Checked out the new fermentation bar in Portland and saw something off

I was at The Brine Spot on 3rd Avenue yesterday. They had a big display of house-made kombucha and kimchi. I noticed their main fermentation crock was sitting right next to a hot radiator. The air around it felt way too warm. I asked the guy working there about it and he just shrugged. Has anyone seen a setup like that before? Seems like a fast way to ruin a batch.

4 comments

4 Comments

craig.alex2mo ago

Right next to a hot radiator? That's wild. Heat kills the good bacteria, so that batch is probably already bad. I make sauerkraut at home and even a sunny window can mess it up. That place is basically serving expensive, warm cabbage juice.

irisowens2mo ago

Yeah warm cabbage juice is a perfect way to put it lol. That's such a bummer, I'd be annoyed paying for that.

cole_flores4417d ago

I walked out of a place in Denver when I saw their kimchi jars sitting in direct sunlight by a window. Told the owner straight up that UV kills lacto-bacteria, and he just stared at me like I was speaking another language. That was the last time I gave them my business.

calebc402mo ago

Craig.alex is right about heat killing the good stuff. Did the guy working there seem like he even knew why that was a problem? Makes you wonder about their whole process.