Post your infection
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Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
Just let it ride. You may have a wonderful wild culture in your area. I personally wouldn’t put anything infected on my kegs unless I have a dedicated “wild” keg.
Looks like it’s time for you to get new carboys and lines if this is a reoccurring issue
i remember @IslandLizard helped me out and told me to fix something like that by putting the fermenter in the sunlight and open air....i totally took it out of context, but worked for me....
I used a new hose this time. I soap water and starsan the carboys same way I have for years, honestly I am thinking about just ordering more kegs and storing beer in those in a chest freezer. It still bothers me though, I will pop the lid on the conical and see if its starting in there, I did not clean it between these last two brews.
Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
You don’t drink mix fermentations? I actually have you solid advice. That said I purposely pitch wild cultures/Brett
Remember, your the one with poor sanitation lol
i remember @IslandLizard helped me out and told me to fix something like that by putting the fermenter in the sunlight and open air....i totally took it out of context, but worked for me....
i just know to grown some mushrooms, you just pasturize, not sterilize the substrate...otherwise the mycilium doesn't have any friends and gets it's ass kicked...
i'm not sure if it's GREAT advice, but it is reality, and food for thought...
Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
Deleted, incorrect assumption
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I guess I don't follow what you are saying. I should let it ride and drink 10 gallons of gym socks, and throw away glass carboys that can be sanitized.
Savage! I have been brewing for 15 years, I have had two brews go bad and I knew what happened both times. This one has me confused. My main question, is this definitely a infection?
Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
I’ve only ever seen the plastic carboys have those ridges, so I assumed. That was my fault.
Yes let the beer ride, or 5 gallons atleast. Wild bacteria and yeast don’t necessarily make unpleasant character. It could be fruity and tart with only slight pleasant funk like hay or over ripe fruit. Or yeah, it could be bad but since it’s already fermented and the ph is lowered in the low 4s, your typically clear from awful off flavors.
If the carboys are glass, oxy clean or pbw them then make a starsan solution double the strength. Let it sit in as hot of water that your tap gets. Then replace all beer lines with new ones. Also any gaskets/orings.
Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
Certainly looks like the beginnings of a pellicle with the film, slick bubbles, and the way the film has defined “broken” edges.
My reading comprehension must not be too good, I thought you meant this has happened back to back. Like two beers in a row
Thanks for the thorough answer above. Your reading is dead on, my last batch had a similar thing going on and I kegged it immediately, tasted great. I was hoping to keep this one in carboys but it has a similar infection.
Your comment about funky kegs, I never store warm beer in kegs I always keg and go to a refer. Have you had funky beer from dirty refrigerated kegs?
Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
Yes. Microbes/wild yeast can work at fridge temps (most brewery’s yeasts have been trained or selected to go dormant at low temps). Real world example is food, milk, and non pasteurized fruit juices/items go “bad” in the fridge.
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I guess I was asking about beer specifically. Have you ever had a keg of beer spoil.
Anyway I’m spinning my wheels here. Thanks for the info! If I find the definitive source I will share.
Thanks!
Are you using the same yeast strain? I've had yeast do this before, looks like a pellicle but no off flavors or other signs of infection.
Different yeast.
Here is a picture of the previous infection. It does look different, larger white bubbles, the one I have now is a lot of small bubbles
so....getting into radioactivity? here you go! just joshin' really but thought worth a mention....
https://www.ebay.com/itm/2038514808...S8ATJB1joUb15o/2Iu7W/GCg==|tkp:Bk9SR6So_JHnYA
(be sure to keep an eye on it, and show of your tan!
)
Your racking tubing perhaps? Any fittings or spigots that can harbor bugs?
Is that your primary fermenter, not a secondary, right?
BTW, is that tube hanging in the center an auto siphon?
The photo with the siphon was the first infection, I took a photo while I was siphoning into a keg to save the beer. 1 carboy
The other two photos are a current infection in two separate carboys, appearing to be a different type infection. I had used a new transfer hose, I gravity transfer from conical
Young Brewing
Apartment Brewer 🍻
Cider airlock went dry as I was out of the country for 2 weeks and came back to a surprise! Still ended up being the best cider I’ve ever made.
Seems to be a lot of discussion on the potential for & evidence of infections in fermenters. To support the concern about pet fur & dander, I have 2 dogs & a cat. I stopped brewing until I came up with an area & method that would remove me from the pets’ influence. I was losing about 10% of my batches due to this influence. I have a true love of what I brew so I refinished the basement & created a room with a basin sink that can be sealed off from the pets and as many airborne microbes & wild yeast as possible. I always have a fresh change of clothes & the best thing I ever did was put a mask on when cooling down wort, transferring wort, and kegging. This eliminated all infections from breathing. This was something that I was taught from a master brewer I worked with from one of the big boy brewers.
Well boys, 15 batches successfully brewed and kegged since I got back into brewing I suppose this was going to happen at least once. I do remember brew night being a bit of a drunken haze so I’m sure my usual routine went to the wayside. Here she is in all of her glory. What started as my delicious centennial IPA Tasted like burnt tires filled with hair. Down the drain it went.
Damn, sounds like a decent Fat Tire clone, what a waste!!
Lol!!! I needed that! Well played sir
daggers_nz
Well-Known Member
is this still the main thread for posting potential infections or do you just make your own thread now? I've been away for a few years
Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
No idea. Post a picture and find out lol
daggers_nz
Well-Known Member
no pellicule, just this weird alien lifeform on my Kveik last night pre-bottle. Tastes fine
https://ibb.co/QrJ1Tc9
Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
That looks like mold. Should not be that powdery blue/green. I personally wouldn’t drink it as mold produce toxins.no pellicule, just this weird alien lifeform on my Kveik last night pre-bottle. Tastes fine
https://ibb.co/QrJ1Tc9
As @Dgallo said, that bluish green powder surely looks like mold. That's never good!no pellicule, just this weird alien lifeform on my Kveik last night pre-bottle. Tastes fine
https://ibb.co/QrJ1Tc9
(Well, maybe OK in certain cheeses).
Any clue how that could have developed? Did you add something to your beer while fermenting?
What are those yellowish looking kernels? Looks like corn...
This is more of a "showcase" thread, showing (beautiful) pictures of pellicles and infections.
Yours a good example of a mold infection.
You could start your own thread if you want more in detail discussion about it.
daggers_nz
Well-Known Member
I just remember back in the day (10 years ago when I was active) there was like a yes/no infection thread instead of everyone creating their own, but I can't find it. Makes things more tidy doesn't it? If not, I can take this discussion elsewhere
No idea. They were squishy. There were a few more instaces of blue/green mold among the krausen but I still don't think all of the beer got infected, just whatever this was? Maybe a foreign body got into the beer before adding the yeast.
Nope, just pitched the yeast and let it ride for two weeks
Well, normally the thinking is that nothing that can hurt you can live in beer. I would not chance it though!
Did you scrape/ladle, pick those green mold patches off the top?
It's possible to remove them completely if they're floating on top, although the green dust may disperse somewhat. Maybe you can scoop that off too.
If that beer is done fermenting, you can probably package it by racking the clear/clean beer carefully from underneath the surface, while leaving the surface mostly undisturbed, and the trub on the bottom.
Give the beer a taste, maybe it's just fine. Just don't serve to others without first informing them mold grew on there, showing the picture above, and the potential health risk of consuming products contaminated with mold.
Something was or got into your fermenter or beer at some point, resulting in the green mold patches. Mold needs moisture and oxygen to grow, indicating the headspace CO2 was compromised. So review your cleaning and sanitation regimen. A dirty siphon or racking hose left damp can harbor mold, spores, and bacteria that get transferred, then grow under the right conditions, and voilà!
AmarikinBrew
LOOK! He's diving into that can of beer AGAIN!
no pellicule, just this weird alien lifeform on my Kveik last night pre-bottle. Tastes fine
https://ibb.co/QrJ1Tc9
sKULL cRAWLERS!
daggers_nz
Well-Known Member
We racked to bottle bucket carefully without transferring any of the mold as it was floating on the top and we drained from the bottom tap. Beer tasted fine, and it will be only myself and my gf who drink it.
As for cleaning/sanitising, we're using Mangrove Jack's cold water detergent, rinse out and then Star San (no rinse). We pour directly from kettle into fermenter, no transfer tubing or siphoning.
I've never had issues like this in the past, the only thing I can't eliminate is the fermenter - it's a stainless steel one but it could be cheap quality? We also got a metallic staining around the krausen ring which I've not had in the past.
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That was my thought too... corn.
Could be a aflatoxin. That's bad. Could be penicillium, that's okay. Could be a number of other molds that come in that color. Some bad some benign.
But I wouldn't be risking it. I'd have tossed if if that was in my FV.
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Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
If your fermenter is stainless then you should be fine. Use starSan at double the concentration and with 140*f water (wear gloves when it’s doubled) let it sit for 20 minutes. That should take care of it. Mold spores are airborne and only can live in o2 rich environments, meaning you definitely had o2 present in your headspace.
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Dgallo
Instagram: bantam_brews
And your fv has to be open to the air when you add hot liquid, otherwise it can vacuum
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