Koumiss vs. Kefir — What's the Difference?

Variant of kumiss.

Kefir (also spelled as kephir or kefier, Russian: Кефир; Karachay-Balkar: Гыпы) ( KE-feer), is a fermented milk drink similar to a thin yogurt or ayran that is made from kefir grains, a specific type of mesophilic symbiotic culture. The drink originated in the North Caucasus, in particular the Elbrus environs along the upper mountainous regions of Karachay and Balkaria from where it came to Russia, and from there it spread to Europe and the United States, where it is prepared by inoculating the milk of cows, goats, or sheep with kefir grains.

A fermented drink made from mare's milk, common among peoples of the Central Asian steppes.

A creamy drink made of fermented cow's milk.

An intoxicating fermented or distilled liquor originally made by the Tartars of central Asia from mare's or camel's milk. It can be obtained from any kind of milk, and is now largely made in Europe.

A fermented milk drink from the Caucasus and Eastern Europe, similar to yogurt but more liquidy.

An alcoholic beverage made from fermented mare's milk; made originally by nomads of central Asia

An effervescent liquor like kumiss, made from fermented milk, used as a food and as a medicine in the northern Caucasus.

A sour fermented milk drink, used in various regions of Asia, made by addition of Streptococcus or Lactobacillus cultures to cow's or goat's milk; it is considered by some as a form of yoghurt.