Good article. When that happens I just eat the curd with a spoon like Farmers Cheese

You may be able to thicken the whey again by adding potato starch?

Higher temp favors bacteria (acid), cooler favors the yeasts I remember reading somewhere.

FYI: I just cured a very sick orphan calf of scours by bottle feeding him kefir milk with a little lite salt and potato starch or fruit pectin added. Saw that tip on a homesteading site and it made sense. Did not use any antibiotics, just electrolyte mix and kefir. Completely cured in 5 days and running around now!