Anderson_NJ
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Has anyone seen this happen. Any ideas what this is?
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TheCrackpot
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I didn't know you could brew Black & Tan. I though you had to create it by mixing two different beers. 
TheCrackpot
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Joking aside, I'm not sure what is going on there. I've never seen the beer separate like that. How far along is it and at what temperature do you have it stored? Any sudden and dramatic temp changes?
Anderson_NJ
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Infection? I've never seen a homebrew turn out this way.
Anderson_NJ
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Actually yes. I crashed it down to 34 after about two weeks in primary. The thin layer of ice actually froze on the top. I held it at 34 for about 2-3 weeks.
How far along is that. If fermentation hasn't finished I think it is just a Stratification... It happens occasionally. If it is done fermenting or doesn't clear up, then you may have a problem. What it would be? IDK.
I see now that it is done. I would try mixing it up to see if it blends evenly. If it does and tastes ok - bottle it.
Anderson_NJ
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It should be done. Held the temp at 59-60 for 10 days, and then slowly raised the temp up to 68 over the next 4-6 days.
kombat
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There's the red flag for me.
What did you have for an airlock during this cold-crash? A 3-piece, S-type, or blowoff tube into a pail of Star San?
Anderson_NJ
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Blowoff tube into Star San.
TexasDroughtBrewery
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The only time ive seen a beer look like that is when its still fermenting sometimes they "turn over" as I like to say before everything settles to the bottom but if its been 11 days and you have cold crash I am clueless...
johngaltsmotor
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Bingo. As Kombat suspected. When you cold crashed you sucked all your Starsan back into the fermenter as the air inside cooled. You've now got a blend of finished beer and starsan. I know they say a little bit turns into yeast nutrient, but it looks like you've got quite a bit.
Whether it's possible to salvage I'll let someone with more experience comment on that...
Whether it's possible to salvage I'll let someone with more experience comment on that...
Assuming it is star san floating on beer, you could try and siphon off the bottom and see if you can pull most of the beer out.
I'm not saying you can or can do it with out mixing in some star san. I assume a little is ok for ingestion, but I don't know at what point it might become toxic (heck water is toxic, especially if you inhale it!)...
It might be something to try (the syphoning) and taste it. Or it might not be worth your time.
UndeadFred
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I have had a lager look like that when I got too much kettle break into it, but only for the first day of activity or so.. I suspect I had break on the bottom, yeast on the top and wort in between. But by 8 hours later it was all heterogeneous. That's odd with what you did..
