Wild yeast infection or lacto?

[NH81!]

Thought I would try my hand at collecting some wild yeast from a pear off of my pear tree. Am completely new to this and to wild yeast...now am going to be "that guy" do I have an infection or is this a type of lacto that I collected? I dont smell anything funky or off, it smells tart and citrus like. There has been active fermentation, the gravity dropped from 1.038 to 1.008 in 4 days.... There is a white powder covering the surface that I don't see in most online pictures of pellicles...
If it's not an infection what is my next step? Skim off the pellicle before making a bigger starter or leave it? Pictures attached, this is day 4

 

[IslandLizard]

That's exactly what good wild fermentations look like! ^

The pellicle is not thrown by Lactobacillus, it's some other microorganism causing that. It likely rode along with your pear culture.
Most wild "bugs" don't come alone.

There is a white powder covering the surface that I don't see in most online pictures of pellicles...

That pellicle looks excellent! It protects the beer from (other) potential intruders.
Leave the pellicle be, it's totally harmless. If you'd skim it off it will likely grow back.

When stepping up your culture, making a larger starter, you can skim it off, or just mix it in. It's mostly carbohydrates.
Wild brewing can look very gnarly, but's what underneath, that's what we're after.

If it's not an infection what is my next step?

An infection is usually unintentional, something that doesn't belong in your brew.

Most often it's something that got in, unintentionally, spoiling your original beer. Occasionally an infection is actually quite good or even excellent, a happy accident, really. But with the majority of infections, the beer doesn't fare well, and becomes undrinkable, or an acquired taste at best.

It's not really all that different when talking about infections in wild brewing.
Although we're exactly propagating what would be called infections in clean brewing, wild beers can get infected too, with less desirable "bugs."
The wrong bug entering at the wrong time could turn your yummy sour-in-the-making into something very repulsive.

That pellicle helps to keep others out.

 

[NH81!]

Thank you for the indepth reply, as I stated am completely new to this so any and all insight is helpful...so I guess I will leave it alone for a few more days then step it up and do a 1 gallon experimental batch to see what kind of "bugs" I captured

 

[IslandLizard]

so I guess I will leave it alone for a few more days then step it up and do a 1 gallon experimental batch to see what kind of "bugs" I captured

You see all those little "bubbles" in the pellicle?
Those are fermentation gasses being trapped under that "skin."

When the pellicle starts to collapse, the fermentation is nearing its end. That's a good time to step up your (wild) starters.

Is this the first starter step?
What gravity wort did you use here?
How big are those jars, pint-size mason jars, perhaps?
Are they covered with some cloth when you're not taking pictures?
How did you take a gravity sample? Refractometer?

 

[NH81!]

Yea this is the first step, I started with 300ml of 1.038 gravity wort in a pint size Mason jar covered loosely with the Mason jar lid...I used a refractometer to check the gravity and used an online calculator to adjust the reading due to the presence of alcohol, the reading on the refractometer was 5 brix

 

[IslandLizard]

I started with 300ml of 1.038 gravity wort in a pint size Mason jar

That's a pretty high volume and gravity for a first round of (wild) yeast cultivation.* You may have harvested quite a bit of that wild yeast, that surely can speed things up to a pitchable amount.

* Many references start with 20-50ml of 1.010 wort.

Are you going to step this up by adding more wort to what you have, in a larger container?

 

[Dgallo]

@IslandLizard gave you great info! Looks good and very healthy for a wild capture.

Idk if it was mentioned yet as I didn’t read all the posts but you just need to make sure it’s attenuating and tastes pleasant. If it checks both those boxes you’re good to do a step up or two starter and pitch. I’ve always had luck with fruit captures being decent attenuators

 

[NH81!]

* You may have harvested quite a bit of that wild yeast, that surely can speed things up to a pitchable amount.

I peeled about 1/2 of a pear and used that so Maybe that amount helped with the larger then recommended starter amount

Are you going to step this up by adding more wort to what you have, in a larger container?

That's the plan, just remove the pear skin and build it up by doubling it until I get up to 2l then cold crash that pour off most of the wort and collect the yeast

 

[NH81!]

Idk if it was mentioned yet as I didn’t read all the posts but you just need to make sure it’s attenuating and tastes pleasant. If it checks both those boxes you’re good to do a step up or two starter and pitch. I’ve always had luck with fruit captures being decent attenuators

It started at 1.038 and after checking it today, day 4 it's down to 1.008

 

[IslandLizard]

That's the plan, just remove the pear skin and build it up by doubling it until I get up to 2l then cold crash that pour off most of the wort and collect the yeast

I started with 300ml of 1.038 gravity wort in a pint size Mason jar

I would add 300 ml of 1.066 wort to the 300ml you already have.

That will effectively double your volume while bringing the gravity of the new starter mixture back to 1.037 or thereabout, together with the 1.008 beer that's already in there.
// 2*37 - 8 = 66 points. //

I'd leave the pear skin in there. It's a source of nutrition and there can be quite a bit of yeast on or in it.

 

[Dgallo]

It started at 1.038 and after checking it today, day 4 it's down to 1.008

That’s what you want!

 

[hottpeper13]

It sounds to me that a small amount of that starter added to a sourdough fermentation would be ideal. I read somewhere about a capturing wild yeast in your zip code,you send it in and if they think it's worth exploring they delve into it.

 

[suprchunk]

I read somewhere about a capturing wild yeast in your zip code,you send it in and if they think it's worth exploring they delve into it.

Huh? That sounds neat.

I only have heard about bootleg biology taking in local samples. I hadn't heard about any other lab doing it. Do you have a link?

 

[hottpeper13]

No. I would google ,capturing wild yeast in my zip code and see what pops up.

 

[suprchunk]

Like I said, I knew about that one.

I did search: https://bootlegbiology.com/local-yeast-project/

https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/how-to-buy-unusual-yeast <--- another bootleg biology

I could keep posting articles about the same thing I already mentioned, or...

Which one are you speaking of? And what do you mean by "exploring it"? I mean, I could keep searching and asking you if it is the one you were thinking of, or you could just stop keeping it a secret.

 

[hottpeper13]

S!@#, I can't remember ,it was over 2 years ago.

 

[Dgallo]

Which one are you speaking of? And what do you mean by "exploring it"? I mean, I could keep searching and asking you if it is the one you were thinking of, or you could just stop keeping it a secret.

Man. @hottpeper13 was trying to help but didn’t have the link and then you respond like this. Jesus. Who pissed in your coffee

 

[IslandLizard]

Which one are you speaking of? And what do you mean by "exploring it"? I mean, I could keep searching and asking you if it is the one you were thinking of, or you could just stop keeping it a secret.

Please, keep our discussions civil!

There's no need for harsh and argumentative replies.
We share information voluntarily, I doubt anyone intentionally forgets a link.

HBT Moderator

 

[suprchunk]

Whoa! I was just asking. No other intent behind it. I am genuinely curious about another source other than the one I mentioned. And light-hearted ribbing, or at least I thought.

Brewers used to be chill.

Maybe get back to that?