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Author Topic: Is my beer ruined?!  (Read 2781 times)

Offline drunkenpuff

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Is my beer ruined?!
« on: June 02, 2014, 12:41:38 pm »
So i went to keg my oatmeal stout today. There are small fuzzy bubbles on the top. Does it need to be tossed?

Offline theDarkSide

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #1 on: June 02, 2014, 12:52:43 pm »
I doubt it.  It may just be CO2 being release out of solution, especially if you just moved it.  Did you give it a taste?
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Offline drunkenpuff

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #2 on: June 02, 2014, 12:54:09 pm »
I have not tasted it....i was afraid to!!

Offline morticaixavier

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #3 on: June 02, 2014, 01:00:54 pm »
no need to be afraid. can you take a picture and post it? not sure what you mean by fuzzy.
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Offline drunkenpuff

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #4 on: June 02, 2014, 01:18:08 pm »
i cannot figure out how to post the pic

Offline realbeerguy

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #5 on: June 02, 2014, 01:19:30 pm »
CO2.   RDWHAHB
Member Savannah Brewers League & Lowcountry MALTS

Bluffton SC

Offline morticaixavier

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #6 on: June 02, 2014, 01:54:42 pm »


following the link it appears that there may be some contamination. It's hard to tell for sure but that could be a pellicle. good news is that it's perfectly safe to taste. bad news is it might not taste good. Then again it might!

If it is indeed souring there are a few ways to go. You could dump it outright and brew your next batch being more careful with sanitation. You could let it ride and see what it turns into; Sometimes these accidentally infected batches turn out amazing. If it tastes okay now you could drink it up quickly and enjoy it while it lasts.

tell us a bit about your process and let's see if we can pin down where the contamination (if there is any) might have come from.
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Offline drunkenpuff

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #7 on: June 02, 2014, 01:57:56 pm »

Offline drunkenpuff

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #8 on: June 02, 2014, 02:06:39 pm »
Well,it smells OK...from what i can ascertain through the valve! LOL. My process is simple... bring 2 gal water to 165, steep my specialty grains for aprx 20 min. add the LME boil for an hour with hop additions at their respective intervals... meanwhile using StarSan on all my equipment. In this batch i had some old dark roast oak chips which i used in a secondary fermenter. I steamed them for about 20 minutes... this may be where it came from.. i dunno. I'm always a stickler for sanitation....

Offline morticaixavier

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #9 on: June 02, 2014, 02:10:59 pm »
Well,it smells OK...from what i can ascertain through the valve! LOL. My process is simple... bring 2 gal water to 165, steep my specialty grains for aprx 20 min. add the LME boil for an hour with hop additions at their respective intervals... meanwhile using StarSan on all my equipment. In this batch i had some old dark roast oak chips which i used in a secondary fermenter. I steamed them for about 20 minutes... this may be where it came from.. i dunno. I'm always a stickler for sanitation....

Oak chips could be the vector. try soaking in vodka next time. Or maybe nothing is wrong with it at a all. The only reason I think there might be is what appears to be a waxy sort of layer on the top but that could be the photo.
"Creativity is the residue of wasted time"
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"errors are [...] the portals of discovery"
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Offline drunkenpuff

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #10 on: June 02, 2014, 02:15:59 pm »
no, you are correct there is a film on the top. I will taste it in the morning and see what's up..being a night owl i have no more time to mess with it today..gotta work tonight!! Thanks for the input... i will keep you posted. A fellow hombrewer of mine said to rack all but like the last gallon off & it should be fine....we shall soon see.

Offline Kinetic

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #11 on: June 02, 2014, 04:42:41 pm »
It looks infected.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/124997664@N02/14145299218/

You can't post the pic because your sharing settings are restricted.

Offline chumley

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #12 on: June 02, 2014, 05:20:54 pm »
It looks like yeast colonies to me.  Perfectly normal.  Did you happen to use WY1728 Scottish?  If so, that wouldn't be the first time I've seen that with that yeast.

Offline klickitat jim

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #13 on: June 02, 2014, 08:25:48 pm »
As far as safe to drink goes, what is the ph?

Offline drunkenpuff

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Re: Is my beer ruined?!
« Reply #14 on: June 02, 2014, 11:12:33 pm »
Ive not checked the PH yet, as for the yeast i used Wyeast 1084.