Go to the link below for more information.

I've always used milk grains in cow, goat and coconut milk. Occasionally when I have an abundance of the grains I'll ferment grape juice or apple juice for something different. But using them in fruit juice will eventually kill them, so consider them expendable.

I have a packet of water grains, but they ended up being one more good intention. Once you start these little projects (including sourdough starter, kombuchu, fermented foods....), they are like a pet that needs tending on a regular basis. Just how many jars of "stuff" can one refrigerator hold (LOL)?

I don't have any experience using freeze-dried or dried grains. I located mine through a kefir group on-line and paid a small amount for about 2 T. of grains, + shipping. They were packed into a zip-lock bag with a small amount of milk in it, stuffed into a large plastic pill container, sent via U.S. Mail. The person I got mine from happened to own a dairy here in the state.

The small health food store will occasionally give my name to someone wanting real grains and I'm happy to share them. It really is a person-to-person thing, which is why the commercial kefir has very little in common with kefir made from real grains. Commercial kefir is made with only a few strains of bacteria, not the real grains. I've used my same grains for over a decade.

-Grainlady

Here is a link that might be useful: Dom's Kefir In-site

I originally ordered some milk kefir grains from amazon, but they were duds. I then found some locally on craigslist and they work beautifully. I think I bought about 1/2 cup of grains for $10.00; they have now expanded many times that size. Based on my experience wasting money the first time around, I suggest you search for them locally. As grainlady suggests, you might ask at a health food or whole food store. And do try craigslist--in my area we have at least 4 people advertising them all the time.

Some health food stores sell kefir "starter" kits, but my understanding is that the grains in these don't last.