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===General Advice===
====Starters and Pitching Rate====
In addition to the starter information given in the [[Lactobacillus#Manufacturer_Tips|Manufacturer Tips]] sectionabove, this section includes general advice for ''Lactobacillus'' starters for homebrewers and brewers without access to MRS media, which . MRS media is much more expensive compared to than the materials required for the method below(DME, apple juice, chalk, and yeast nutrients). See [[Lactobacillus#External_Resources|External Resources]] for additional starter guides.
Pitching ~0.5-1 liter per ~20 liters of wort (~0.75-1 gallon per barrel) of ''Lactobacillus'' starter is the general guideline. The exact advisable pitching rates of commercial cultures may differ from manufacture to manufacturer. <ref>[https://www.facebook.com/groups/MilkTheFunk/permalink/1077639885597558/ MTF thread started by Brad Primozic. 5/29/2015.]</ref>. Counting the exact number of cells can be difficult to achieve due to the small size of bacteriacells, so starter volumes are generally used instead when talking about ''pitching rates'' for ''Lactobacillus'' <ref>[https://www.facebook.com/groups/MilkTheFunk/permalink/1068323126529234/?comment_id=1068337639861116&offset=0&total_comments=47&comment_tracking=%7B%22tn%22%3A%22R9%22%7D Conversation on MTF with Bryan Heit. 5/6/2015.]</ref>.
''Starter Procedures:''
# Make a 1 liter starter of '''1.040 SG (10°P) DME Dried Malt Extract wort with 10% apple juice + 20 grams of chalk (CaCO3) + yeast nutrients''' for growth results that are close to MRS media growth results (as per [https://eurekabrewing.wordpress.com/2015/05/18/evaluate-starter-media-to-propagate-lactobacillus-sp/ Samuel Aeschlimann from Eureka Brewing Blog]). Don't worry if the The chalk doesnwon't dissolve into solution; don't worry about it will once the acid is produced. <ref>[https://eurekabrewing.wordpress.com/2015/05/18/evaluate-starter-media-to-propagate-lactobacillus-sp/ Evaluate starter media to propagate Lactobacillus sp., Eureka Brewing Blog, by Samuel Aeschlimann.]</ref>.
# Best practice is that starters should not be aerated, although there may be an exception to this for ''L. brevis'' <ref name="brevis_aeration"></ref>.
# The starter should be held at the temperature best suited for the culture as shown in the [[Lactobacillus#Culture_Charts|Culture Charts]].
# Reference the above [[Lactobacillus#Culture_Charts|Culture Charts]] for how long the starter should be incubated for before pitching.
# Pour all of the liquid of the starter into into the wort/beer, leaving the sediment behind (the . The chalk will sediment out), and is not desirable to pitch into the wort/beer. Avoid cold crashing because it can have an adverse effect on the bacteria's health, and the added lactic acid in the starter can help increase the beer's acidity <ref>[http://suigenerisbrewing.blogspot.ca/2015/05/lacto-starters.html Heit, Bryan. Lacto Starters. Sui Generis Blog. Retrieved 6/15/2015.]</ref>.
See [http://suigenerisbrewing.blogspot.ca/2015/05/lacto-starters.html ''Lacto Starters'', by Bryan Heit of Sui Generis blog] for additional information on ''Lactobacillus'' starters.