And we worry about infection

[Loonytoone]

Thanks Terry, I'll perhaps look for an alternative.
Although, like you I have never been ill when drinking my homebrew even from barrels that have been on for ages and throughout the year. But I have once seen what looked like a mouldy residue flop off of the tap and another time had a flying bug flush out as I poured. These did happen during years of brewing though, normally there is no sign of contamination.
I may just drink more and think about it before acting to hastily.

 

[The Baron]

Thanks Terry, I'll perhaps look for an alternative.
Although, like you I have never been ill when drinking my homebrew even from barrels that have been on for ages and throughout the year. But I have once seen what looked like a mouldy residue flop off of the tap and another time had a flying bug flush out as I poured. These did happen during years of brewing though, normally there is no sign of contamination.
I may just drink more and think about it before acting to hastily.

Could be seen as protein and the mould is self medicating on penicillin so alls well

 

[terrym]

Could be seen as protein and the mould is self medicating on penicillin so alls well

I remember an old story that the best farmhouse cider was made when a dead rat was dropped into the fermenting vat.

 

[Llamaman]

I remember an old story that the best farmhouse cider was made when a dead rat was dropped into the fermenting vat.

Cock Ale was made by putting... well,, you can guess, can’t you?

I hasten to add, the avian variety!

 

[marshbrewer]

hasten to add, the avian variety

Yes, because if you used the other variety you would get Fosters, not cider.

Ba doom, tish!

 

[Richie_asg1]

- So that's how Cockfosters got it's name. I always wondered.

Still new to kegs and all of this, but in the summer the coldest place was in the shed outside, so I wrapped up the tap in clingfilm to keep the small flies off, and put the whole thing in a binbag.

The Binbag trick helped enormously when I knocked the tap walking past it as it contained the spray.
I still give the taps a wipe down with a bleach rinsed cloth, and mop up any spills, thenwrap the taps in a bit of clingfilm till next time.
I store the kegs in the back hallway where the vegetables are and you sometimes get small flies if something starts to go mushy. The clingfilm gives me peace of mind that at least the tap stays clean.

 

[Slid]

Cock Ale was made by putting... well,, you can guess, can’t you?

I hasten to add, the avian variety!

There was a recipe in the 1970's Ben Turner book "A Calendar for the Home Winemaker and Brewer". You basically make chicken stock from a carcass and then add the stock to a pale ale.

At some point the fat from the chicken stock is removed by skimming and, from distant memory, a dry acidic wine addition goes in, too.

What I have no clear recollection on, is whether I actually made one. If I did it was unmemorable, and if I did not, it was merely inconceivable, even at the time.

 

[terrym]

What I have no clear recollection on, is whether I actually made one. If I did it was unmemorable, and if I did not, it was merely inconceivable, even at the time.

I think you are due a duvet day.

 

[Slid]

I think you are due a duvet day.

Long overdue, I fear, as the Ben Turner days, for me, were at least 35 years ago.

In the few moments since posting, back comes a vague memory of adding to it a bottle of 3 week white wine kit (from Boots). So maybe I really did make a Cock Ale back in the days when I was still living in my parents' house.

 

[Dutto]

..........

What I have no clear recollection on, is whether I actually made one. If I did it was unmemorable,..............

Or it was a memorable "Black-Out Brew" that you have no memory of and your missus won't let you brew again!

 

[Dutto]

I remember an old story that the best farmhouse cider was made when a dead rat was dropped into the fermenting vat.

A bit like the man that fell into a vat of beer and drowned. A sad story because he had to get out of the vat three times to have a pee before he drowned.

 

[Dr Chris Hop]

Channel surfing and the Hairy Bikers are in some commercial brewery, Manchester I think

• They're open fermenting
• They pull a sample of the fermenting beer to try, handling the vessel before pouring into glasses, then chuck the sampling vessel back in with no sanitsation
  
• The brewery guy takes a gulp from his glass then chucks the remnants back in with the fermenting wort

And we worry about sanitising everything to avoid infections.

I’ve been a microbiologist for over 25 years now and contamination is certainly something you should mitigate against. I’ve only ever had two contaminated batches (touch wood) but that’s two too many. All you need is one rouge bug in the wrong place and that’s it; brew ruined. Why take the risk? Give it a squirt of sanitiser, cover it up, hold your breath when sampling. Simple!!

 

[dad_of_jon]

This Thread brought back a few memories from my time at sea:

1. Passenger sent back an egg because it wasn't "turned". Cook turned the plate through 360 degrees, said to the Steward "One turned egg." and sent it back into the saloon; where it was consumed without comment by the passenger!
2. I complimented the cook on another ship because he always baked a load of bread before we arrived in port. He explained "Kneading the dough is the only way I can get the grime out from under my fingernails before I go ashore." He may have been joking, but ..... ?
3. I filled up a bowl with cornflakes one morning and then wandered over to get some milk. When I got back to the table about half of the "cornflakes" were trying to escape from the bowl as they happened to be weevils!

Happy Days?

PS

Today, the BBC News it told us that the UK will NOT be aligned with the EU after Brexit and that it will cost us money, but the government couldn't tell anyone which particular legislation will be different. I will lay money that at least one of the following will no longer be aligned by the end of this year:

1. Consumer Protection.
2. Workers Rights.
3. Health and Safety Standards.

I pray that I am wrong!

worry ye not.... covid-19 will remove 500,000 of the frail & weakest in GB and that will reduce the burden on the nhs. The uk doesn't have the stomach for quarantine controls like china has implemented. I am aware of at least one uk airhead who having escaped the chinese lockdown wants to met up with their friends to chat about their ordeal and catch up.

 

[dad_of_jon]

I remember an old story that the best farmhouse cider was made when a dead rat was dropped into the fermenting vat.

 

[Ghillie]

Without sounding negative about our friends over the pond, I do believe the Americans to be the driving force behind this “infection” epidemic we’re having.

Whether it comes down to the poor municipal water in a lot of states, or the need for brand names to sell expensive sanitising equipment for financial gain, or simply a desire to over complicate matters - I’m unsure.

But I’m a member of a few Facebook groups with a heavy Yank presence and it would seem like “mountains and molehills” is the recurring trend. Keep seeing lots of beer chucked early with what looks to me like natural healthy krausen. Permanent chat of infection where it’s appears to be regurgitated half truths without actual personal experience. In fact, it’s now somewhat of a running joke which goes to show how much merit there is to it.

Don’t get me wrong, I have sensible sanitary procedures, although I’m nowhere near as strict as I was due to never having a problem to date. In fact I’ve done some brews where just rinsing the equipment used has caused no harm whatsoever and produced beers that have been some of my best to date.

 

[foxy]

It would be nigh impossible to brew a beer and not get an infection, all life forms depend on sugar so a sweet wort is impossible to miss out on, I don't mind those sort of infections, it is said they improve the quality of the beer. It is the beer spoilers that we have to worry about. Luckily most of those can't live without oxygen,don't agree with the pH, don't like co2 or can't abide alcohol. If any of those three deterrents weren't there this forum wouldn't exist and neither would beer.

 

[The Baron]

I think there are a lot of people who are convincing themselves that sometimes beers are infected when all they need is a little more time before making that decision maybe its the sanitary police scaring them, I too have a specific cleaning/sanitising routine of rinsing bottle/kegs after use them especially with bottles (stored in the garage until needed)just one quick rinse then starsan rinse and thats it. Kegs I just wash out put a kettle of boiling water in seal and swish around then rinse out put in about a pint of starsan then store until needed same with FV's

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

I have seen videos of people showing their cleaning regime where they dismantle brewing kit and sanitise every component each time it’s used. This is obsessive and unnecessary. I sterilise all the bits that will touch the beer after chilling the boiled wort. To me this is not onerous and is a sensible precaution.

If you do get anything in your beer you didn’t intend, and it does thrive, the beer might be better or worse but it won’t be the beer you planned for and it won’t be consistent.

Sensible measures are ...errr sensible?

 

[Mangold]

There was a recipe in the 1970's Ben Turner book "A Calendar for the Home Winemaker and Brewer". You basically make chicken stock from a carcass and then add the stock to a pale ale.

At some point the fat from the chicken stock is removed by skimming and, from distant memory, a dry acidic wine addition goes in, too.

What I have no clear recollection on, is whether I actually made one. If I did it was unmemorable, and if I did not, it was merely inconceivable, even at the time.

Someone on another home brew forum (not sure on the rules here if I am allowed to link to another forum) has made said beer. Cock Ale was what he called it and by all accounts was actually drinkable and was ok.

 

[woody1959]

I can't remember if I have posted this before or not.
The brewers didn't obsessively sanitise in those times because there wasn't really a sanitiser they could use.

Yet look what their unsanitized equipment beer did

https://www.thevintagenews.com/2016...one-got-sick-except-drank-beer-instead-water/