Fermentation or, Why You Should be Grateful for Yeast

I’ve decided yeast is the source of all happiness. Let me explain.  

I was chatting with a friend about sourdough starters and how they work. I’m no scientist, but I have a rudimentary understanding so I was trying to explain to her in simple terms. Basically, the flour and water in the starter act as bait for yeast that lives in the air. The yeast is drawn to it and eats it. Munch, munch, munch.... as the yeast eats, it farts and creates the bubbles. So, basically, sourdough bread tastes like yeast farts.  

From there, we expounded and connected the same yeast farts to the fermentation process in alcoholic beverages. 

Who knew farts could bring so much joy to life?  

We all laugh at farting. From the time we’re 8 or 9, until we’re folding ourselves into the end of our lives, farting is the funniest thing the human body does.  

But, let’s talk about fermentation for a minute. Not all fermentation creates alcohol. Sourdough bread will not make you tipsy. Many cheeses ferment as well, but they won’t make you fail a breathalyzer. No, the kind of fermentation I’m thinking about, the kind we love, the kind that produces alcohol, is created, for the most part, by yeast. In alcohol, the yeast eats and converts sugars into ethyl alcohol and carbon dioxide. If you’re ever seen a fermenting vat of wine, it bubbles, just like a sourdough starter. The difference is the sugars.  

For the bread, the naturally occurring yeast in the air is drawn to the flour and water. It goes to work on the starch and what is produced is the yummy heartiness and flavoring you get from sourdough bread. It’s similar in cheese making. But when there is sugar, as there is in grapes and other fermentable bases, yeast makes alcohol.  

So, to circle us back to farts, just because they’re finny, when you’re eating sourdough bread, you’re enjoying the hard work the yeast has done on the starches. When you’re munching on that cheese, it’s texture and flavor are a product of the yeast. And when you’re enjoying your favorite alcoholic beverage, that same yeast has worked to create it.  

Bread, cheese, wine.... these things make me happy. Without yeast.... well, I would be a lot less happy.  

Go now and make yourself that charcuterie plate!  

Cheers and drink responsibly!