artyboy

Recipes 

A week or so ago I built a stir plate and decided to try to collect some wild yeast with it. I put a little wort on it and let it fly. After a few days I threw in the dregs from a bottle of saison de buff. Up until then it still smelled like wort. By the next day it was smelling clovey/yeasty just as I hoped it would. Now after a few more days it's getting really funky and sour smelling. Yesterday I took it off of the stir plate for 10 hours or so while making a starter for an IPA. There was about half an inch of sediment at the bottom. Now, after putting it back on the stir plate and leaving it overnight, it's forming a pellicle over the vortex. Should I leave it on the stir plate for a while or should I take it off of the stir plate? I'm hoping to make a big saison or lambic with this next weekend. Is that too soon?

Gregscsu

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I can't see the pic but personnally I would do a little research to determine what type of bacteria you have, before you pitch it into 5 gallons of wort, possibly ruining it.

Barc

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Chances are you don't have any wild cultures in there other than Lacto. And, if you do, they'll be "overpowered" by the dregs. Brett is not easily captured in my experience but Sacc and Lacto seem to be everywhere. Also, I highly doubt you've got a pellicle forming. They take a while to form and don't like movement a lot. IMO, if you want to pitch it next weekend, step it up and pitch as you would any starter. Looks like you've already got a quart starter there so it shouldn't take a lot more to take off well in 5 gallons. Just don't expect anything other than the yeast Saison du Buff is fermented with.

artyboy

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It's just got that fuzzy covered bubbles that most pellilcles I've seen have. We'll see what it's like in a week I suppose.

Barc

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Brett reminds me of peeling skin, to be kinda gross, but that's what it looks like! It could be lacto since it kinda sounds like that. Or it could be another skin forming bacteria or mold. A week will probably tell you something, for sure.

artyboy

Recipes 

I just took it off of the stir plate this morning. Now there's about an inch or so of creamy white yeast on the bottom of the flask. It smells really sour and yeasty. I tasted it and it's definitely unpleasant but not undrinkable. It's just really sour and yeasty. Should I decant and pitch or just pitch the whole starter?

Barc

Recipes 

Definitely decant. Do you really want that in your beer? I always decant, sour or not. I put my starters in the fridge for a day or so and then pour off most of the liquid, pretty much stopping when I'm really starting to get the yeast coming out. I try not to rock the sediment.