Brendan wrote:They do use lactobacillus bacteria to some extent, but the final mash should not smell unbearable at all.
When you use Pint's method of a corn sour starter, there are 3 bacteria that you allow to work, which is also referred to as lacto-souring. The first bacteria gives a creamed corn smell, the second bacteria smells like vomit (seriously), and then the 3rd kills that one and finishes it off with a nice sweet corn smell...its this bacteria that is introduced to the mash.
If your mash smells similar to vomit, as you said it was unbearable, I'd say you had that second bacteria take hold...this would be a pH problem, as the right pH encourages the 3rd bacteria to take over and it finishes off very acidic (just like backset, which is what the sour corn starter is replicating), inhibiting the unwanted bacteria...
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