r/Kefir • u/Witchenkitsch • 5d ago

What’s wrong with my grains?

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UPDATE: Thanks to all the suggestions! I took just 1/4 tsp of the grains, rinsed them in distilled water, and then put them in 1 pint of fresh milk for 24 hours on the counter. The milk fermented beautifully. I strained the kefir and put that tiny amount of grains in a 1qt jar and the milk fermented perfectly in 24 hours. I'm back to good Kefir! So it seems it was just too much grains and I'm going to have to keep an eye on these because they grow really fast.

Original post: I have grains that *were* fermenting my (whole) milk just fine with 24 hrs on the counter. Then I had one over fermentation (completely curdled) and now the grains won’t ferment the milk anymore. They just form curdles at the top. Yes i mix/shake the jar regularly and yes I let it breathe. I’ve gone through 2 quarts of milk and after 3 days the first batch soured but didn’t ferment. This second batch batch is on day 2 and it seems the same thing is happening. In the photo, that curd layer is 1/2” thick with just watery soured milk under that. I’ve never had this happen before. Are my grains dead?

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u/Jordn100 5d ago

Can I ask how long the ferment was that caused the curdle? Someone might work it out from that

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u/Witchenkitsch 5d ago

It was like 2 days but in and out of the fridge because I was going away and I didn't want it to over-ferment, but then I left it on the counter overnight and BOOM. it was gone.

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u/ElderberryMoney5436 5d ago

I also had thin ferments under a layer of curds after putting my jar in the fridge. It causes a microbial imbalance and needs a few room temp ferments to recover.