Where do you think this might have come from?
In retracing my steps, it could be one of two things. It could be bacteria or fruit flies. We are just coming off a wave of fruit fly season here. My gf mentioned seeing one near my stir plate one evening when i was making the starter, so its possible there, and i did catch a few dead in the airlock on a few brews around the time I made this one (though not this particular batch) , so anything is possible.
i have since disassembled Connie 2 (I named my fermenters *geek*) and soaked all small parts and gaskets in warm pbw for 24 hours, then rinsed and boiled them for 20 min. Then reassembled and soaked the fermenter in an Acid #5 solution for 15 min. If that doesn't solve my problem, then I am at a loss.
I also wonder about my CFCs but I run boiling wort through them everytime for 20 min and then whirlpool at 180-190 for 30 min after that. I've not had problems with other brews since the IPA above, so while I can't rule it out, I don't think it is the problem.