Russian Imperial Stout - Possible infection...

Hi everyone, me and my crew have brewed probably 25 batches so far so were not beginners by any means. This is probably our 10 all grain batch and were suspecting the worst (first and hopefully last).

So we brewed this >1.1 OG beer with 3 packets of Wyeast and a starter so there should have been a great amount of yeast. There was no problems in our primary for its 3-4 week fermentation. Once we racked it to the secondary we noticed a white cloudy formation at the top. I have attached pictures of this below as best as my camera would allow.

1. Things to note are that this formation has been there for at least 3 weeks and does not seen to have enlarged since we noticed it.

2. I can't give a definative time when we first noticed it (probably at least 2 weeks)

3. The beer has been in the secondary for at least a month and there are still tiny bubbles of activity rising in the carboy. We have not witnessed a bubble from the airlock but with enough time spent near it, I imagine I would.


If anyone could identify this and give some closure on the topic or possible input that would be great. Our intent is to wait it out for the rest of its ~4 months fermentation and just let time solve the issue. Considering the risk of air infection, were not too keen on opening it up for a taste if we don't need to.

Thanks in advance for any help!

Looks like mold to me.

My thoughts exactly...

So we bit the bullet and opened it up to get a taste. We currently don't have a hydrometer since I recently broke it (going to happen sooner or later...).

We could definitely taste the strong alcohol and if I didn't know any better, I did not taste anything out of the ordinary. My brother said that the white thing appeared about a month to a month and a half ago.

Is it safe to say that this is not an infection due to the long period of time and lack of smell or taste? Is there any infection that takes longer then this time period or does not manifest in spoiled beer this soon.

Thanks for any help!