Local West Michigan company Sacred Springs Kombucha will be hosting the first Michigan Kombucha Festival at their Grand Rapids Taphouse.  Kombucha tastings, a homebrewing competition and a Kommunity Kombucha brew will occur during the Saturday, May 18 festival.

The ticketed event will be held at the Sacred Springs Kombucha Taphouse at 1059 Wealthy St. SE from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The organizers of the festival reached out to every Michigan kombucha company, all of which are involved in the festival in some way.  Sacred Springs co-owner Joel Andrus said almost the whole state is represented by a kombucha brewing company from that area. 

The festival will include tastings of each type of kombucha and a home brewing competition. Tickets are available online and include a commemorative glass and five drink tickets.  Andrus said this festival is “a community event for all Michigan-based kombucha companies”.

“Kombucha veterans will be able to try every other Michigan company’s brew in one spot and newcomers will be able to find out what kind of kombucha they like because there will be so many different styles represented,” Andrus said.

Andrus said the festival will be set up so customers can come in and buy drink tickets to try each company’s kombucha.  According to Andrus, each company brings a different style of kombucha to the tasting table. 

“So many styles will be represented, people will be able to try everything and see what works for them,” Andrus said.  

The Kommunity Kombucha Brew will open the event at 10 a.m. This will involve combining all of the cultures of each Michigan kombucha brew to create one ultimate Michigan kombucha culture. VIP Tickets are available for early access to witness this unique mixture brewed.

The home brewing competition invites people to bring their homemade kombucha to the taphouse to be judged by a panel of representatives from various Michigan kombucha companies.  Winners will be chosen from each of the three categories: fruit Kombucha, spice kombucha and original.  The brew earning the grand prize will be featured on tap for two weeks in June at the Sacred Springs Taphouse.  

The host company, Sacred Springs Kombucha, is the result of the collaboration between naturopathic practitioner and sound therapist Geoff Lamdan and classically trained violist Joel Andrus. Business partners Lamdan and Andrus have been brewing kombucha together since 2013. 

Andrus said there will be almost every type of kombucha at the festival. Sacred Springs’ unique twist on their brew involves infusing the kombucha with sound. In accordance to their backgrounds in sound and music, Andrus said they use specific sound frequencies to send vibrations into the liquid.  

According to the Sacred Springs’ website, they use notes “A” and “D” overlayed with different tones to make each batch unique. Sacred Springs is the only Michigan company that uses sound infusion in their kombucha.

For the first time ever, Michigan kombucha brewers and consumers will be united within the walls of Sacred Springs to celebrate the diverse array of kombucha.