I’m always on the lookout for local companies and cool offerings near where I live. Those were super easy to come by when I lived downtown Montreal or worked downtown Toronto. Now I am in a small city near Hamilton, Ontario which makes things a little harder, but I have found some interesting stuff. A cupcake bakery, chocolate shop, and hamburger joint springs to mind first.
One interesting find is Escarpment Kombucha Co. I am not actually a kombucha fan but I have a friend from school who loves it and Roswell Strange has been into it for a while now. That, plus the company uses locally sourced ingredients in small-batch brews and delivers them right to your home, peaked my interest. I bought all their flavors, except for Raspberry Lavender because I don’t like Lavender. So the list of flavors I do have are: Haskap Honey, Blackberry Sumac, Rhubarb Rose, Peach Rosemary, Blueberry Mint, Sour Cherry Cedar, and Lemon Ginger x 2.
The Lemon Ginger is what they recommend for those who have not had kombucha before so it seemed like a good place to start. It’s good. It’s really fresh. This is what I feel like super fresh ginger infused lemonade would taste like…if someone used lemon vinegar (which is very much a real and tasty thing) as the base instead of lemon juice. I am doing a shitty job at describing it but I promise, it’s good.
As far as kombucha goes, this is the best of the few I have tried. With that said, I don’t think I am suddenly a huge kombucha fan now, but I won’t have an issue drinking this (and the other bottle of this flavor I have as well). It also has me excited to try the other flavors. I was worried I would have one mouthful of this and then dread having to have anymore and I would regret buying them. As it is, I am happy to explore the other flavors and can see how someone who already enjoys kombucha would love this. Roswell Strange, I wish I could send you a bottle (though maybe not of this flavor since the ginger is definitely present and I know that is not your favorite)!