May have lost a batch of honey-brown

After 2 weeks my bottles have a layer of slime in the neck. It's not due to bottle fermentation as it's been there for a week solid. It has some "tiny chunks" and seems to have a high viscosity. I'll crack one later today and smell it.
Is it safe to sip?
Geesh this is my first batch that I'll have to dump.
Not a happy camper as I ONLY have 5 home-brews left from my previous batch.

timg

Sip it.....


Just have 911 on stand by!

If it's a white thin layer that seems to break up like ice when you jiggle the carboy/bottle, then yeah you likely have an infection.

It does not mean you need to dump the batch necessarily, but the longer it sits like that the worse tasting it will become. I have drank a batch I caught early, but had to dump a batch that was sitting like that for a couple weeks.

Just taste it and see. And if it is ok, put all the bottles in the fridge.

you don't know what it is. it could be just fine. smell it and taste it. if it smells terrible you won't want to drink it. if you can stand drinking it, it can't hurt you. nothing can survive in beer that will make you anything but a little ill. RDWHAHB and let us know how it goes.

For once someone thinks their batch might be screwed and it actually might be. You described perfectly the symptoms of a bottle infection.

You do want to keep a close eye on this. If it is indeed an infection those suckers could pop.

Sounds like a lacto infection. If it's not too sour, chill the bottles and drink them up, they are probably still okay if you caught it early.

The one time I had an infection it was a wild yeast infection and it tasted like Satan's @$$. I got nice geysers when I opened the bottles to dump them, too.

dontman said:

For once someone thinks their batch might be screwed and it actually might be. You described perfectly the symptoms of a bottle infection.

You do want to keep a close eye on this. If it is indeed an infection those suckers could pop.

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Yeah, Ive done 12 or so 5 gallon batches and never posted a "It's infected" thread before hahaha..I'm going to pop one and if it's bad I'll dump... ;( sooooo sad!!!

I'm going to cry now (kidding)

brrman said:

Just taste it and see. And if it is ok, put all the bottles in the fridge.

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I can just put them outside, I'm in NY and it's winter .. HEHEHE

timgman said:

Yeah, Ive done 12 or so 5 gallon batches and never posted a "It's infected" thread before hahaha..I'm going to pop one and if it's bad I'll dump... ;( sooooo sad!!!

I'm going to cry now (kidding)

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It truly is sad. I have not had an infection but I did have a batch that I scorched so badly I had to dump. My tears mixed with the beer as it circled the drain.

BTW it is harder to get rid of an infection than to keep one from starting. If it turns out to be one I would clean with oxyclean, soak in bleach and then starsan everything. Maybe even get new hoses.

I wonder if its this:

Brew Your Own: The How-To Homebrew Beer Magazine - Brew Wizard - Preventing Beer Slime & Reducing Tannins But Not Flavor: Mr Wizard

From what you said in the first post, this sounds a lot like what I have in some of my flip tops. Mine looks almost like a mini-krausen ring in the neck of the cheap flip tops from my LHBS. These bottles eventually develop carbonation, but they take longer to do so than my good flip-tops.

My theory is that these have a slow leak that allows a bit of krausen to form just like in the fermentor, but they have enough of a seal to hold in CO2 and eventually carbonate. Maybe this is crazy, but it doesn't taste any different than the rest of the batch.

Let us know what the stuff looks/tastes/feels like once you open one up. Pictures maybe?

giligson said:

I wonder if its this:

Brew Your Own: The How-To Homebrew Beer Magazine - Brew Wizard - Preventing Beer Slime & Reducing Tannins But Not Flavor: Mr Wizard

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IMO this is not what the op has but thank you very much for the pointer to this article. There was actually a poster on this board a couple days back and this sounds like exactly what he was experiencing. If only I could remember the thread.

At this point it has mild carbonation and a tint of vinegar....
will it perhaps clear out?

You'll hopefully be able to see the "skim" on top of my lost work.. you'll also see a bit of crud on top.. and some material in the neck of the bottle...

tastes like vinegar.. you can taste a bit of what was to be, but the overwhelming sour vinegar is all to powerful.


ohhhhhhhh The Humanity!!!!!!!!!!

Please note the skim...... ya know the visible meniscus...


AHHH! I can't look anymore. Geesh!

RIP Honey Brown

timgman said:

At this point it has mild carbonation and a tint of vinegar....
will it perhaps clear out?

Click to expand...

My guess knowing that would be acetobacter. It will develop white gunk like that, and it will turn your beer into vinegar. However, it is an aerobic bug, so it needs oxygen to really develop. It shouldn't progress too much further in your bottles. Drink it quick and you should be fine.

I just brewed another 5 gallons of this batch.. after a 5 gallon batch of ipa.. all seems well so far.. no infections...
I'm always clean and careful... well I'll let you all know.
timg