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pond scum
Someone please tell me this is OK... My first batch is sitting in a 3 gallon carboy since 10-19. There is more head space than I would have preferred, but its what I had. There is a layer of sediment on the bottom, but there appears to be a layer of pond scum on top!!! Its filmy and about 1/2 inch thick with spots. I'm familiar enough with microbiology (a clinical microbiologist for 2 years) to know the spots could be bacteria (of course, they could be yeast too, but more likely bacteria).
Please tell me how to fix this and that my batch is fine.
Scott
It's kind of hard to diagnose without a photo. Sometimes beers can just look weird and make you nervous; overtime you learn what you can accept as "normal" and what may be a concern. If you can take a photo and upload it to a site like Flickr or Photobucket it'll be easier for us to give you some feedback.
I tried to take a picture but it did not come out. The film is opaque. Interestingly enough the top 1/2 inch is perfectly clear (aside from the growth) and its cloudy(er) below this 1/2 inch.
Scott
I'm assuming that it is still in the primary and if it is I wouldn't leave it in for that long. Not sure what to tell you other than that. Taste it...if it tastes good go ahead and proceed. If not...makes good fertilizer for the garden or lawn. Good luck.
Hmm.. does it look like any of these pics?
Draw a sample, take a gravity reading and taste it. If the reading is REALLY low and it tastes funky or sour then it may have spoiled. If not then you're probably in the clear.
Does not look like any of those pics. Its in the secondary. It was my goal to bottle it around the new year. If its not growing or getting worse, then I might let it sit for a couple more weeks. The carboy does not get touched so there is movement of fluid that might help it infect the rest (if it IS infected?).
thanks,
Scott
Is this beer or cider?
Its cider.
I like beer but I love cider.
I had that a couple of times even though I KNEW I'd been careful about cleaning and sanitization. There weren't any off flavors or odors to the couple of batches that happened with but it definitely nutted me up.
I'm still not 100% sure what it comes from but it pops up every now and then, usually in the late spring batches. I rather wonder if it's not some sort of airborne pollen or mold spore that grows at that time of the year and is resistant to sanitizer (and sticks to the outside of the damp tubing before I get it into the carboy?). Like yours, the beer is clearer right under it, which makes me wonder if it's not somehow antimicrobial (penicillan is a mold, after all)
It doesnt seem to affect the taste, odor or clarity though, so even though the sight of it generally gets me cursing, I don't worry as much about it (okay, that's a lie, I still nut up....) and I just make sure not to disturb it too much when I rack the brew into the bottling bucket.
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