Assembly Line

Fermenting

Yeast or bacteria feed on sugars and leave behind alcohol, acid or gas. The factory's job is to keep the microbes comfortable.

53 lines that use it

Baguette 7 stations · 11 raw sources Baker's yeast 6 stations · 3 raw sources Beer 8 stations · 22 raw sources Bourbon 6 stations · 19 raw sources Bread 7 stations · 11 raw sources Carbon dioxide 5 stations · 6 raw sources Champagne 8 stations · 22 raw sources Cheddar 9 stations · 3 raw sources Cheese 7 stations · 3 raw sources Chocolate 8 stations · 7 raw sources Cocoa beans 4 stations Cocoa butter 6 stations · 1 raw source Cocoa powder 7 stations · 1 raw source Cognac 6 stations · 19 raw sources Crackers 7 stations · 15 raw sources Cream cheese 7 stations · 3 raw sources Croissant 7 stations · 12 raw sources Donut 6 stations · 20 raw sources Ethanol 6 stations · 6 raw sources Gin 7 stations · 13 raw sources Hard cider 7 stations · 20 raw sources Hot sauce 7 stations · 15 raw sources Indigo 3 stations Insulin 7 stations · 11 raw sources Kimchi 6 stations · 8 raw sources Kombucha 5 stations · 12 raw sources Light beer 6 stations · 19 raw sources Linen 6 stations · 2 raw sources Mead 5 stations · 12 raw sources Mezcal 6 stations · 12 raw sources Mozzarella 7 stations · 3 raw sources Mustard 6 stations · 15 raw sources Non-alcoholic beer 6 stations · 21 raw sources Penicillin 7 stations · 11 raw sources Pickles 6 stations · 16 raw sources Port wine 6 stations · 19 raw sources Pretzel 7 stations · 12 raw sources Prosecco 5 stations · 12 raw sources Rum 6 stations · 13 raw sources Sake 8 stations · 14 raw sources Salami 6 stations · 8 raw sources Sauerkraut 6 stations · 12 raw sources Scotch whisky 7 stations · 19 raw sources Sour cream 7 stations · 1 raw source Sourdough bread 6 stations · 11 raw sources Soy sauce 7 stations · 6 raw sources Tequila 7 stations · 13 raw sources Vinegar 6 stations · 8 raw sources Vitamin C tablet 7 stations · 8 raw sources Vodka 7 stations · 15 raw sources Whiskey 7 stations · 13 raw sources Wine 8 stations · 21 raw sources Yogurt 6 stations · 7 raw sources

What it looks like on the line

  • SalamiFerment warm and damp. The salami hangs in a warm, humid room. Bacteria feed on added sugar and make lactic acid. The acid lowers the pH and coagulates the proteins, making the meat inhospitable to harmful bacteria and giving the tang that sets salami apart from plain dried pork.
  • BaguetteProof the loaves. Shaped loaves rest in a warm, humid room so they swell again before they meet the oven.
  • Sourdough breadRise slowly. Yeast produces carbon dioxide and a little ethanol while the bacteria make lactic and acetic acid. The acids give the sour taste, and they also slow staling. Warmer, wetter starters make more lactic acid and cooler, drier ones more acetic.
  • EthanolFerment with yeast. Yeast is added to the mash in huge tanks. It eats the sugar and produces alcohol and carbon dioxide, and the result is a weak alcohol mixture called beer.
  • LinenRot the stalks loose. In retting, bacteria decompose the pectin that glues the fibers to the woody core. It happens in tanks or pools, or straight in the field. Chemical retting is faster but harsher on the fibers and the environment.
  • Cream cheeseSour it with bacteria. Lactic acid bacteria go into the warm blend and feed on milk sugar. As the acid builds, the proteins lose their surface charge, stop repelling each other and the liquid sets into a soft curd.
  • PicklesLet bacteria sour them. Lactic acid bacteria multiply in the brine and turn the cucumber's own sugars into acid. A full-sour pickle sits in the brine long enough to ferment fully. A half-sour comes out sooner, still bright green and crisp.
  • Hard ciderFerment cool and slow. Yeast turns the sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide. Cider is fermented at a low temperature, which slows things and saves aroma that would blow off in a warmer tank.
  • Soy sauceBrew for months. Mold enzymes break the grain proteins into free amino acids and the starches into simple sugars. Lactic acid bacteria and yeast then work on the sugars and add acids, alcohol and many flavor compounds. Traditional soy sauce takes months.
  • Cocoa beansCrack open and pile up. Pods are split with a machete or knife, the rind is thrown away, and the pulp and seeds are heaped in bins or on grates for several days. The pulp liquefies and drains off, and the seeds turn from pale yellow or violet to brown.
  • Non-alcoholic beerFerment as usual. The cooled wort is saturated with air and yeast is added in the fermentation tank. This takes around ten days.
  • Light beerFerment with yeast. Yeast eats the sugar for around ten days, turning it into alcohol and carbon dioxide. With more sugar available the beer comes out stronger than the finished product should be.