The process is very sensitive. The enzymes can die just from the vapors of cleaners containing chlorine sitting on the same counter. The enzymes can pick up wild yeast spores from fruit stored next to it. Keep it covered and by itself, use only filtered water (no chlorine!), feed it sugar daily,.... raw sugar, honey or brown sugar is better; stir at least daily; and be patient. Keep a daily log so you can figure out what worked and what didn't.

Congratulations, and welcome to the world of kefir!!! The kind of milk you use is up to you. The grains I received were from a gal who's family ran a large dairy in Eastern Kansas, so they were grains that had only been used in raw milk. Since I do home food storage (I haven't purchased liquid commercial milk from a grocery store since 1981), I use reconstituted powdered milk - and have all the years I've made kefir (over a decade). No transition period.... Occasionally I'll have some 1/2 & 1/2 or whipping cream on hand and I'll add a little of it to the milk for a richer/thicker curd. I can also get a thicker curd by using more milk powder, but I think the grains "like" the additional fat provided by the 1/2 & 1/2 and whipping cream occasionally. I also use reconstituted powdered coconut milk for coconut kefir (you can also used canned coconut milk or make your own with unsweetened coconut and water - blended and strained). Occasionally when I get extra grains I'll make a batch or two with cider or 100% grape juice - but the grains don't thrive more than a few non-milk batches. I've also made it with raw goats milk, but not very often. It's not budget-friendly. Kefir can have a cleansing effect and your body will let you know how much is "enough", or too much. We only consume 2 servings of dairy each day, and the morning kefir counts as one of them. I use it in a smoothie-type mixture every morning. I also use it as a substitute for buttermilk in cooking/baking. Drain the curd and it's my substitute for plain yogurt, cream cheese, and sour cream - as needed. Where you will notice a difference in taste is when the temperature fluctuates. I personally prefer the more mild-tasting kefir fermented in cool winter temperatures (ambient temperature in our kitchen doesn't usually get above 64-degrees F in the winter), compared to the more sour/tart kefir made when the temperature is much warmer, but I use it all year and make it about every 4-5 days. It your kefir gets "gritty", that means the temperature is too warm for fermenting. The warmer the temperature, the faster it ferments. Sometimes in as little as 9-12-hours. My favorite is coconut milk kefir, but I only make it once a month, or so. It makes a nice add-in to orange or pineapple/orange juice, or used in desserts, and great topped with granola for breakfast or a snack. -Grainlady

marita...my understanding of what you should receive when you purchase the grains online is a dried product that takes approx 7 days to fully rejuvenate. There are exact inst. on the net for how to reconstitute dry grains. I haven't heard of anyone sending out wet/slime grains :) There are no grains per se in my kefir since the weather has gotten cooler. But...today just to help out with your research I let a jar of kefir set out in a warmer place and it has indeed formed a large mass of grains floating on a bunch of clear whey. So it is indeed temp related. I had another jar of fresh milk and 2 tsp of grains sitting in a cool place in the kitchen since this AM and it has become my usual jar of soft yogurty type stuff with no separation and it is ready to go into the fridge to be used in a smoothy in the AM. All temp and time related. As I said...at cool temps it is highly unlikely that you are going to get any distinct grains/curds. It will all be soft cheesy stuff. If I were to put mine in a strainer most of it would stay in the strainer just as yogurt does. When it was hotter weather it drained out a lot of white and clear together and left drier distinct curds...again it is all temp related. I would not give up on what you have. It tastes pleasant...it smells pleasant. When the temps change so will your kefir. I hope you cont. to enjoy. I have now shared my grains and they are living in Montgomery AL and Lexington VA !! It is a wondrous process. c Oh..ps about resting the grains. I take 2 tsp every AM of the current kefir that I am going to eat and place it in a jar of fresh cold 2 % milk and leave it in a cool place for 12 hrs and then place it in the fridge over night...Next AM take out 2 tsp and place in cold milk and leave out....then in fridge and repeat. As far as rest...well they are in new milk every day and they are at a pretty cool temp and the source has been in the fridge all night fully fermented but very cool and waiting /resting. As my grains seem so happy I am not going to change anything. If your grains are happy and taste good I would say " yes" to the process you are following.

I've used all kinds of milk products (powdered whole milk, powdered non-fat dry milk, whey-based milk substitute, raw goat milk, homogenized goat milk, homogenized cow milk, low-fat, 2%, whole....) for making kefir. I've been making kefir for around 7-years. I have some fermenting on my kitchen counter as I type, and made 2-cups of it yesterday. What I find is that the lower the fat, the more whey you get, instead of curd. But whey is good too. I use the whey for making whey lemonade, which is one of the most refreshing drinks when it's hot outside. I'm on the fence when it comes to homogenized and raw milk products - even though I'm a big fan of "Nourishing Traditions". I think getting the beneficial bacteria from kefir outweighs WHAT you make it in. I didn't have a problem with raw goat milk, other than I was afraid I'd contract some horrible bacteria from the family's filthy kitchen than I was about using raw dairy products. The "odd" taste must be what they are feeding the goats. To make kefir easy-to-swallow, which even my picky hubby likes, we use it as a morning smoothie. I use a Hamilton Beach Malt-Maker for mixing. The stainless steel cup for the malt-maker has 3 markings on the side. I put kefir up to the first mark (2/3-cup), 100% fruit juice of choice (grape, orange, pomegranate/blueberry is a favorite....and the strong flavor of it would probably mask any "farm" flavor of the goat milk), to the top mark (about 1-1/3-cup - so a 1:2 ratio (or to taste). We also add flaxmeal and a supplement powder, and give it a whirr... If that doesn't work, how about making water kefir - which takes different kefir grains than dairy kefir? Or fermenting fruit juice with the kefir grains? How about taking the drained kefir cheese and adding strong flavors (spices, onion, horseradish) and making a vegetable dip out of it. Mix kefir cheese with guacamole.... Go to Dom's Kefir Insite for more information. -Grainlady Here is a link that might be useful: Fermented Treasures