Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

For those who don't know what water kefir is, let me offer a quick explanation. Water kefir crystals are a live cultured product, like yogurt or dairy-based kefir. Many of our favorite foods -like cheese, bread, wine and beer - are made with cultures of bacteria and/or yeasts (thru the process of fermentation). The 'crystals' are actually live communities of beneficial bacteria that produce what are popularly known as probiotics. Think of activia, for an example. These colonies of bacteria live and grow in a mixture of sugar, water and fruit. Water kefir is a clear, slightly fizzy drink. The taste and color varies, depending largely on what type of fruit you add to the kefir, but to me there is a definite (but pleasant) fermented taste. So at this point you might be thinking why on earth would I want to drink bacteria!?! Many people experience digestive trouble, especially as they age. Also, using antibiotics (not to mention the rampant over-usage of antibiotics by the meat and dairy industries), can cause the die-off of beneficial bacteria in our guts. This leads to irregularity, which means we start taking pills, which only leads to more irregularity, or at least in my case it did. I did a lot of internet research on natural remedies, which is where I learned about about all the bacteria that live in our intestines. There's a lot of them too! There are quite a few studies, but they basically all boil down to the same thing- the more varied and thriving your gut bacteria are, the healthier you are (generally speaking). I tried activia, but because of dairy allergies couldn't eat it on a regular basis. So when I read about water kefir, I decided to try it. There's a lot of info on water kefir on the internet if you want to investigate further, but basically the process is as follows- When you get your kefir crystals, rinse them with mineral water. Tap water shouldn't be used as it is usually chlorinated to kill various bacteria etc., which will have the same effect on your kefir crystals. You can boil tap water to remove chlorine, but must let it cool. To start out with, dissolve 4 tablespoons of (preferably unrefined) sugar into 4 cups room temp. water. Add your crystals to this mixture and cover with a lid or dust-proof cover. I use a coffee filter secured with a rubber band around the top of a mason jar. A glass or ceramic container is best- never use metal with your kefir crystals. I don't know why, but everyone agrees with that. After this is where things get tricky. You should always add some type of fruit to your kefir- some people say only dried (unsulphered), some say fresh, some say both. Also, some people say always add lemon or ginger, though others say this makes their kefir flat. And you should add minerals to your kefir if your water doesn't have many. I live over a limestone aquifer, so I don't have that problem. I can only say that for me, fresh ginger and lemon work fine, so I'm sticking with these for now. Please check out the hundreds of recipes, hints and techniques on the web. There's a lot of conflicting info, but if you're the experimental type, you'll have fun. Now for the specifics! I received about 3 tablespoons of tan colored crystals in a sealed plastic pouch, covered with foil and bubble wrap (the crystals were tan colored because Keysands uses unrefined sugar or possibly molasses for the added minerals). They were sent in a sturdy flat cardboard box. Shipping was so fast that even in daily 102-104 temps, there was hardly any die-off. I popped them in the fridge til I could tend to them later that night. They came right to life, and were bubbling away before the night was over. This is actually my second purchase of water kefir crystals from Keysands. My first batch went bad after a couple months, totally my own fault- too warm a spot, too little sugar and crazy active crystals. My only criticism of Keysands would be that the info sheet that comes with the crystals just isn't informative enough. They give you only the absolute minimum of info on caring for your crystals, and nothing on what to do if something goes wrong. Then again, there is enough info on the web to fill a dozen books. But the product is worth the five stars anyways!