GT's Synergy kombucha review
Here we will give a hands-on, taste-tested review of GT's Synergy kombucha. We’ll look into the benefits, ingredients, nutrition and flavour of this high quality kombucha.
For this review we have taste-tested the Trilogy version which combines lemon, ginger and raspberry.
This kombucha is available in some organic food stores in the UK. It is made in the USA.
You might also be interested in reading our article on the best probiotics in the UK if you want to add more healthy microbes to your diet.
How GT's Synergy kombucha is made
In contrast to many other commercial kombucha, GT's Synergy kombucha is made in a very authentic way.
It undergoes a long 30-day fermentation in small 18L batches. And it is made with live cultures passed down since 1995.
As well as this, they only use real ingredients for flavouring, as we will see below.
Ingredients of GT's Synergy kombucha
GT's Synergy kombucha is made with various fruit juices.
The specific ingredients are water, kombucha culture (bacteria and yeast cultures, black tea, green tea, kiwi juice, cane sugar), raspberry juice (2%), lemon juice (1.5%), cold pressed ginger juice (1.5%).
So it’s a very authentic kombucha which uses no flavourings or sweeteners.
It has 11 calories per 100ml which is low to moderate for a real-ingredient kombucha.
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Read more about the best gut health products in the UK.
Benefits of GT's Synergy kombucha
Live cultures
Live cultures in kombucha come from a mixed community of bacteria and yeasts which work together during fermentation. This community is held within a SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) which is a cellulose layer that forms on top of the brew.
Each kombucha will vary, but Gluconobacter, Acetobacter and Zygosaccharomyces are the core organisms found in most fermentations. These groups ferment the sugars and produce the acids which give kombucha its tang.
As is common with kombucha, GT's Synergy doesn’t list which specific live cultures are present, however, on their website they claim to include a diversity of live cultures which have been passed down for decades.
They also state there are ‘9 billion living cultures’ per bottle.
Postbiotics
Postbiotics are compounds produced by live cultures during fermentation. In kombucha, these include organic acids and small amounts of short-chain fatty acids that contribute to the drink’s acidity and flavour.
GT's Synergy kombucha state they have 2240mg of organic acids per bottle.
Antioxidants
Antioxidants help protect cells from everyday oxidative stress.
This kombucha contains various ingredients which contain antioxidant compounds:
Tea – the primary source of antioxidants, supplying polyphenols
Kiwi juice – provides vitamin C and polyphenols in small amounts
Raspberry juice – contains anthocyanins and vitamin C
Lemon juice – a source of vitamin C
Ginger juice – provides gingerols
Appearance
As the picture below shows, it has a deep red-purple appearance.
Carbonation
I find the carbonation a little high to begin with and then it drops to a nice moderate level.
Flavour
The aroma is quite complex with ginger showing most with a standard kombucha funky, farmhouse background.
The taste is deep and multifaceted. The kick of the ginger and the sweetness of the raspberry work very well together. And the lemon juice sourness balances the raspberry. Both the ginger and the raspberry linger on the tongue.
The acidity is moderate to high (but in balance).
In summary, the flavour is superb and makes so many commercial kombucha seem like vastly inferior products. Given the complex, balance and depth, this is one of the few kombucha that could be truly satisfying as an alcohol alternative.
GT's Synergy kombucha has various flavours (which are all great) and Trilogy is my favourite. I would also encourage you to try the ‘Pure’ unflavoured version to get a sense of what an unadulterated, authentic and quality kombucha tastes like.
Cost of GT's Synergy kombucha
We bought a 473ml bottle for £5.49 from an organic food store in London - which is only slightly more expensive per ml than other premium real-ingredient kombucha (but a LOT more expensive than low-end kombucha which use flavourings and sweeteners).
Review summary
Rating: 5 stars out of 5.
Verdict: GT's Synergy kombucha sets the gold standard for commercial kombucha. It uses real ingredients, is fermented in small batches and has a brilliant and complex flavour. It is expensive though.
Pros
some organic ingredients
uses real ingredients (ie real fruit juices)
long fermented in small batches
source of various antioxidants
very good flavour with complexity, balance and depth
could be used as an alcohol alternative
contains 9 billion live cultures per bottle
2240mg of organic acids per bottle
Cons
no information on the live cultures included (but they do say they use a diversity of cultures passed down for decades)
expensive
Now read about the best kombucha in the UK!
Factors we consider in our ratings
The factors we consider when doing a review (and the weightings of each of these) may vary depending on the product we are testing, but here are the key general factors we consider when we settle on a rating for a product.
Health benefits
We find out how the product will be good for your health and outline the benefits for you in simple language. This often involves doing research so you don’t have to. We often link to scientific studies or articles summarising scientific findings so you can dig deeper if you want to.
Things detrimental to health
We want to highlight where a product might include something bad for your health - even if the product might be good for you in another way. This could include such things as pointing out certain additives it contains or high sugar levels.
How it’s made
This will vary depending on the product, but we want to see a quality process for making it and quality ingredients. For example, we want to see a kombucha traditionally fermented with lots of different microbial strains and we want to see a yoghurt made with fresh milk and not milk powders.
Price
While we expect quality products to be more expensive, they still have to be priced within reason. On the other side of things, a product which is priced very competitively will get a ratings boost based on the value it provides.
Flavour
For some products flavour won’t be a factor (eg probiotic tablets), but for others, like yoghurt or kimchi, flavour is a key aspect because these products are made to be enjoyed as well as being healthy! We will try to be as subjective as possible and describe the flavour in detail so you can get an idea of whether you would like it or not.
Our favourite gut health products in the UK
YourBiology Gut+ probiotic not only offers 10 strains of probiotics, but also includes two types of prebiotics, three digestive enzymes and vitamin D for gut health support. All this means it offers a lot more benefits for gut health and general health than most probiotic supplements do
Healthpath gut health test is the UK’s most comprehensive gut health test. It tests over 100 biomarkers, checks your digestion and immune response, analyses leaky gut and provides a clear and understandable report on your microbiome
YourBiology SuperGreens+ is a superfood and greens supplement which makes it very easy to get a huge amount of nutrition - vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fibre, polyphenols and more - in one glass. Great for supporting gut health, skin health, energy, mental clarity and immunity.
Read more about the best gut health products in the UK.
Your reviewer
This review was written by Travis, founder of Hello Gut Health.
A long-time gut health writer and advocate with over ten years of experience exploring the science of the microbiome and fermentation.
He combines careful research with practical testing to help readers make informed, trustworthy choices.
He has reviewed over 150 gut health products.
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