Pellicle Photo Collection

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xtian116 said:
I was freaking out until I started looking at these photos. Guess mine is doing good, just never had it look like this.

Looks like something under I microscope. Didn't even zoom.

WLP655 on 4/10/13
Nottingham ale yeast 4/13/13
Picture 4/21/13
 
WLP655 on 4/10/13
Nottingham ale yeast 4/13/13
Picture 4/21/13

You barely pitched 655 2 weeks ago and it already looks like this? Man, that's nuts! I pitched a vial into my Flanders Red a month ago and there's absolutely no sign of a pellicle yet. What are you fermenting in? I've got mine in a well sealed glass carboy.
 
My undefined and unintentional pellicle.

Anyone have an idea what this could be? Better question, what the heck should I do with it? Please see my thread here for more details.

pellicle.jpg
 
Brulosopher said:
You barely pitched 655 2 weeks ago and it already looks like this? Man, that's nuts! I pitched a vial into my Flanders Red a month ago and there's absolutely no sign of a pellicle yet. What are you fermenting in? I've got mine in a well sealed glass carboy.

I have mine in a fermenting bucket from More Beer. They let more oxygen in. I'd try popping the top and putting a sanitized rag over the top for a day or two.

Mine was showing signs after two days, but the gravity didn't change at all. That's why I pitched the Nottingham.
 
sicklesr said:
My undefined and unintentional pellicle.

Anyone have an idea what this could be? Better question, what the heck should I do with it? Please see my thread here for more details.

What were you making? My first 'sour' was from lemon peel. It was an accident and turned out awesome. How long has it been fermenting?
 
What were you making? My first 'sour' was from lemon peel. It was an accident and turned out awesome. How long has it been fermenting?

It was a basic Apline Spring Clone. Pretty normal grain bill / hops, just used a Kolsch yeast at a higher than normal temprature... The full recipe is in my thread linked above.
 
sicklesr said:
It was a basic Apline Spring Clone. Pretty normal grain bill / hops, just used a Kolsch yeast at a higher than normal temprature... The full recipe is in my thread linked above.

I'd ride it out. I wouldn't bottle it until it dropped to at lease 1.008, or you might have some bombs.

If you don't want to wait and see, you could try speaking some out and force carving it. See if you like it. The grain bill isn't that far off from mine. I'm planning on putting a few pounds of black currants and oak in the secondary. That will be in about 4 months, then in two more it'll be exactly what I want. The other half won't go into secondary for at least a year.

If you don't mind the wait, you might have a very nice surprise on your hands. If I were you, I'd save the yeast when you're done just in case you really like the way it came out. My sour lemon one, the only way I can get it exactly the same is by using the old yeast, which I've been using for about two years now. I have no clue what it is or where it came from, but my sour lemon rye is my favorite brew to date. Not sweet at all, but it has that sour in your jaw feeling like eating sour candy and lemon heads at the same time.

And, the more I use the old yeasts s buds, wash them, feed them, split them up and reuse them, the faster I get the desired flavor. I'm actually down to two months in the primary then a week in the keg.
 
xtian116 said:
I have mine in a fermenting bucket from More Beer. They let more oxygen in. I'd try popping the top and putting a sanitized rag over the top for a day or two.

Mine was showing signs after two days, but the gravity didn't change at all. That's why I pitched the Nottingham.

I've read a pellicle isn't really necessary, so I'll keep it sealed for now.
 
Brulosopher said:
I've read a pellicle isn't really necessary, so I'll keep it sealed for now.

You are right there, but it's fun to have something to look at. I mean, come on, what else are you going to do for 6 to 18 months? I like looking at mine, so I encourage the growth. But yes, it's not necessary. If you do open it, be as sterile as humanly possible. My room is like a clean room, you can eat off of the floor, temp controlled, and very well filtered. By opening it you do risk contaminating any other beers in the general area. That's why I have two chambers and two sets of equipment.
 
You are right there, but it's fun to have something to look at. I mean, come on, what else are you going to do for 6 to 18 months? I like looking at mine, so I encourage the growth. But yes, it's not necessary. If you do open it, be as sterile as humanly possible. My room is like a clean room, you can eat off of the floor, temp controlled, and very well filtered. By opening it you do risk contaminating any other beers in the general area. That's why I have two chambers and two sets of equipment.

Take it easy Howard Hughes. ;) Opening the fermenter won't contaminate anything else. The bacteria and/or yeast aren't going to jump out and run away. You would have to have another fermenter open and then splash or in some other way physically get beer from one into the other to have any un-intended innoculation. I've been doing about half brett and/or bacteria beers and half 'clean' with the same tubing, autosiphon, thief, better bottles/carboys etc for a year and had no problems. My sour beers are in my cellar, pretty much the complete opposite of a clean room. It's a scary farmhouse basement full of junk, part of the floor is stone, and there is a prosciutto and a pancetta hanging down there.
 
You are right there, but it's fun to have something to look at. I mean, come on, what else are you going to do for 6 to 18 months? I like looking at mine, so I encourage the growth. But yes, it's not necessary. If you do open it, be as sterile as humanly possible. My room is like a clean room, you can eat off of the floor, temp controlled, and very well filtered. By opening it you do risk contaminating any other beers in the general area. That's why I have two chambers and two sets of equipment.

I want the beers (my first sours) to be as good as possible with not more aceto/vinegar flavor than is necessary; I've heard too much oxygen is culprit in many instances of this. What else am I going to do? Brew 20-30 gallons of quicker turnaround beers every month, that's what I'll do ;)
 
TNGabe said:
Take it easy Howard Hughes. ;) Opening the fermenter won't contaminate anything else. The bacteria and/or yeast aren't going to jump out and run away. You would have to have another fermenter open and then splash or in some other way physically get beer from one into the other to have any un-intended innoculation. I've been doing about half brett and/or bacteria beers and half 'clean' with the same tubing, autosiphon, thief, better bottles/carboys etc for a year and had no problems. My sour beers are in my cellar, pretty much the complete opposite of a clean room. It's a scary farmhouse basement full of junk, part of the floor is stone, and there is a prosciutto and a pancetta hanging down there.

I'm just afraid! I don't ever want any contamination. EVER.
Plus, when people see how clean I keep everything it makes them more willing to try "nasty" homemade beer.
 
the experimental batch, this was back in feb. i had added dregs on dec 27 and wanted to see/taste it around feb. saw this and havent touched it yet. i plan to taste/check og here in a couple months to determine what to do with it.

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Looks fine to me. My Consecration clone had a very similar colors/ textured pellicle, that was more of a "skin" on the top. The Consecration Clone turned out great. No worries mate, RDWDAHB.
 
These are my first three sour brews!!



image-2097428626.jpg
Flanders red with Rosealare and dregs from The Bruery, Jester King and Drie Fontienen.


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Flanders red with ECY Bug County.



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Berliner Weiss. Sour mash with lacto d., clean primary, Brett B. and L. in secondary.
 
BenWillcox said:
Looks fine to me. My Consecration clone had a very similar colors/ textured pellicle, that was more of a "skin" on the top. The Consecration Clone turned out great. No worries mate, RDWDAHB.

Ok cool. This is a Supplication clone that did primary with wy3787 and in secondary I added Brett B and was getting ready to add Roeselare when I saw this. I have Cuvee Rene dregs and Supplication dregs, should I add both or not?
 
VaBrewer said:
Ok cool. This is a Supplication clone that did primary with wy3787 and in secondary I added Brett B and was getting ready to add Roeselare when I saw this. I have Cuvee Rene dregs and Supplication dregs, should I add both or not?

I'd say its up to you if you add anymore yeast or dregs. Opening the Carboy will allow some air in which can be very helpful for the Brett depending if you did aeration to your Brett or wort especially if its been in glass the whole time. Brett needs some air despite what most people say. Read chad yakobson's Brett project, it makes life easier.
 
NordeastBrewer77 said:
These are my first three sour brews!!

Flanders red with Rosealare and dregs from The Bruery, Jester King and Drie Fontienen.

Flanders red with ECY Bug County.

Berliner Weiss. Sour mash with lacto d., clean primary, Brett B. and L. in secondary.

Really loving the last/up close pics of the pellicle.
 
I'd say its up to you if you add anymore yeast or dregs. Opening the Carboy will allow some air in which can be very helpful for the Brett depending if you did aeration to your Brett or wort especially if its been in glass the whole time. Brett needs some air despite what most people say. Read chad yakobson's Brett project, it makes life easier.

I don't think any of what he's posted/published is on secondary fermentation with brett. Isn't his research all focused on brett primaries?
 
TNGabe said:
I don't think any of what he's posted/published is on secondary fermentation with brett. Isn't his research all focused on brett primaries?

It's not all on primary, in his presentation he touches on secondary. I mentioned Chad because his presentations give you a great idea of what to expect out of Brett and what cause the esters and phenols not too mention how it reacts to different environments.
 
kaips1 said:
It's not all on primary, in his presentation he touches on secondary. I mentioned Chad because his presentations give you a great idea of what to expect out of Brett and what cause the esters and phenols not too mention how it reacts to different environments.

The aha presentation or the music city one on YouTube?
 
My Flanders red with rosalare about 2.5 months in. Dumped a brown on yeast cake 3 weeks later but no pellicile on him yet.



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