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===Lactic Acid Yeast===
Sour meads have become a small experimental subsection of mead making, according to the American Mead Makers Association. Souring processes include souring with lactic acid bacteria prior to yeast fermentation, as well as [[Mixed Fermentation]] that is reminiscent of sour beer mixed fermentation. [https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/445296v1 Peepal et al. (2019) ] compared meads fermented with 13 strains of so-called "Lactic Acid Yeast" (LAY), which are yeast strains that have been demonstrated to produce lactic acid as a byproduct of alcoholic fermentation. Overall, the LAY species had a lower attenuation compared to the industrial wine yeast strain that was used as control (WLP715). Even though the mead fermented with WLP715 resulted in a similar pH as the meads fermented with LAY strains, the meads fermented with LAY strains tasted more acidic due to the production of lactic acid.
Despite the high finishing gravities, 8 of the LAY score above average on the sensory analysis, which was gathered at the 2018 AMMA Conference (490 sensory sheets were gathered from panelists with a range of experience in mead drinking and judging). One strain of ''L. thermotolerans'', ''H. vineae'', and two strains of ''L. fermentati'' scored significantly above average. Overall, the aromas and flavors were described as favorable, although one strain of ''L. thermotolerans'' and ''S. japonicus'' were described as smelling pungent, and another strain of ''L. thermotolerans'' was described as being smelling "sharp". Panelists detected a lot of different fruit character in the aroma, with the most abundant aromas being banana, citrus, fruity, and tropical. The overall flavors were favorable, with a strain of ''H. vineae'' being described as "rich" while some other strains were described as "quite sharp" (several ''L. thermotolerans'' strains and the ''S. japonicus'' strain) <ref>[https://www.biorxiv.org/content/early/2018/10/16/445296 An organoleptic survey of meads made with lactic acid-producing yeasts. Carolyn Peepall, David G. Nickens, Joseph Vinciguerra, Matthew L. Bochman. 2019. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1101/445296.]</ref>.