I was excited to see you write up how you do buttermilk!  I love using buttermilk for biscuits, pancakes, ranch dressing, cole slaw dressing, etc... and after reading up some more on its goodness in Nourishing Traditions, I was wondering about why they tell you to start with a special starter and then go on to replenish on your own the way you describe.

I have wondered for some weeks why I couldn't just start with some good buttermilk...

My main, and rather simple, question is this- does is matter what kind of milk is used? The buttemilk I buy regularly says it's made with 1% milkfat but we always buy whole milk.  Do you know if it matters?  Would buttermilk made with whole milk just end up a bit richer?  I can't imagine that would be a bad thing... but I could be missing something, lol!

I am excited to start making my own buttermilk and just save a bit on a regular item we consume.  It will be so much easier to always have some on hand if I can just start some more every time it gets a week old, maybe have a regular buttermilk starting day each week, hmmm, now my wheels are turning...

:-)