Lacto-Plums – Unpleasant alcoholic/fizzy taste?
I've fermented plums three times now, particularly interested in the liquid for sauces and dressings, but recently it keeps coming out like I've made a terrible alcohol. My first attempt was great—the liquid tasted bright, fruity, and funky, it practically worked as a salad dressing on its own. The two attempts after that both came out with a similar "weird fizzy" flavour that makes me think of salty and sour wine, and I can't really imagine serving it. Any ideas what is happening?
Setup: using the Noma recipe so 2% salt, by weight of the pitted plums (no additional water/brine), using a weight. I've tried with and without airlock lid. Daily burping/stirring/tasting as needed, lots of bubbles and fizz. All three times, I moved to fridge after 5 days. I am using different types of plums (I just grab a handful from whatever farmer's market I'm near), although the last two attempts had a similar alcoholic result despite really different variety and raw taste.
Posted Sep 2, 2025, 3:34 PM UTC