Crown Butterfly is the seventh color in our Chakra Collection, and its color comes from a flower doing chemistry in the bottle. (Butterfly pea also shows up in Third Eye Candy, alongside blue spirulina.)
Meet Butterfly Pea Flower
Butterfly pea is a climbing vine from Southeast Asia with deep blue flowers. Steep the dried petals in water and you get a tea the color of a clear mountain sky. It tastes mild and a little earthy, which makes it easy to pair with brighter flavors.
Why the Color Changes
The blue comes from anthocyanins, the same family of pigments that colors blueberries and red cabbage. Anthocyanins change shape depending on how acidic their surroundings are, and the color changes with them:
- Neutral water: deep blue.
- A little acid: violet and purple.
- A lot of acid: magenta and pink.
That is why bartenders love it. Pour a squeeze of lemon into butterfly pea tea and watch the glass turn from blue to purple right in front of you.
What Happens in Crown Butterfly
Kombucha is naturally tart. Fermentation fills it with acids, so the butterfly pea flower shifts away from blue as soon as it meets the brew. Lemon and orange push it further. The result is the violet you see through the bottle, matched to the crown chakra at the top of the lineup.
The full ingredient list is short: organic kombucha (water, sugar, tea, SCOBY), butterfly pea flower, lavender, lemon and orange. No dyes, and no added color.
Try It at Home
Pour Crown Butterfly over ice in a clear glass, then add a squeeze of fresh lemon and watch the top of the glass drift toward pink. Lavender on the nose, citrus on the finish.
Find Crown Butterfly at our retail partners, or work through the whole rainbow from Root Down to Crown.