Thin Film on Surface of Cider in old Whisky Barrel

[SacredBrew]

Hello,

My brother and I decided to make use of the plethora of neglected apple trees in our Vermont hillside town this fall. We have an old whisky barrel full of cider. Unfortunately, I have negelected to add cider to the barrel periodically to compensate for evaporation. I looked inside the bung hole today and on top of cider there is a very thin
clearish-to-slightly opaque film with white clusters that look somewhat powdery-ish interpersed within the film. The surface of the cider is about 2 1/2 to 3 inches from the top of the barrel. I tried some cider and it tastes good, like I thought it would taste. The film seems like a relatively new development. What should I do? Re-rack into another barrel? Just be patient, and bottle despite the film? I'd rather not add sulfates but would if it was a make or break situation. . . . Thanks for your consideration. . .

Cheers,

Jony

 

[BrewinDuluth]

I've gotten similar films on top of some of my Belgian beers that I've let age for months on end in the carboy after I've racked it to secondary. The film stayed there until I bottled the beer with no noticeable effect on desired flavor. I wasn't as nervous since I was just brewing in glass but at this point I would just monitor it periodically for any change in the film. As long as there is no progression I wouldn't be too concerned. The less you can pop the bung off to check appearance/flavor/smell the better at this point probably. Good luck