I brought a sample of the Zin to the lab mid-ferment. We looked at it under the microscope and also applied a Methylene blue stain and took another look. The first (unstained) image shows happy groups of yeast cells (the circular blobs). When you see them paired up it implies that they are still dividing, thus the population is growing. In the second image you can see the yeast cells that are stained blue. When the stain enters the cell it tells us that the cell is dead, meaning that its cell wall is no longer capable of excluding the stain. In the same image you can also see a few yeast cells that are clearly alive(not blue) It is hard to capture in a single image, but if you scan around the stained slide, you will see that most of the yeast are alive, a good sign as we enter the second half of ferment.
Employee Zi...
