Unified Ferments

Single-origin teas, mostly from Asia, go into the alcohol-free ferments that Graham Pirtle and Young Stowe make in Brooklyn.

About Unified Ferments

Based in
Brooklyn, New York
Founded
2019
Known for
non-alcoholic fermented single-origin tea

Graham Pirtle came from fine tea and Young Stowe from beer and wine. The two, who met as roommates at a Tennessee boarding school, started Unified Ferments in Brooklyn in 2019. They source single-origin teas, mostly from Asia, and ferment them in steel tanks with a SCOBY, the way kombucha is made, but keep the fermentation light so the tea stays in front. The bottles are poured at restaurants such as Eleven Madison Park and Atomix.

Unified Ferments questions

Is Unified Ferments alcoholic?

No, Unified Ferments sells its drinks as non-alcoholic. They are made the way kombucha is: brewed tea ferments with a SCOBY, a living culture of bacteria and yeast, and the bacteria turn the alcohol the yeast makes into acids, which adds tang. Commercial kombucha usually holds only a trace of alcohol, under 0.5%. The founders keep the fermentation light so the tea stays in front.

What is single-origin tea?

A single-origin tea comes from one region, rather than being a blend of teas grown in different places. Climate and soil change how a tea tastes, so a single-origin tea carries the flavor of the place it was grown, while a blend is tasted and adjusted toward a set result. Unified Ferments builds its drinks on single-origin teas.

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