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A: There are a few methods for catching wild yeast and bacteria. Some of the advanced methods involve using agar to isolate individual colonies of yeast or bacteria, but less advanced methods can also be successful although these methods will usually contain mixed cultures of wild microbes. Read the [[Wild Yeast Isolation]] wiki page for more information.

A: You can, but this method doesn't work very well unless you intend to make vinegar with the microbes that you catch this way. Wild yeast that is desirable for brewing doesn't generally grow very well in finished beer or wine. The alcohol and low pH prevent a lot of microbes from growing in beer and wine. Lactic acid bacteria generally don't grow well in finished beer or wine either unless they are already adapted to grow in beer or wine (see the [[Quality Assurance]] wiki page). When you leave a glass of beer or wine out in the open for a few days and a layer of microbes begins growing on top forming a [[Pellicle]], these microbes are acetic acid bacteria such as [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acetobacter ''Acetobacter''] or [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gluconobacter ''Gluconobacter'']. These microbes grow in alcoholic beverages when oxygen is also present and use the ethanol as a food source while excreting acetic acid (vinegar) as a waste product. This can be a good way to make vinegar, but not a good way to catch microbes that will taste good when fermenting out wort or must since acetic acid and acetic acid bacteria such as ''Acetobacter'' and ''Gluconobacter'' are not desireable for beer and wine fermentation. Read the [[Wild Yeast Isolation]] wiki page for more information on how to have better success at catching wild yeast or lactic acid bacteria.