13 Jul NLBC Wild Yeast Capture Program
Our wild yeast capture program went like this….
First, we made 12 mason jars of neutral, low IBU wort (sugary, pre-beer mixture). Then we placed these mason jars, with open cheesecloth covered tops, at 12 different locations around Santa Barbara. We let the mason jars sit out at their locations for 48 hrs then capped them and placed them in a cool, dark place. After 7 days in the dark we observed, smelled, and tasted the jars…. Some tasted like beer, others like rotten vegetables. Of our 12 mason jar samples, 2 appeared to be viable local wild yeast strains (Mason jars I & IV). Mason jar “I” was placed on top of our Kombucha barrel, so it is truly a Night Lizard Brewing Company “Wild House Strain” as it was collected from the air in the brewery. Mason jar “IV” was placed in the top of one of our brewers 10 foot flowering Myer Lemon tree, most likely yeast from insects or humming birds.
Now the lab work begins…
We washed and isolated the yeast then prop-ed (re-grew with new sugar-rich wort) it into a 1 liter erlenmeyer flasks. After the yeast had eaten all of the sugar in their respective 1 liter flasks(pics online), we made two 5 gallon batches of beer with very little hops in them. We then pitched each respective wild yeast strain into the 5 gallons of beer and now they are in the cold box settling out.
Stay tuned for more information about our Wild Yeast Capture Program as well as more information about the beers being produced from it.
Cheers!