natural fermentation, is it safe

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Chevystairs
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natural fermentation, is it safe

Post by Chevystairs »

i have some bags of berries that my wife left outside in ziplocks. they smell like they've fermented themselves. i've seen the birds eat old berries off the tree and they seem to get a good buzz going.
so my question is could i use berries, fruits that have fermented naturally and distill them. my worry would be maybe botchalism, or some other poison created. or maybe it would just taste bad, bad in bad out kinda thing.
ps. i have thrown them in a bucket with some sugar and yeast just to see what would happen.
I have looked at almost every site rule and forum on here first before I posted anything but i'm simple man and sometimes "it gets all blocked up in my mouth and i don't say it no goods"
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subbrew
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Re: natural fermentation, is it safe

Post by subbrew »

Natural fermentation is fine. I would check the alcohol if you have the equipment. I have had fruit try to naturally ferment but only gets to 2 to 3% abv, not really worth the effort.

But by adding the sugar you should boost that abv and then certainly run it. Once distilled it will be safe.
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still_stirrin
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Re: natural fermentation, is it safe

Post by still_stirrin »

Chevy,

It is quite common for overripe fruit to ferment “spontaneously”. However, with wild yeast, it is unpredictable how inviting the resulting ferment will actually taste. There is simply too many wild yeasts and spores floating around to know what you’ll get. And repeatability may me just as unpredictable.

But here’s a little anecdote: I grew up on a dairy farm. We had a couple of silos (tall, cylinder-shaped feed storage structures) into which we would fill with chopped corn, ears and the leafy stalks and all. The corn was cut when the stalks were still green and the insilage would drain juices out of the bottom of the silos.

Because of the juice (a sugary water), as well as the compression from the bin full of feed, the silos would get warm. Wild yeast would spontaneously ferment inside the silos, and the juice squeezed out the bottom was often a “farm beer”. The dairy cows would love to come lick the drainage because it not only smelled wonderful, but it tasted good too. The cows would often get a buzz going from their little “binge drinking”.

Seeing the cows sipping the drainage, I often would dip my finger into the puddle to taste their liquor. Hmmmm …. not bad!
ss
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Stonecutter
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Re: natural fermentation, is it safe

Post by Stonecutter »

I’ve read about complaints from the Vintage Shiners is that what’s wrong with our stuff is that we “use yeast”.

The unpredictability, of wild yeast is what would cause me to hesitate. I would assume any Botulism or harmful stuffs would be annihilated in the still.

I recently did my first fermented hot sauce using no added yeast and I’m still standing…..
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jonnys_spirit
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Re: natural fermentation, is it safe

Post by jonnys_spirit »

If I get fresh grapes during wine season i’ll usually start off with a natural yeast ferment to add some complexity. Usually need to watch it closely and hit it with a commercial yeast of my choosing to finish the ferment. I haven’t done this with a mash though. I did ferment some fresh sorghum juice once which had a very healthy natural yeast that started up the ferment quickly which I augmented with commercial yeast (don’t remember what I used).

I tend to say yes. Use the natural yeast to start then when it lags hit it with an appropriate commercial strain :)

The yeasties do most of the work so they’re sorta important :)

Cheers!
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i prefer my mash shaken, not stirred
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Bradster68
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Re: natural fermentation, is it safe

Post by Bradster68 »

Because of the juice (a sugary water), as well as the compression from the bin full of feed, the silos would get warm. Wild yeast would spontaneously ferment inside the silos, and the juice squeezed out the bottom was often a “farm beer”. The dairy cows would love to come lick the drainage because it not only smelled wonderful, but it tasted good too. The cows would often get a buzz going from their little “binge drinking”.

Seeing the cows sipping the drainage, I often would dip my finger into the puddle to taste their liquor. Hmmmm …. not bad!

"WHAAAAT"? Omg iv never heard of that. Been around quite a few dairy and beef farms my whole life.
That is some pretty crazy stuff. Very interesting. 🤣
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subbrew
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Re: natural fermentation, is it safe

Post by subbrew »

still_stirrin wrote: Mon Feb 06, 2023 4:40 pm Chevy,

It is quite common for overripe fruit to ferment “spontaneously”. However, with wild yeast, it is unpredictable how inviting the resulting ferment will actually taste. There is simply too many wild yeasts and spores floating around to know what you’ll get. And repeatability may me just as unpredictable.

But here’s a little anecdote: I grew up on a dairy farm. We had a couple of silos (tall, cylinder-shaped feed storage structures) into which we would fill with chopped corn, ears and the leafy stalks and all. The corn was cut when the stalks were still green and the insilage would drain juices out of the bottom of the silos.

Because of the juice (a sugary water), as well as the compression from the bin full of feed, the silos would get warm. Wild yeast would spontaneously ferment inside the silos, and the juice squeezed out the bottom was often a “farm beer”. The dairy cows would love to come lick the drainage because it not only smelled wonderful, but it tasted good too. The cows would often get a buzz going from their little “binge drinking”.

Seeing the cows sipping the drainage, I often would dip my finger into the puddle to taste their liquor. Hmmmm …. not bad!
ss
we did not have the luxury of silos, just a pit. And it was all fed with a tine scoop. But it smelled so good when the steam was coming off it on a cold morning. The chopper we had left chunks of cob with kernels on. They turned all brown and soft and had an alcohol and sour tang to them that both the cattle and I liked.
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