Why do you have to keep our kombucha refrigerated?

Every bottle and can of Yugen kombucha is alive with billions of living microorganisms, born from the same ancient process that has been transforming tea into kombucha for centuries.

This is what gives Yugen kombucha its distinctive taste and authenticity.

1. What does unpasteurised mean?

When we say Yugen kombucha is alive, we mean it literally.

Our kombucha naturally fermented via a SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast).

During fermentation, the SCOBY:

• Transforms tea and sugar into organic acids, vitamins, and enzymes.
• Creates natural carbonation.
• Populates the drink with billions of living cultures.

Because we never pasteurise, sterilize or filter, these kombucha bacteria stay alive in the drink — just as nature intended.

2. Why we keep it unpasteurised

Pasteurisation is the industry standard.

Heating kills microbes, giving the drink a longer shelf life and making logistics easier.

But it also kills the good stuff (the living organisms, vitamins, and antioxidants) that make kombucha special.

Yugen kombucha remains raw and unpasteurised so that:

• The live cultures remain intact.
• The flavour is complex and vibrant.
• You get a real fermented beverage — not a sweetened tea pretending to be kombucha.

This choice makes Yugen kombucha more delicate to handle, but infinitely more rewarding to drink.

3. Why added probiotics
≠ real kombucha

Some brands try to shortcut authenticity.

They first pasteurise their kombucha, then add back a single lab-grown strain. While this can still be marketed as “probiotic,” it means their drink is not naturally fermented.

The result?

A simplified, single-note beverage that lacks the diversity and complexity of a true fermentation.

Yugen’s raw kombucha contains a rich community of microorganisms working together to create its uniquely complex, ever-so-slightly wild taste.

Nothing lab-grown about it.

4. How we keep it alive
(and safe)

Because our kombucha is alive, we protect it via:

• Careful monitoring of pH, sugar and alcohol (<0.3%).
• Amber glass bottles and opaque cans to shield the delicate microorganisms from UV light.
• Cold chain logistics to keep the microbes stable and active.

We don’t need pasteurisation to keep our kombucha stable — natural fermentation brings its own built-in acidity, exactly why kombucha has kept for centuries without being full of preservatives.

5. Why authentic kombucha feels better

It’s alive — and your body knows it.

• The natural acids give it that signature tangy taste.
• The active cultures keep doing what they've done for centuries: quietly turning tea into something more interesting.
• The gentle fizz and complex tang come straight from real fermentation.

The antioxidants and polyphenols from organic tea and fruit juice add character to every batch — delicious is the whole point.

6. Always in the fridge

Always keep Yugen Kombucha refrigerated — not just for freshness, but to keep the living cultures happy and stable.

If left out of the fridge for too long, it can keep fermenting, altering its taste and carbonation.

So treat it like the living drink that it is: store it cold, pour it gently, and enjoy it fresh.

The Yugen Philosophy

We could make our lives easier by pasteurising, filtering, or adding lab-grown probiotics.

But that’s not who we are.

We believe that true kombucha should be alive, complex, and ever-evolving — as nature intended.

Yugen Kombucha: always alive, never compromised.