Red Mould

Priority task after coming home from a long spell away is always to take care of my microbial friends. The 100% hydration bread starter came back to life just fine. The kefir will have to wait till tomorrow and the 75% hydration wholemeal a little longer still. The yoghurt I did yesterday, and was greeted with a sight I'd never seen before.

Those orange-red dots were growing on some of the yoghurt that had become stranded at the top of the jar, which had been sitting in the fridge for a little more than a month. I think they must be Sporendonema casei, the most common red mould on cheeses. It doesn't seem to be in the least bit harmful, and may well be desirable. In any case, I avoided it while inoculating the new batch, which turned out just fine.