Oh no

[Justin201]

So im msking a melomel with blackberries from my girlfriends parents house get the berries, wash them put them in the water, and all the other stuff , nutrient ext....pitch the yeast, went to check on the mead hour later and this little white worms coming out of the berries😨😨... you think the batch of mead is shot????

 

[Yooper]

Well, you didn't use anything on the berries to kill microbes or bugs (literal bugs in this case!) so I would expect that it's not a sanitary must.

It may be ruined, but you never know!

Next time you use fresh fruit, remember to use campden tablets or pasteurize the fruit or something.

 

[Justin201]

Yeah thank you yooper.. I'm going the chalk this up to experience and dump it and start anew

 

[ChefRex]

Yeah thank you yooper.. I'm going the chalk this up to experience and dump it and start anew

Are you in desperate need of the fermenter? Let it ride

 

[Justin201]

Yeah , you know what I'll let it ferment

 

[kh54s10]

Bugs add protein!! And flavor....

 

[Justin201]

Lol

 

[WVMJ]

STOP! Those are just spotted wing drosophila fruit fly larva, make sure to put a little sulfites in there due to their burrowing into the fruit and maybe contaminating it with vinegar bacteria but otherwise a few larva wont do anything but contribute some protein for your yeasts. Also dont let your girlfriend know there were worms in your new mead or they might not let you make anymore in their house! WVMJ

 

[Justin201]

Wvmj...lol...thank you,

 

[Maylar]

All I can say is.... eeEEeeewww

 

[Justin201]

Lol..we shall call this bug juice. ..hey wvmj should I put sulfites in while its fermenting??

 

[Justin201]

Bug juice

View attachment 1440525034379.jpg

 

[skadalajara]

All I can say is.... eeEEeeewww

All I can say is, if you had any idea how many bugs you eat on a daily basis, you'd get over that pretty quick.
Insects that live on 1 particular plant tend to taste like that plant, so you'd never even know you were eating them.

 

[invictusbrew]

Bug juice

I'd drink it!

 

[fsr_racer]

I'm suddenly having flashbacks of a bottle of cheap mezcal and a crazy night in Rosarito.

 

[Homercidal]

All I can say is.... eeEEeeewww

Don't let it bug you.

 

[invictusbrew]

I'm suddenly having flashbacks of a bottle of cheap mezcal and a crazy night in Rosarito.

You too, huh? Good times... I mean, I don't remember them, but I've been told they were.

A little more on topic, I've only ever had to toss one batch (don't get me wrong, I've had plenty that weren't amazing, but only one I couldn't stomach). A fruit ale with strawberries that I decided not to bother pastuerizing, etc. Only, I didn't get insects, I got some wild yeast that apparently one could use to make paint thinner by the smell and taste of the end product. I gave it over a year to mellow out to a bearable level - it didn't. Luckily, I was in no shortage of bottles, so it made sense to let it ride just to see what happened.

 

[TeeJo]

In the famous words of Foul Old Ron, buggrit!

Bugs are a natural part of natural things, an you REALLY do NOT want to know how many are in the stuff you eat every day!

Alcohol. It sterilizes!

Try not to think about it. Really. You got over that the stuff you started with was essentially vomited up by a bunch of bees, who them walked in it, right?

Best not to discuss with the girlfriend, on those terms, though.


TeeJo

 

[Justin201]

It will most likely be the best melomel I've ever made. ....lol

 

[eagagnon]

Could be a "cool" name Spotted Wing Fruit Fly Melomel.

STOP! Those are just spotted wing drosophila fruit fly larva, make sure to put a little sulfites in there due to their burrowing into the fruit and maybe contaminating it with vinegar bacteria but otherwise a few larva wont do anything but contribute some protein for your yeasts. Also dont let your girlfriend know there were worms in your new mead or they might not let you make anymore in their house! WVMJ

 

[Justin201]

Bug juice is coming along nicely!

View attachment 1442762023513.jpg

 

[WVMJ]

Look who is trying to get a free membership with a well placed sponser sticker:0 Looks like you did a good job, next step is going to be racking if off of that stuff on the bottom into anther jug and topping it up. WVMJ

 

[On-target]

This might be a hard recipe to repeat. ��

 

[Justin201]

Lol..

 

[jhoson]

Do a Bug Juice label for it when bottling :rockin:

 

[lump42]

STOP! Those are just spotted wing drosophila fruit fly larva, make sure to put a little sulfites in there due to their burrowing into the fruit and maybe contaminating it with vinegar bacteria but otherwise a few larva wont do anything but contribute some protein for your yeasts. Also dont let your girlfriend know there were worms in your new mead or they might not let you make anymore in their house! WVMJ

If you freeze the fruit for 3-4 days, that should kill the larvae without affecting fruit quality much. Plus it will begin to break down the fruit cell walls to get the juice out easier.

 

[Caliper]

I would think to soak the berries first with campden to drive any living pests or strange bacteria out, then drain and freeze to kill eggs?

The fermentation looks good though. I guess you can say it self sterilizes as the alcohol level rises?

 

[Justin201]

View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1465166199.698844.jpg

 

[Justin201]

Bug juice is finally bottled

 

[ChefRex]

I think you owe me a bottle since I talk you out of dumping it

 

[Justin201]

Lol. This is true chefRex

 

[buzd]

That is awesome.

 

[Chris_The_Rogue]

Couldn't help myself. Had to do it.

 

[CanadianJesus]

So how does it taste?

 

[Justin201]

Chris that is great, hahaha

 

[Justin201]

Canadian Jesus it is really good