Big batches?

[SolusUmbra]

Normally I make one small batch at a time and don’t make a new one until I’m done with it, however how does it work if you want to make a big batch? How do you store all the jars so nothing goes bad and the taste stay around the same? What is the time limit on storing them? I know canned items stay good for a really long time is it about the same for fermenting?

[Christopher Weeks]

It depends on what sort of ferment you're talking about, your temperature and what you mean by "good". I have left vegetables at room temp under brine for several years and then tested. They have not made me sick and they even retained their good flavor. But they do get mushy which is a lot less exciting. When I've left kombucha a long time, it gets super sour (not a problem for me) but it also eventually develops mold. Kimchi in the refrigerator lasts, near as I can tell, forever.

I need to get it serviced, but we have a chest freezer on a temperature controller that we keep at about 40F/4C and that allows me to store an extra 40 gallons of fermented produce if I want to use it for nothing but that. (Only true right after a big batch of cucumber pickles.)

I was at Sandor's place a few weeks ago and he has a stainless steel vessel with 200 liters of radish kraut that he makes anew each year and it lasts in his cellar in Tennesee well enough.

[irie1029]

Chris,
Seems green beans if left over 2 years it starts to collect yeast on the beans and on the bottom. What would cause that? I have done garlic scapes and pickles 3 years and stays clear as spring water. They are all made pretty much the same as far as salt to weight and water.

Thanks!

[Christopher Weeks]

I have literally never had a vegetable ferment stay clear. They all produce a light beige "powder" that deposits on the produce and the floor of the vessel. And usually, within a couple weeks, I think... It's just normal and not at all harmful.

So I guess I can't really speak to what the difference is, but I'd worry that the crystal-clear ones weren't bioactive.