First time Lacto user

[levensailor]

I want to make a "Mimosa Gose" for next summer and had a few questions:

1. I'm using Wyeast 5335 Lactobacillus buchneri and have made a starter. I used 100g Light DME to 1000ml water and boiled for 10 minutes, then cooled to 100F and pitched the yeast. I took out of the fridge and ran under some lukewarm water for 30m to not shock it. I then covered my Erlenmeyer with sanitized foil and put on a stir plate. After reading about Lacto temperature needs I used a carboy heatband around the flask and it quickly got to around 120F. When I saw this about an hour later I removed the used more loosely and it got to appropriate 100-110F range. Question is its been 24 hours and I don't see the much different, no krausen, just clear solution, did I kill my lacto?
Also I saw the forum where no lacto growth after 11 days, was there ever a solution to that? remove air and take off stirrer?

2. I've read two recipes for Goses and there seems to be some discrepancies on whether to boil the wort after pitching the lacto and before pitching the normal ale yeast. I had planned on waiting for fermentation to complete from the lacto, then aerate again, dropping the temp some and pitch the ale yeast. Can someone talk me through this?

 

[ColoHox]

120F is too hot, but you probably did not kill everything. My approach would be to make a new starter; I prefer to pitch the strongest/healthiest culture I can.

If you do make a new starter, keep it between 90-100F, and avoid aeration. This species of Lacto is anaerobic, which may be another reason why your stir-plate starter did not look very good. That said, it is not required to make a starter for bacteria. Most of the flavor contributions (lactic and acetic acid from this strain) are associated with replication, so it is best to pitch a small culture into the appropriate conditions. Again, without aeration.

The general approach is to pitch your bacteria, hold it around ~100F for a few days, then pitch your yeast. There is no need to boil again after the Lacto, and in fact, you will lose a lot of the delicate and volatile favors if you boil again. The Lacto pitch is self limiting; they end up producing an environment that does not support their continued survival. Next, pitch an acid tolerant ale yeast, like WY1007, aerate, and let it ferment out.

 

[Calder]

You should be ok. Aerating was not the best move, but should not harm it.

Why make a starter? I think making a starter slows the process down as the lacto has to go thru 2 lag phases.

This is an heterofermentative lacto; that is, it makes 1 part lactic acid + 1 part alcohol + CO2 for every sugar molecule. If you boil the wort after souring, you will be boiling off alcohol.

Before you pitch the sacc, make sure it is sour enough (taste it).

It can take a week to sour.