Lacto starter with yogurt no activity

[xben]

Hi,

I made a 1L lacto starter using yogurt as suggested on milk the funk wiki.

I added 1ml of lactic acid, purged with co2 and put an airlock on the jar. The starter is maintained at 104F in the fermentation chamber without a stir plate.

24h later, there is no visible sign of activity. There is 1/2 inch of sediments at the bottom and white gunk at the top (looks like floating yogurt). The liquid is crystal clear.

Should I shake the jar or let it go one more day?

Thanks!

 

[Jag75]

Not sure . We will have to put out an APB on @RPh_Guy

 

[brownni5]

You won't "see" anything with a lacto starter if you've done it right (or wrong, I suppose). The only evidence that something has happened will be a drop in pH.

I haven't done anything with yogurt, so just refer back to the MTF Wiki for further guidance.

 

[fun4stuff]

Hi,

I made a 1L lacto starter using yogurt as suggested on milk the funk wiki.

I added 1ml of lactic acid, purged with co2 and put an airlock on the jar. The starter is maintained at 104F in the fermentation chamber without a stir plate.

24h later, there is no visible sign of activity. There is 1/2 inch of sediments at the bottom and white gunk at the top (looks like floating yogurt). The liquid is crystal clear.

Should I shake the jar or let it go one more day?

Thanks!

Have you tasted or measured pH? I’m not an expert by any means but the 1 time i made a lacto starter (Dissolved and boil DME, no hops, used goodboy probiotic juice), i did not see much visible activity other than the juice ”gunk” layering on the bottom. You aren’t going to get much airlock activity.

However, i did notice it smelled strongly of lacto (yogurt) that got stronger after a day. It also tasted sour and the pH dropped.

 

[crane]

You didn't list what type of yogurt you used. Not all of them have live cultures that can be propagated.

But as others have already mentioned you won't see any visible activity from the growth.

 

[xben]

I used plain greek yogurt from costco which has, according to ingredients list, lacto strains supposed to give good results. I will wait another 24H, measure the PH and taste a sample.

 

[RPh_Guy]

You won't "see" anything with a lacto starter if you've done it right (or wrong, I suppose).

you won't see any visible activity from the growth.

The liquid is crystal clear.

The starter will be visibly hazy (turbid) when microbes are growing in it. So yes, you should see activity in this regard.

I added 1ml of lactic acid

What? You did the opposite of what MTF recommends. Exactly what process did you use?

You should buffer a Lacto starter with calcium carbonate (a base). Adding acid is counterproductive; it should never be added to a pure Lacto starter.

24h later, there is no visible sign of activity.

What bacterial species are in the yogurt?
Did you use fat-free yogurt?

I made a 1L lacto starter

What size batch are you making? With proper technique, a 1L starter is probably much larger than needed. 200-300mL is enough for 5 gallon batches.

 

[xben]

I used MTF process, combined with gathered info here and there. Many processes I read say to add a bit of lactic acid to lower ph in order to limit other bacteria growth. I added the less mesurable amount possible.

The yogurt is fat free. With acidophilus, bulgaricus, strepto thermophilus and casei

Thanks!

 

[xben]

In fact, adding acid step was referring to the whole batch, so I assumed it could be helpful for the starter too.

 

[RPh_Guy]

In fact, adding acid step was referring to the whole batch, so I assumed it could be helpful for the starter too.

Acid isn't helpful in this context; it inhibits the growth of the Lactobacilli.
Did you add calcium carbonate?

Regardless, if the starter isn't hazy that means nothing is growing. You're welcome to leave it longer, but 24h at 104°F should have been enough time for it to get started.

With acidophilus, bulgaricus, strepto thermophilus and casei

I strongly recommend finding a source of Lactobacillus plantarum. It's the king of fast souring and it works well at room/ale temperature.

I list several good sources of L. plantarum here (along with the souring processes I recommend):
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/fast-souring-modern-methods.670176/

Capsules keep in the fridge really well, so you can use them for multiple batches.
Hope this helps. Cheers.

 

[xben]

I did not add anything else.

This is my 2nd try because my first one was put on a stir plate but I did not add acid to it. It showed activity very shortly, the overall colour turned opaque beige. The reason why I made the second one is because I can't determine if it smells good or not... I think it smells like sour milk but my wife says cheese. I don't know if I should use it or not...

 

[RPh_Guy]

I did not add anything else.

You definitely didn't use MTF's suggested starter procedure.
http://www.milkthefunk.com/w/index.php?title=Lactobacillus#Samuel_Aeschlimann.27s_Starter_Procedures

I think it smells like sour milk but my wife says cheese. I don't know if I should use it or not...

If it smells bad don't use it.

 

[homebrudoc]

I did not add anything else.

This is my 2nd try because my first one was put on a stir plate but I did not add acid to it. It showed activity very shortly, the overall colour turned opaque beige. The reason why I made the second one is because I can't determine if it smells good or not... I think it smells like sour milk but my wife says cheese. I don't know if I should use it or not...

Well, milk has lactose which is fermented by lactobacillus (thus the name) so you "might" interpret some aromas as "sour milk". Cheese is also made with lactobacillus so your wife might interpret the same as "cheese". Just speculation on my part.

check the pH if you can. Maybe taste it to see what you get?

homebrudoc