Partial Bottling

[Dilligaf76]

I have a batch of more than likely contaminated pale ale that is on its second week in the secondary. I'm not real excited about bottling the whole batch and sitting on it for two weeks only to find out its contaminated. (I apparently had a flaw in my brewing routine that has already contaminated three batches, too long to cool down without much of a lid on.) I would like to bottle maybe a gallon of the beer and leave the rest in the secondary to test before I waste time bottling the whole batch. Is this possible and safe? Im sure the single gallon will be fine but will leaving the rest in the secondary expose it to more contamination?
I've got my mini fridge and will be getting all the rest of my kegging equipment soon. (Maybe I should get a chiller first) So if the beer is not contaminated I will most likely keg the rest.
Thanks

 

[day_trippr]

If the secondary ferm vessel isn't open to the elements, letting it sit for a protracted duration shouldn't add any risk of contamination. If you want to rack some of the brew into bottles, just make sure anything that contacts the contents of the ferm vessel is properly sanitized, rack quickly, then reseal the vessel.

If you're using a bucket as a secondary, try to use the hole for the ferm lock as a racking port to avoid exposing the entire bucket mouth to "floaties". If you're using a carboy you can crunch a piece of foil over the mouth/around the cane/autosiphon to avoid the same exposure...

Cheers!

 

[KevinM]

If you do decide to do this, you'll want to move the amount remaining in the secondary to a smaller container as well in order to minimize headspace and prevent oxidation, as well as to prevent any contamination from getting worse due to oxygen exposure, depending on what infection you have.

Plus, you may want to get new racking equipment and mark the old ones "for infected beers" so you don't keep spreading anything, although cleaning and sanitiation *should* clean them.

Depending on how soon your kegs are due... I'd probably leave it all in the secondary and keep an eye out to see if there is any infection in it, and if not, send it to the keg, rather than risk oxidation of a good beer.

 

[Dilligaf76]

Is there a way to tell if it has been infected while still in the secondary?