you are able to give to keep the voice of independent, local journalism alive.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Retired local professor launches book on grief

A leading international thinker and researcher in the development of innovative sport coaching and physical education teaching has returned home to Byron Bay and is launching his first non-academic book, 'Grief and Growth', on April 4 at The Book Room in Byron. 

Resilient Lismore’s ‘Repair to Return’ funding

On the eve of the second anniversary of the second devastating flood in 2022, Resilient Lismore has welcomed the finalisation of its funding deed with the NSW Reconstruction Authority, which will enable the continuation of its ‘Repair to Return’ program.

Editorial – Joyous propaganda! 

The NSW Labor government marked its one year in office this week with a jubilant statement of achievements issued from Macquarie Street HQ.

Man charged over domestic violence and pursuit offences – Tweed Heads

A man has been charged following a pursuit near Tweed Heads on Monday.