do I need to dump my apfelwein?

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Goofynewfie

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I had it in the basement bulk aging, its about 9%. today I went to look at it to see how clear it was and sometime in the last week somehow the plastic base on my airlock developed a huge split. when I look in side there was some fruit flies floating in the cider and 2 maggots on the inside of the glass. does it need to go down the drain or is it salvageable? the maggots really disgust me so I am really strongly leaning towards down the drain
 
Some thought:
Could you pasteurize it and just allow it to clear? Or pasteurize, clear & then jack some of it?
Just curious: What is the SG? Any idea how long it was exposed? But if you salvage it will you have any issues consuming it or sharing with others? I mean some bottles of tequila have worms in them, right? I can see your label, the cartoon-y bright red apple with the animated worm sticking out!!
 
I can't speak for anyone else but personally i'd preffer not to drink anything that had maggot corpses in it at one time or another.However you could bottle it and give it to your buddy whom never pitches in for beerruns.:D
 
I think I just threw up a little in my mouth reading this post. Personally, I couldn't drink it, but that doesn't mean you couldn't make it safe to drink. I guess I'm still recovering from finding a used band-aid in my birthday cake last night. In case you were wondering, I didn't find the band-aid until I bit down and felt its odd texture between my molars.
 
The gravity was about 1.00ish( I had three consecutive readings of1.00 over the course of a week about six weeks ago), it had been bulkaging for three months. I just racked it off the lees about 2 weeks ago, stabilized and topped up with about 3/4 cup of juice. Its a 1g batch. It was exposed for a week at the most because I am just waiting for it to clear and am checking it once a week. last week there was no split in the plastic
 
I would guess that at 9% is it almost certainly non-infected. However, if it is going to skeeve you out to drink it knowing what you know now, I think you have your answer.
 
As more time passes the point that saramc raised about the tequila worm makes sense. Im not as bad as I was when first discovered it. Im just concerned about aecobacter or other infections. I know the alcohol is antiseptic I'm not sure the percentage is high enough to do much
 
In the name of science I would isolate/quarantine it & let it finish its natural course, see what happens. It may be the best batch yet. The good news, it is just one gallon.
 
I think it's safe to say when maggots get involved you should probably just hum that "Circle of Life" song while dumping down the toilet.

That's how I'd play it anyway. I don't care how good something tastes... The second I tell folks "Ya, I just scooped the maggots out and it cleared right up..." They may not have too much more.
 
Ewww. Dump. It wouldn't be an option for me personally. Not ok with maggots, and the brew isn't expensive.
 
why dump it? I would rack it, give it a dose of campden, and let it continue to age. Remember, a lot of bottles come with a worm included :) They couldn't be that bad.
 
Common sense would dictate that it's salvageable. However, personally, I couldn't do it. I remember watching an episode of 'fear factor' where the contestants had to eat 'maggoty cheese'. Couldn't do it. Harmeless? Yep. Just protein? Yep. Maggots? Whudevah, aint' eatin' it.
 
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