Accidentally made a gallon of damn tasty vinegar!

[RolandD]

So, I did a side by side comparison of Lalvin D-47 and Cider House Select Cider Yeast using Great Value Apple Juice. (Under the same conditions, the CHSCY generated a lot of sulfur, hoping it ages out. D-47 was completely absent of any sulfur and deliciously drinkable straight out of secondary.) When I racked to secondary, I had an extra half gallon of each that I combined in a one gallon Fermonster.

After a week in secondary, I treated the six gallon carboys with K-Meta and K-Sorb, but left the one gallon untreated. I had intended to try out sweetening the one gallon with FAJC, but didn't get around to it until I was ready to keg. So, the one gallon sat untreated with too much head-space for two weeks.

When I racked to a couple of empty juice bottles and sampled it, I immediately thought I tasted vinegar, but it was so subtle that I asked SWMBO for a second opinion. I had divided a can of FAJC into quarters and added a quarter to each bottle prior to racking, so when she declared it good, I added the remaining FAJC. After more extensive sampling, I could still taste vinegar and we realized there was no alcohol or so little alcohol that we weren't getting that little, tiny buzz that comes with sampling a few cups. It does taste really good.

I was concerned that, with the addition of the FAJC, fermentation might restart, but so far that doesn't seem to be the case. I will continue to monitor the bottles for pressure.

I am surprised that a 6+% ABV produced such a subtle flavored vinegar. SWMBO is already thinking up ways to use it.

 

[ehall]

you may have to be really careful using any equipment that was exposed to 'vinegar' solution. it can cross contaminate and ruin any future batches.

 

[bleme]

About 6 years ago I racked a gallon of beer to a jug with brett dregs just to see what it would do, then bottled the rest. As I was cleaning things up, I noticed I still had a clean gallon jug sitting on the counter and realized that I might have racked to an unsanitized one. Sure enough, I produced a gallon of pretty nice malt vinegar.

 

[RolandD]

you may have to be really careful using any equipment that was exposed to 'vinegar' solution. it can cross contaminate and ruin any future batches.

Everything got a good soak in PBW, rinsed, then a good soak in StarSan.

My understanding is that acetobacteria are everywhere, even in the motes of dust floating around, and it's more about not giving it a chance to take hold.

 

[Maylar]

Does it have a "mother of vinegar" growing in it? (Google will explain better than I can).

 

[RolandD]

Does it have a "mother of vinegar" growing in it? (Google will explain better than I can).

No explanation needed. I thought I saw a wisps of mother as I was racking it, but can't see any in the bottles now. There doesn't appear to be enough yeast left to restart fermentation and with no alcohol it seems to have stabilized.

 

[jerrylotto]

Acetobacter needs oxygen to convert ethanol to acetic acid (vinegar). I just poured a half keg of NEIPA down the drain that was darned tasty when I first tapped it but after three weeks at 37F, it picked up a strong vinegar taste. Don't know where the oxygen came from as the keg was always under positive CO2 pressure and I did all closed transfers after fermentation, but there had to been enough around to do the job.