Unlike many mainstream brands of kombucha and milk kefir, at Wildling we add zero artificial flavours or sweeteners and our water kefir is unpasteurised so we can guarantee that it contains a complex spectrum of wild bacteria. Wildling is alive and wild! A completely natural and live drink that is made in the traditional ways.

Water kefir is a fantastic source of natural gut bacteria for people who are dairy and/or gluten free. Because it’s up to 1.2% alcohol by volume, we don’t recommend that pregnant women drink it. Unlike kombucha, which contains caffeine, water kefir is entirely caffeine free, so is a great choice whatever the time of day and is also suitable for vegans A growing body of respected scientific research – remember our founder Roisin was a science teacher so she knows the difference between good and bad science – is identifying a genuine correlation between consumption of fermented foods and healthy weight maintenance, as well as reductions in risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.

It all begins with a feisty little starter culture called a SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) and like with kombucha, water kefir fermentation is a two-stage process. When the SCOBY is lovingly fed with fresh water and sugar, it uses the sugar to reproduce, leaving behind billions of gut friendly bacteria. It’s during the second stage of fermentation that we add our zingy fruit and botanical flavours, which trigger the magical spontaneous carbonation that makes water kefir naturally sparkling. The starter culture is often called water kefir grains, but this is a visual rather than a factual reference as there are no grains of any kind involved which is why water kefir is entirely gluten free.